BOULDER, Colo — The University of Colorado Boulder held its annual commencement Thursday,with a total of 9,740 degrees awarded.
The ceremony was only the second in-person graduation in five years, due to cancellations because of the pandemic and weather. This year was special for some undergraduates who started their college careers four years ago during the pandemic.
After not getting high school graduations, some said this was a day they didn’t think was possible.
“This is my very first true graduation, so experiencing this all for the first time,” said graduate Veena Bhatnagar. “Not getting it in high school, it feels like celebrating the last eight years.”
Bhatnagar received her degree in business analytics and information management. She said the day means a lot.
“I knew it was coming, but it didn’t feel real,” she said. “Wearing the robe, the gown and all that, it’s really the first of hopefully many.”
The ceremony was a day these undergraduates have been waiting for since starting their first year at CU Boulder during the pandemic. For some graduating seniors, their freshman year was difficult.
“A lot of online classes, a lot of staying in my dorm because there were just a lot of COVID precautions going on,” said Nicolas Tamayo. “It was a rough year, but everything got better after that first year when things loosened up, people started talking to one another again.”
Graduating senior Kimberly Camarema Torres graduated with a bachelor’s degree in political science with pre-law. She said her first year was a challenge.
“I felt so alone. It was very hard for me to do well or even talk to people in class because I was so used to Zoom,” Camarema Torres said. “So many people my freshman year had to drop out because they just didn’t feel like they belonged.”
> The video below is a time-lapse of CU Boulder's 2024 graduation at Folsom Field:
The university handed out degrees to more than 9,000 graduates, both students graduating in fall 2023 and spring 2024.
The school awarded 464 doctoral degrees, 1,789 master’s degrees, 141 MBA degrees, 194 law degrees and 6,882 undergraduate degrees.
This year’s keynote speaker was Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, who attended CU Boulder in 1968-1969 before returning to California. For some graduates, it was also a day of setting milestones.
“I’m the very first from my immediate family to graduate,” Camarema Torres said. “So, I’m setting the foundation for my future generations.”
“Both of my parents are from India, and my mom didn’t graduate college in America,” Bhatnagar said. “So, I think it’s a really big deal for them to see being the first daughter, to see their kid graduate from a four-year college in America.”
Tamayo is also a first-generation student in his family, graduating with a degree in journalism and French. He said he feels the commencement ceremony is a culmination of his hard work and years of waiting.
“I never really saw it happening. Even now, it doesn’t even feel real,” Tamayo said. “I’m hoping that I can show them that it's possible and if you put your mind to it, you can do it.”
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