Tokyo Institute of Technology: 2021 Fall Graduation Ceremonies
The 2021 Fall Graduation Ceremonies for Tokyo Tech students were held on September 24, 2021. Bachelor’s degree recipients were acknowledged in the morning, while master’s and doctoral graduates were honored in the afternoon. A total of 473 degrees — 91 doctoral degrees, 287 master’s degrees, 14 professional master’s degrees, and 81 bachelor’s degrees — were conferred.
Due to preventive measures against COVID-19, in-person participants were limited to less than half of the capacity of the 70th Anniversary Auditorium, this fall’s venue for the event. Approximately 60 bachelor’s degree students were present in the morning, while roughly 250 master’s and doctoral degree students joined President Kazuya Masu, other members of the Board, and guests at the venue in the afternoon. Other students, family members, faculty, and friends were asked to experience the celebrations virtually via a livestream.
During his congratulatory speeches, Masu noted how the global pandemic had further accelerated change in a rapidly evolving world, and highlighted the graduates’ mastery of the abilities required to continue creating a better future in this environment. “The resilience, persistence, and passion demonstrated by each one of you is truly admirable,” the president stated.
Mr. Kiyoto Ido, president of the Tokyo Tech Alumni Association (Class of 1972, Department of Mathematics), also gave a short congratulatory speech, encouraging the fresh graduates to utilize their newly acquired knowledge and human connections to create broader impact in society.
After the conferral of degrees at the morning ceremony, valedictorian and bachelor’s degree recipient Yuhei Kitahara from the Department of Information and Communications Engineering expressed his gratitude on behalf of the graduating students. “From today, each of us will have a different path to follow, but all of us graduates will make use of the knowledge, skills, and spirit we have cultivated at Tokyo Tech to solve many difficult problems in the world,” Kitahara stated.
Valedictorian Asato Tamura, who completed a doctoral degree in Mechanical Engineering, also gave a short speech in the afternoon on behalf of the graduating master’s and doctoral program students. As graduates of Tokyo Tech, “we should take responsibility and make contributions to society,” Tamura stated.