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The end of June belongs to the graduation festivities at the University of Veterinary Medicine and Pharmacy in Košice. Almost 300 young women and men from Slovakia and abroad completed their studies this year.

On Thursday, June 24, 2021, graduates of the five-year master's study program in pharmacy were the first to receive their diplomas. There were a total of 62 of them, only two guests could be in the hall at the ceremony with each graduate. Other family members were able to attend the celebration by uploading it to a large screen. It was installed in the university park under historic plane trees.

On Friday, 25 June 2021, bachelor's degrees in cynology (29 graduates), Man-animal relationship and its use in canistherapy and hippotherapy (5 graduates), Safety of feeds and foodsafety (8 graduates) and the market and quality of foodstuffs (4 graduates).

On Monday 28 June and Tuesday 29 June 2021, the graduation ceremonies of graduates of six-year doctoral study programs in general veterinary medicine (102 graduates) and General Veterinary Medicine in English (37 graduates - 14 from Norway, 8 from Great Britain, 6 from Ireland, 5 from Iceland, 2 from Israel, one each from Cyprus and Germany). They were joined by graduates of the joint bachelor's study program Animal Science (26 graduates), which UVMP has with the Norwegian Nord University in Bodø. Not all foreign graduates were able to attend the graduations in person, two graduates of Animal Science and 15 graduates of General Veterinary Medicine were present.

The Rector of the University of Veterinary Medicine and Pharmacy in Košice, Professor Jana Mojžišová, said in a ceremonial speech:

Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear Graduates, The academic world has been governed by its own special rules. It has always been at the forefront of progress, initiated changes and held the future. It preserves, nevertheless, many traditions, adheres to the unchangeable values, by which it abides because the knowledge, goodness and humanity do not change. And this is exactly what today’s graduation ceremony is about.  

Today’s ceremonial handing of diplomas should imprint on  memory of all graduates – the students of the study programme General veterinary medicine  and  the Joint bachelor study programme Bachelor of Animal Science of the Nord University in Bodø in Norway,  and the University of  Veterinary Medicine and Pharmacy in Košice in the Slovak Republic – as an exceptional, dignified and memorable event.

For over seven decades now, top veterinary surgeons have been walking out of the university gates after years of demanding studies. And we wish to believe that as before, they are not only qualified professionals but also wise and principled individuals.

The expectation we have now is stronger than ever, because this time is different from what we have known so far. We have had many months of a pandemic that has turned everything we have experienced and expected upside down. Almost everything that we counted on in our plans and our lives no longer applies, including what was supposed to be associated with graduation, final exams or graduation itself. As time passed, we have become more used to the online space and have learnt to react according to rapidly changing external conditions. This ability to adapt and your willingness to fight adversity makes your newly earned diploma fully deserved.

You have successfully completed a demanding study. Years of hard work and effort are behind you. The future is ahead of you and whatever it may bring, we believe that you, doctors of veterinary medicine and bachelors of animal science, will be able to deal with situations both familiar and new, that you are able to protect health and you will indeed do it, that you can save lives and perhaps even the world around us.

Dear Graduates, Graduation is one of the most special academic ceremonies. Today’s ceremony had to be adapted to the new conditions under the pandemic. However, the uniqueness of this celebration has remained unchanged. This festive moment of the graduation ceremony should compensate for the past hectic weeks and months you spent with your textbooks in order to succeed in front of the state exams committees. What is exceptional with regard to you, and what was certainly very demanding, was the necessity of adjustment to the life in a foreign country.

I sincerely hope that your experiences from Slovakia have been mostly positive, that you were able to find here interesting places, relish pleasant moments and establish friendships that can survive the test of time and distance. We were happy to welcome you here and tried to give you our best. We would like to believe that you take to your homes not only your university diplomas, but also affection for this country and its people.

Graduation is also one of the most special celebrations because it is associated with feelings of fulfilment, happiness and success, relief and anticipation of the future. It is also amazing that not only we, your teachers, but also all your loved ones - parents, grandparents, siblings or partners – can identify with such feelings. They are perhaps even more touched than you, because I am sure they have experienced all these years of study even more intensely than you have. Today you are standing here in front of them – beautiful, young people ready to take the very first step into your longed-for future. But before you take that step, thank them. Thank them from the bottom of your heart and soul, because it is the least you can give them for all the care, love and nurture.

Please do not forget to also thank your teachers. If not in person, then at least in spirit and if not today, I hope you will do it sometime in the future, when experience shows you that what you found difficult or even useless during your studies has made you a true professional.

Dear graduates of the study programme General veterinary medicine, Dear doctors, You came from many different countries to study in Slovakia. Most of you came from Norway and Great Britain, Ireland and Iceland, Israel, Cyprus or Germany. You successfully managed all tasks and passed all examinations that you had to face, from the entry exam to the final state exams. Some of them were less difficult but to pass others you had to outdo yourself. We are proud of you, the graduates of 2021, because thanks to your hard work you reached your goal and fulfilled your lifetime dream – to become doctor of veterinary medicine and devote your professional life to assisting to animals and humans.

The University of Veterinary Medicine and Pharmacy in Košice provided the space and opportunity for fulfilling this dream. It has been preparing highly qualified professionals within the General Veterinary Medicine programme for more than seventy two years and for the same number of years it has been making every effort to build up a high quality educational and research institution, well recognised home and abroad. Therefore, just as we are proud of you, you can be proud of your Alma Mater and keep it in your memory.

Dear graduates of the Joint study programme Bachelor of Animal Science, Dear Bachelors, We are very pleased that after years of successful cooperation with Nord University, a graduation in this unique joint study programme is becoming a well-established event.   

I take this opportunity to thank sincerely to all colleagues from the Nord University  in Bodø and the University of Veterinary Medicine and Pharmacy in Košice who did their best to establish  this Joint Bachelor Study Programme and have helped to sustain it.

After having completed the first three semesters of study in Bodø you changed both a country and a school and studied the final three semesters in Košice. You have managed the demanding studies and are now ready to manage what the future holds for you.  Maybe this future of yours will be connected to our university again.

Dear Graduates, On behalf of myself, your teachers and personnel of our university we wish you bright future and fulfilling of all your wishes in professional and private life. And on top of this I wish you good health, happiness and every success.

I sincerely believe that this is not a “goodbye”, it is just a “see you later”. Do come back anytime to the place where you spent the wonderful student days, even if it be in ten, twenty or more years’ time. Savour this moment because it is and will be unforgettable. But now is the time to step out boldly full of optimism and enthusiasm to welcome your future.