Graduation season returned to Â鶹´«Ã½AV this week with hundreds of students marking the end of their studies, and the class of 2020 returning to campus for an in-person celebration. The ceremonies, taking place across four days, were the first in-person graduation events to be held by Â鶹´«Ã½AV since 2019, due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The University’s Chancellor Dame Deirdre Hutton presided over the ceremonies, with Vice-Chancellor Professor Karen Holford CBE FREng, having joined the university in 2021, celebrating Cranfield’s graduation season for the first time.

For this year’s ceremonies, Â鶹´«Ã½AV took the best elements from the past two years’ online ceremonies and blended this with a live physical event, creating an innovative celebration format with graduates able to join live online as well as in-person. This inclusive, hybrid approach was designed to ensure that everyone across Cranfield’s global community could access and take part in proceedings.  Alongside 1,602 graduates attending in person, nearly 400 graduates celebrated their achievement remotely, with participants joining from across the world.

Vice-Chancellor Professor Holford CBE FREng said this was a graduation season like no other: “Graduation ceremonies are such an important part of the Cranfield experience, and I was delighted to see our graduates from 2022 and also from 2020 returning to campus to celebrate together. I am so pleased that the Cranfield community worked together to make each ceremony feel special, full of sheer joy. Congratulations to each and every Cranfield graduate – you make us all proud.”

Honorary Graduates 2022

Honorary degrees were awarded to a number of leaders in science, aviation, finance, management and engineering:

  • Dr Adesola Kazeem Adeduntan; FCIB, FCA, Chief Executive Officer, FirstBank Group
  • Professor Angela Karp, Director and Chief Executive of Rothamsted Research
  • Grazia Vittadini, Chief Technology and Strategy Officer of Rolls-Royce
  • Dr Charmaine Griffiths, Chief Executive of the British Heart Foundation (BHF)
  • Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of UNAIDS and Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations
  • Lindy Cameron CB OBE, Chief Executive Officer, National Cyber Security Centre

About Cranfield students and graduates

46% of Cranfield’s 4,871 students come from the EU and the rest of the world, giving the University a uniquely global community. Over half of Cranfield’s students are over 30 years of age, and the staff-to-student ratio of 8:1 – the best of any UK university - creates a mature and hands-on educational experience.

Cranfield’s alumni network includes over 70,000 people based in over 170 countries across the world. Notable alumni include Lord Karan Billimoria, founder of Cobra Beer Ltd, Warren East CBE, Chief Executive of Rolls-Royce, Sarah Willingham, prominent entrepreneur and Angus Thirlwell, CEO and Co-Founder of Hotel Chocolat.