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Vote of thanks from grateful graduate

April 03, 2006

University Medal-winner Cindy HonanWith an honours degree in her pocket and a University Medal around her neck, Cynthia Honan had every reason to be smiling on Saturday. And it was with heartfelt gratitude that she delivered a vote of thanks on behalf of all graduates to The University of New England, its staff, family and friends at the graduation ceremony of the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences.

“For many of us graduands, it is hard to believe that we have finally made it,” she told the crowd of more than 1000. “And whilst we all have our own special story to tell of our time here with The University of New England, we can all agree that it has certainly been a long journey.”

For Ms Honan, who graduated with a Bachelor of Psychology (Honours), her journey began in 2001, when she enrolled at UNE as an external student. At the beginning of 2005 she transferred to Armidale to complete her honours year. Along the way she collected a Frederick G. White scholarship and the Australian Psychological Society Prize. She is now pursuing a PhD in Psychology at UNE, with the hope of becoming a research psychologist upon graduation.

In addition to studying, Ms Honan held down a full-time job for the first four years of her studies, a feat that she could not have pulled off without UNE's outstanding distance education program, she said on Saturday.

“Studying at Australia’s first regional university, and leading university for distance education, meant that I had the opportunity to pursue my interests in psychology whilst continuing full-time employment. For many other graduands here, being an external student also meant having the opportunity to study whilst actively participating in family life. Without the distance education so generously offered by The University of New England, higher learning for many of us would simply not be possible.”

“What was also significant about my time here at The University of New England, was the manner in which I was inspired to pursue my goals and meet the challenges posed by higher learning. The provision of high quality teaching resulted in a curriculum that was both stimulating and extremely rewarding. Furthermore, the personalised support and encouragement I received from staff within the University, whether it was for academic matters, administrative matters, or even personal matters, can only be commended. Through this support, I learnt that genius was not the key to success, but rather, it was simply hard work and determination.”

“On behalf of all graduands, I therefore thank The University of New England and all those who have helped us along the way, for giving us the opportunity to attend this great institution. Rest assured that as we now continue our journey into the world of work, further study or other exciting opportunities, we can be proud of the fact that we were awarded a qualification from this university.”

For a complete transcript of Ms Honan's speech, click here.

Posted by Leon Braun at April 3, 2006 03:28 PM