Where undergrads seek wisdom

Saturday, 11 April 2015 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

A university graduation ceremony is always a solemn and dignified occasion. It was so at the University of Western Australia (UWA) graduation ceremony too, which I had the privilege of attending to watch my granddaughter obtaining her degree. My mind flashed back to the mid-1950s when we had our graduation ceremony at the half completed gym at the Peradeniya campus by the Mahaweli. We received our certificates from Chancellor Sir Oliver Goonetilleke, Governor-General. The UWA ceremony was held at the Winthrop Hall, a spacious auditorium named after the founder and first Chancellor, Sir John Winthrop Hackett over a hundred years ago. He was a leading WA politician, philanthropist and activist proprietor of The West Australian newspaper. Opened in April 1932, it is one of the Hackett Memorial Buildings financed substantially by the very generous bequest received from the estate of Sir John Hackett. The purpose of the university was to provide instruction in “practical arts and liberal studies” which would help develop the fledgling economy and thereby “advance the prosperity and welfare of the people”. ‘Seek Wisdom’ is the University’s motto since the early days. A message from the present Chancellor stated: “From humble beginnings, UWA innovation, knowledge and expertise has helped transform the State into a national economic powerhouse fuelled the imagination of thousands of researchers and equipped more than 130,000 highly-skilled graduates to contribute to society.”

The mission of UWA is “to advance, transmit and sustain knowledge and understanding through the conduct of teaching, research and scholarship at the highest international standards, for the benefit of the West Australian, Australian and international communities.” The first UWA graduation ceremony dates back to July 1914. In the early days, a single annual ceremony had been sufficient. With the student population increasing UWA now conducts 23 Autumn and Spring ceremonies. There are more than 28,000 enrolled students and more than 7,000 degrees, diplomas and certificates are awarded each year. Doing a round in the 65-hectare campus, known as Crawley Campus, one is attracted by the lush greenery all round. It’s a pleasure to walk through tall trees and well-kept expansive lawns. The Sunken Garden and the Tropical Grove are two popular spots in the campus. The campus sits on the Swan River, about five kilometres west of Perth central business district. The nets at the picturesque cricket ground had been the ones where Muttiah Muralitharan has had continuous practice when he was sent to UWA following the controversial episode about his bowling when he was no-balled several times in Australia. Most of the buildings, including the iconic Winthrop Hall, are made of coastal limestone and sandstone. One can spend several hours visiting the numerous buildings, open-air theatres, museums with valuable and interesting collections.