Our ceremonies and awards
The Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences ceremonies and awards are highlights in our academic year. These events serve as unique and special opportunities for our students, staff and their families to celebrate achievements and commit themselves to excellence.
THE UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT COMMITMENT
True to its promise to innovation and excellence in health sciences education, the FMHS leads its first year students in an undergraduate student commitment, which they pledge to at the commencement of their training. The Undergraduate Student Commitment at the FMHS was introduced for the first time in 2018 and is a first for the university.
Worldwide, health professionals commit to an undertaking once they have completed their training. With the introduction of this commitment at the commencement of training, first-year medicine and health sciences students are held accountable for their conduct all the way through their studies.
Click here to read the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences' Undergraduate Student Commitment.
THE HEALTH PROFESSIONAL'S COMMITMENT
The FMHS has adapted the original Hippocratic Oath of Ethics, which was historically taken by physicians, into a unique Health Professional's Commitment for undergraduate students at the faculty. The Health Professional's Commitment is a promise by each graduand of the FMHS to be an ethical health professional who respects people, cares for themselves and treats others with dignity, integrity and compassion. Upon completion of each of the FMHS' six undergraduate programmes, all graduating health professionals pledge to uphold the values they had been taught to espouse during their time in training. The Health Professional's Pledge Ceremony takes place before graduation.
OUR UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT AWARDS
The Health Professional's Pledge ceremony is also an opportunity to recognise outstanding performance achieved by our students during their undergraduate studies in a variety of fields. Together with a number of sponsors, the FMHS recognises the best performing undergraduate students across its programmes with awards at the Health Professional's Pledge Ceremony. Prizes are awarded to undergraduate students with consistently high academic performance records in their years of study and the Dean's Award for Excellence in Leadership is presented to the undergraduate student who demonstrated leadership abilities across academic and extra-curricular spheres.
GRADUATION CEREMONIES
Graduation ceremonies at Stellenbosch University constitute the conferring of academic degrees and diplomas upon candidates who have successfully completed their students. The academic graduation ceremonies, which includes the capping of successful candidates from each of SU's ten faculties, is believed to have originated from a statute issued in 1432 at Oxford University.
The graduation ceremony is an orchestrated process involving an academic procession, the delivery of a keynote address and the capping and awarding of degrees and diplomas to successful students. It is one of the most important moments in the lives of students and signals the graduation of students from one stage of their lives to another.
Stellenbosch University traditionally annually hosts graduation ceremonies in March and December.