Temple University, Japan Campus (TUJ) held its 2017 commencement ceremony on Sunday, June 4 at the Shinagawa Prince Hotel, Tokyo. This commencement in Japan was attended by a Temple Main delegation headed by President Richard Englert, together with Mr. Jason Hyland, Charge d’Affaires, a.i., U.S. Embassy Tokyo, celebrating the class of 2017 flying off to the world from “Sea of Diversity” or TUJ with students from around 60 countries.
The TUJ ceremony was part of the 130th commencement of Temple University (TU), which took place on May 11 at Main Campus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This year the combined commencement at Main Campus and TUJ honored a total of over 9,500 graduates, the largest ever class. The graduates represented 86 countries and 45 states, plus Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. At TUJ, a total of 277 students graduated from the undergraduate, master’s and doctoral degree programs.
In the keynote address, Mr. Hyland of the U.S. Embassy Tokyo reflected upon his experiences in his foreign service and emphasized, “I encourage you to continue your study of foreign language and culture, regardless of the professional field you pursue. I also urge you to treasure your network of people and invest in it. Take the time to make connections, value them and stay in touch.”
Two graduating students, Daniel Hart, B.S., from the U.S.A. and Megumi Yen, LL.M, from Tokyo gave speeches on behalf of fellow graduates in the undergraduate and graduate programs. They reflected upon their memories at TUJ, spoke about their future ambitions, and expressed appreciation to their family and friends. Full transcripts of the speeches are available here.
The event was broadcast live online, allowing friends and family around the world to tune in and share the experience with the graduates. The broadcast can be viewed here.
Founded in 1884, Temple University (TU), is a comprehensive public research university, and ranked in the 301-350 group of the top world universities in Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2016-2017*.
TUJ is celebrating its 35th anniversary here in Tokyo this year. As the only four-year American university in Japan, TUJ continues to be committed to fostering students to become well-prepared professionals in a global market in various fields.
Total number of graduates in the TUJ Class of 2017: 277名
- Associate of Arts: 8
- Bachelor of Arts / Bachelor of Science / Bachelor of Business Administration: 183
- Master of Laws: 26
- Master of Business Administration: 14
- Master of Science in Education: 38
- Doctor of Education / Doctor of Philosophy: 8
*Read more in this related article: Temple University in a Global Context: How the World Sees Us Through Rankings
- Graduation 2017 website
- Graduate 2017 speeches
- Graduation 2017 video