More than 260 students walked the stage as their names were read, marking the completion of their three years of study at AUC. The afternoon combined speeches, live music and the conferral of degrees, followed by a reception in the Foyer of the VU.

Welcome and remembrance

The ceremony was hosted by Marcel Bamberg, who guided the programme and introduced speakers and performers.

Prof. Dr. Bruce Mutsvairo, Interim Dean of AUC, opened the ceremony with a welcome to graduates and guests. In his speech, he invited the audience to pause and remember Dr. Michael McAssey, a much‑loved AUC lecturer who recently passed away. He recalled McAssey’s exceptional care for students and his memorable graduation performance a decade ago, before inviting one last round of applause in his honour.

In his address, Mutsvairo further emphasised connection, kindness and intellectual humility alongside academic achievement. Drawing on his own Liberal Arts and Sciences background, he encouraged graduates to engage beyond disciplinary boundaries and to value listening as much as speaking.

Commencement Address

The Commencement Address was delivered by Prof. Dr. Annelies Vredeveldt, Professor of Legal Psychology in the Department of Criminology at the Faculty of Law, VU Amsterdam.

She reflected on how cultural differences shape and enrich interdisciplinary learning, and drew on the work of Kimberlé Crenshaw to explore how intersecting identities influence lived experience. Speaking from her own perspective as an academic, mother, Dutch woman and member of the LGBTQ+ community, she highlighted the importance of visibility, the complexity of identity, and how awareness shapes both individual experience and society.

She continued by encouraging graduates to practise cultural humility, stressing that there is no checklist for understanding people. Instead, she urged them to cultivate curiosity and to question their own assumptions, noting that blind spots are often the hardest to see. She concluded with three pieces of advice: be curious about others, but even more about yourself; question what seems obvious; and have the courage to show up as your full self, in a way that feels right and when ready.

Musical interludes

The ceremony featured three musical interludes showcasing the talents of AUC students. Graduating students Hannah Belshaw and Dave van Twuijver opened the programme with a rendition of "Rein Me In" by Olivia Dean and Sam Fender. Between the two rounds of degree conferrals, Elena del Campo Yagüe and Timo de Rynck performed Adele's "When We Were Young," capturing the sense of nostalgia and shared memory that marked the afternoon.

The final musical interlude was an original composition, "July Rain," performed by Louis Abreu Vatcher. Upbeat and engaging, the performance invited audience participation, with graduates, families and guests joining in and singing along. It provided an energetic and memorable moment, celebrating both the creativity of the graduating class and the sense of community that characterised the ceremony.

Conferral of degrees and welcome to the AUC Alumni Association

At the heart of the ceremony was the conferring of degrees, which took place in two parts. Tutors Dr. Jonathan Gill and Dr. Joost Krijnen read the names of more than 260 students as they crossed the stage to be recognised as graduates, reflecting the breadth of academic pathways represented within the Class of 2026.

Following the conferrals and musical interludes, Emma Krone, Career and Alumni Relations Officer at AUC, and Dr. Thao Lam, Board Member of the AUC Scholarship Fund, welcomed graduates to the AUC Alumni Association (AUCAA). They highlighted opportunities for networking, mentoring and continued involvement in the AUC community, inviting the Class of 2026 to both take advantage of the growing global network of alumni while also finding opportunities to give back.

Valedictorian speech

Valedictorian Willemijn Eijsink closed the ceremony with a reflection on the meaning of Liberal Arts and Sciences and the close-knit nature of the AUC community. She paid tribute to Dr. Michael McAssey and acknowledged the broader network of staff and educators who helped shape student life.

Referencing the work of Palestinian poet Haneen Abu Obeid and writer Audre Lorde, Eijsink reflected on poetry as a means of giving language to complex experiences, suggesting that AUC has, in this sense, made poets of its students. She concluded by encouraging her classmates to carry the "poetry of academia and the poetry of life" with them into the future, inviting others to see the world alongside them.

While the atmosphere remained celebratory, there was a brief interruption as the ceremony drew to a close when a number of graduates took the stage in a protest action to express their views and draw attention to the situation in Gaza as well as explain the various gestures and references throughout the event.

Closure and reception

The ceremony concluded on a celebratory note with the graduates throwing their hats in the air and attending a reception to continue the festivities in the Foyer of the VU.

AUC congratulates the Class of 2026 on their achievements and thanks the students, staff, performers, tutors, families and friends whose contributions made the ceremony in the VU Aula a memorable occasion.