Bright futures

Cardiff University’s School of Welsh held its Graduation ceremony and reception on Thursday 18 July 2019.

St David’s Hall played host to the ceremony which was followed by a reception held in the Council Chamber of the University’s architecturally imposing Main Building.

After the formalities of the ceremony, the reception provided graduates and their families with the opportunity to celebrate this major milestone over canapes and wine with their peers and School staff.

This year, the School was celebrating the achievements of 39 undergraduate and postgraduate students, with four undergraduates achieving a First-Class Honours Degree.

Five students were presented with an MA in Welsh and Celtic Studies with five other students achieving their PhD.

During the reception, Dr Dylan Foster Evans, Head of the School of Welsh, spoke about the special community and atmosphere within the School as well as the close relationship between staff and students. He stated that the enthusiasm, curiosity and passion of the students for the Welsh language had enriched the School’s community and culture.

Prizes

Dr Foster Evans also presented the G. J. Williams Memorial Prizes to Carwyn Hawkins (BA Welsh) and Alys Greene (LLM Law and Welsh). The prizes are given in honour of the noted scholar who lectured at Cardiff University for 36 years. They recognise the academic achievement and final degree results of the recipients.

In addition to the G.J. Williams Prizes, Dr Foster Evans announced the creation of a new prize in honour of Professor Sioned Davies. Professor Davies served as Head of the School of Welsh for 20 years until 2017. At the end of July, she will retire after 40 years at Cardiff University. The new prize given in recognition of the best performance, during the taught component or the dissertation, on the MA in Welsh and Celtic Studies. This year, the Sioned Davies Prize was given to Judith Musker-Turner for her creative and experimental project composing poetry through sewing words onto a costume and gloves. This original and multidisciplinary project combined literary criticism and cognitive science and developed a new understanding of the creative process.

Farewells

Dr Foster Evans said: “Graduation is a special occasion for everyone involved, and one that, we as a School, take great pride in.

“It was fantastic to celebrate with our graduates and their families and to have the chance to thank School staff for all of their hard work, especially Sioned Davies and former School Manager, Eirwen Williams, as they retire. Their contribution, over many years, to the success and development of the School is impossible to measure.”

Several of the graduates will be returning to the School to undertake higher degrees and many have secured exciting roles in a range of different professions and sectors. The School has a long track record of supporting students into employment and the most recent statistics show that 91% of undergraduates were in work, or further study, six months after graduating (Destination of Leavers from Higher Education 2016/17).