325 doctors and nurses, five PhDs awarded degrees at AKU convocation

325 doctors and nurses,

five PhDs awarded degrees at AKU convocation

The News By Saher Baloch

Karachi Amidst loud cheers and encouraging words, 330 graduates from the Agha Khan University (AKU) were awarded degrees and diplomas at the university’s 22nd convocation ceremony on Saturday. The graduating students, most of whom hailed from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, United States, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, were awarded for their outstanding performance in the fields of nursing and medicine. Dr Maleeha Lodhi, former ambassador of Pakistan to the US and UK, was the chief guest of the event and who, with her encouraging words, made the event more worthwhile for the students. Speaking about the challenges that Pakistan is facing at the moment she said that though it would be an added burden for the graduates but they must choose to fight for the injustices plaguing society presently. “Desperation and hopelessness often lead people to commit violent acts and it is this hopelessness and helplessness that you and I have to fight against in order to bring change and transformation in our society,” Dr Lodhi said. She encouraged the newly-graduated students to be “winners rather than whiners” and to make use of their skill and knowledge not only for the pursuit of their professional goals but also to reduce the burden of inequities that impair the process of justice and development. “There will, no doubt, be many choices for you to make but I hope that you choose courage over comfort, action over inertia, compassion over complacency, bridges over barriers and above all hope over fear,” she told the graduates. Meanwhile, people watching the proceedings lost count of the number of times a student was called on stage. Taimur Saleem, a graduating student, got a standing ovation from the faculty and students as well as by the parents sitting in the auditorium, by winning over 11 distinctions in numerous subjects, including Biochemistry, medicine and others. Speaking about the role of the young generation in helping the country to cope with the present crisis, Saleem said that to help the country in times of crisis one must choose ‘home’ over opportunities. “The only way we can help our country is by learning the required skills from abroad and coming back to use them in our country,” he said. Meanwhile, Saleem also earned a Gold Medal for acquiring the highest marks in all four professional examinations. He is the eighth recipient of a Gold Medal in the history of AKU. As many as 172 students graduated this year from the AKU School of Nursing; 116 students graduated from the Medical College. Three of the latter received a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Health Sciences. Apart from that AKU’s Institute for Educational Development granted degrees to 42 students with two PhDs in Education. Three additional awards were also presented. The Award of Excellence in Education went to Dr Rukhsana Zuberi for her outstanding contribution to education and the Award of Distinction to Dr Syed Hussain Mohammad Jafri while Dr Jamsher Talati received the Professor Emeritus award by earning a heavy applause from the faculty staff and students. Source - The News