The Hasan Kalyoncu University 2022 Graduation Ceremony was held at the University’s 3,000-seat Performing Arts Centre. While Minister of National Education Mahmut Özer, Governor of Gaziantep Davut Gül and Mayor of Gaziantep Metropolitan Municipality Fatma Şahin also attended the ceremony, Chairman of the Hasan Kalyoncu University Board of Trustees Cemal Kalyoncu said that with this academic year they had produced more than 15 thousand graduates in total.
At the ceremony, where 1,535 students received their diplomas, Minister of National Education Mahmut Özer, Chairman of the Hasan Kalyoncu University Board of Trustees Cemal Kalyoncu and Rector Prof. Dr. Türkay Dereli each addressed the graduating students. At the ceremony, broadcast live on Hasan Kalyoncu University’s social media accounts, 1,535 students experienced the joy of graduation.
“For the first time, the schooling rate of girls has exceeded that of boys”
Minister of National Education Mahmut Özer, who attended the Hasan Kalyoncu University Graduation Ceremony and delivered a speech, expressed his pleasure at meeting young people. Describing graduation as a moment in which the efforts of many years are rewarded, hardships are forgotten and happiness is shared by all its stakeholders, Minister Özer said, “The most important investment is the investment in people. The most lasting and sustainable capital of a country is human capital. I extend my gratitude to the University’s board of trustees, the students’ families and the academics.”
Noting that Türkiye’s competitiveness in education has increased over the last 20 years, Özer said that access to education has become easier at all levels from pre-school to higher education, and continued: “While schooling rates in higher education were 14 per cent in the 2000s, today we have risen above 48 per cent. Our country’s young people have been given easier access to higher education. We have achieved very important breakthroughs concerning the continuous education of young people who will raise the quality of our country’s human resources and human capital, who look to the future with hope and produce success stories.”
Noting that for the first time the schooling rate of girls has surpassed that of boys, Özer said, “I would also like to offer my most sincere gratitude to our President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, from Gaziantep, for the investments he has made in all areas of education, for allocating the largest share of the budget to education every year, and for his support and contributions in quickly producing responses to social demands, from the democratisation of education to the abolition of headscarf bans and coefficient practices.” Minister Özer stated that, hand in hand, they would show the whole world that the language of compassion, peace and friendship will come from this land.
“We attach importance to university-industry cooperation. Among foundation universities, we are one of the top 10 institutions providing human resources to the business world”
Chairman of the Hasan Kalyoncu University Board of Trustees Cemal Kalyoncu, who addressed the students at the graduation ceremony, underlined that Kalyon Holding, a well-established 78-year-old organisation, has undertaken mega projects with high environmental sensitivity aimed at adding value to our country, the world and all humanity, and that with its workforce of 35 thousand people it looks to tomorrow with hope and confidence.
Stating that they attach importance to university-industry cooperation and continue to invest in young people through the employment opportunities they provide within Kalyon Holding, Kalyoncu said, “This year we are producing a total of 1,535 graduates. You, who are our students today, will in future be managers, producers, scientists, educators, and perhaps even one of our colleagues. Although graduation contains a farewell, you will always be a part of this school and a member of this family. We will continue to be proud of you always. We are an institution that has produced more than 15 thousand graduates to date, and 30 per cent of our graduates are scholarship students. I am also proud and happy to be the chairman of the board of trustees of a university that has achieved great success in a short period of 14 years. I thank all my colleagues who contributed, our students and our graduates with all my heart.”
“The HKU family will continue to support you in every step you take”
Hasan Kalyoncu University Rector Prof. Dr. Türkay Dereli, who also spoke at the ceremony, emphasised that the world is changing rapidly and that the learning process will never end. Dereli continued: “We live in a special age in which technology is developing rapidly and life is accordingly constantly renewing itself. Your task is to adapt to the innovations of the age, constantly update your knowledge, and take your career one step further at every moment with a brave and entrepreneurial spirit. Do not forget that learning is not limited to school and that it is a lifelong process. May your goal always be to go further; to make today better than yesterday and tomorrow better than today, and to accomplish good deeds for our country and the whole world. Remember that you are the future, the pride and the assurance of all of us. The Hasan Kalyoncu University family will continue to support you in every step you take and to walk with you.”
1,535 students tossed their caps
Following the speeches, certificates of achievement and awards were presented to Melike Topuz, Fatih Can Durmaz and Hazal Kaya, the students who ranked in the top three at Hasan Kalyoncu University, by Minister of National Education Mahmut Özer, Chairman of the Hasan Kalyoncu University Board of Trustees Cemal Kalyoncu and Deputy Chairman of the Hasan Kalyoncu University Board of Trustees Haluk Kalyoncu. The students who ranked in the top three in each faculty and department were invited to the podium to receive their diplomas, and a total of 1,535 students experienced the excitement of graduation at the end of their successfully completed education. After the enthusiastic graduation ceremony, Cemal Kalyoncu presented gifts to Minister of National Education Mahmut Özer, befitting the meaning and importance of the day.
After the graduation excitement that continued throughout the day, the young graduates, who continued to enjoy themselves to the full, had unforgettable moments accompanied by the Turkish rock band Yüksek Sadakat.
