UNBC welcomes back classes of 2020 and 2021 for the in-person convocation they missed

Holly McVea graduated with a bachelor's degree in biology from the University of Northern British Columbia in Prince George last year, but under COVID-19 restrictions on large gatherings, she had to celebrate her graduation virtually.

On Friday afternoon, McVea will deliver her valedictorian speech — again — at an in-person make-up convocation specifically for UNBC students who graduated over the last two years and had to attend their ceremonies online.

"When I turned on the [virtual] convocation, I was sitting alone in my basement suite, and I turned on YouTube," she said to Bill Fee, the guest host of CBC's Daybreak North.

"But of course, it's still a little disappointing not to be able to have that in-person celebration." 

Universities resume in-person graduation ceremonies

After a two-year pandemic-driven hiatus, higher institutions across Canada are resuming in-person convocations, with the class of 2022  being the first batch of graduates able to attend their big day in person and have their photos taken with family and friends.

The University of British Columbia (UBC) is also arranging in-person make-up ceremonies next month for alumni who graduated over the last two years at both its Vancouver and Okanagan campuses.

McVea says the graduates of the last two years deserve the pageantry, handshaking and in-person reception of their diplomas, particularly in light of what they weathered during the pandemic.

"No undergrad degree is easy, and being able to do that during a global pandemic is an even greater achievement.

"There's so much isolation; you're not used to the same community, resources and study groups. Because we were able to go through such adversity, it's really important to be able to celebrate in person and finally see that moment."

Ella Thomason, who graduated with a bachelor of commerce degree from UNBC last year, agrees and says she's excited to physically meet her classmates — many of whom she has only met in online classes — and to receive the certificate by hand.

"Definitely, when we graduated, it felt a bit lacklustre — we didn't really feel like we had graduated," she said. "This is a really good opportunity for closure because I feel like I'm actually taking that stuff and actually moving on to the next stage."

Meanwhile, McVea is pursuing a master's degree in biology and says the experience of the pandemic helped prepare her for the bigger challenges of an advanced-level academic program.

"Going through COVID and being self-paced absolutely gave me a little bit more sense of structure and a little bit more of an enhanced skill set to do independent study."

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