Mdm Halimah Yacob, Chancellor of SUSS
Mr Edmund Cheng, and
Dr Loo Choon Yong, SUSS Pro-Chancellors
Professor Tan Tai Yong, President of SUSS
Faculty members,
Distinguished Guests,
Graduands and Families
Good afternoon.
1.Today, we celebrate more than the completion of a course of study. We celebrate the determination that brought each of you here.
2.Many of you pursued your studies while managing responsibilities at work and at home. Your graduation is therefore also a tribute to the families, friends, lecturers and mentors who supported you along the way.
3.To every graduand: congratulations for all the work you have put in. And to everyone who helped them reach this milestone: thank you.
The Next, Ours to Create
4.This year’s Convocation theme is “The Next, Ours to Create”.
5.It is a theme that speaks of hopeful possibilities, and the agency that we have. Yet it is also one that demands much from us, because it reminds us that a better future does not simply arrive. We must help create it together.
6.More than 3,600 graduates across SUSS’s undergraduate and postgraduate programmes come from fields such as counselling, early childhood education, gerontology, human capital management and the social sciences.
7.These are fields in which change is often made one small step at a time; person by person, workplace by workplace and community by community. It may begin in the quiet; by improving a practice, questioning an assumption, including someone who may otherwise be left out, or responding to a need that others have overlooked. However, the cumulative impact at the end of the day is tremendous.
8.This is what it means to be a changemaker. It is not necessarily to hold a grand title or launch a large initiative. It is to recognise that where things can be better, we use what we know, where we are, and work together with others to make a meaningful difference.
Finding the Meaningful Next Step
9.At important turning points, both literally and figuratively, the way forward is not always clear. We may know that change is needed without yet knowing exactly what that change should or would look like.
10.In such moments, reassurance is seldom enough. What matters is to listen carefully, understand the realities before us and identify a next step that is both possible and meaningful.
11.Introducing change does not always begin with certainty or a complete plan. More often, it begins with being attentive; seeing the situation clearly, understanding who is affected, and deciding what we can responsibly do next.
12.In every profession and community, meaningful progress depends on people prepared to ask not only, “What comes next for me?”, but also, “What can I help make better for others?”
SUSS and Learning for Social Impact
13.SUSS prepares its graduates well for this task. Its distinctive focus on applied and lifelong learning recognises that education is not separated from what we encounter in life. Learning is tested and strengthened when it is applied to real needs in our workplaces and communities.
14.SUSS also recognises that education is a journey, not merely a destination. At different seasons of life, we may turn a new page and explore a new discipline, sharpen our skills and deepen our contribution in a chosen field, or discover new ways to serve. The form may change, but the commitment to keep learning must remain.
15.The journeys of two graduands show how this can take shape.
Turning Experience into Social Contribution – Jai Prakash
16.Jai Prakash, who receives his Doctor of Philosophy today, spent more than 20 years in the Civil Service before moving into social work. He first taught Social Policy at UniSIM and later returned as the first PhD student under the Office of Graduate Studies.
17.With the support of his wife Shasirekha, who is here today, and encouragement from his former supervisor Dr Seng Boon Kheng, Jai completed his doctorate while seeking to set an example for his sons Nihal and Nirav.
18.For Jai, the doctorate is not simply another qualification. It enables him to bring together his experience in public service, social work, research and training. Through that combination, he hopes to contribute to better social policy and practice.
19.His journey reminds us that experience is not only something we accumulate. It is something we can re-examine, connect and put to work for a larger purpose.
Creating Connection Across Generations – Emily Ho
20.Emily Ho, who graduates with a Bachelor of Communication, is the first in her family to graduate from university. At SUSS, she contributed through youth mentoring and as a Silver Generation Ambassador.
21.Her close relationship with her grandfather inspired her commitment to serving seniors. She also drew inspiration from her mother, Delphine, who continued learning while balancing work and family.
22.Emily’s story shows how change can begin with a relationship. A personal bond can deepen our understanding of others, and that understanding can lead us to serve a wider community.
23.As Emily takes on broader responsibilities at work, explores new career opportunities and considers further studies, I hope she will continue using communication to connect people across ages and experiences.
24.Jai and Emily came to SUSS through different routes and at different stages of life. Yet both show that learning becomes most meaningful when it expands not only what we can do, but also whom we can help.
25.A warm congratulations to Jai and Emily!
Creating What Comes Next
26.Graduands, as you step into what comes next, I invite you to carry three questions with you.
27.First: of the things around me, what do I notice? Pay attention to the needs, gaps and possibilities around you. Changemakers often begin by seeing what others have become accustomed to overlooking. Challenge prevailing assumptions and see what we can do better.
28.Second: what can I contribute? Bring together your knowledge, experience and values. You may not be able to solve every problem, but you certainly can take responsibility for the parts within your reach and circle of influence.
29.Third: whom can I bring with me? The word “ours” matters. Lasting change is rarely created alone. Listen to those affected, work across differences, and build solutions, not only for others, but with others and hand in glove with them.
30.Keep asking these questions, and you can be a changemaker wherever you are. Whether by improving professional practice, strengthening your community, widening opportunity for yourself and others, or helping another person find a way forward.
31.“The Next, Ours to Create” is therefore more than a statement about the future. It is a call to act in the present – with the hope of better possibilities, a dose of humility that you cannot do this alone and the resolve to make a difference in the life of others.
32.The road ahead will not always be predictable and progress may not always be swift. Yet the better workplace, the stronger community and the more caring society that we all yearn for can only begin with the small steps and choices that people like you and I make each day.
33.Congratulations, Class of 2026. Step forward with confidence and ambition. Keep learning, move with care and empathy in your steps, and use what you know to create possibilities for others.
34.Your future will ask much of you, but I am certain that it will offer you many chances to make a difference and bring hope to others. The next is not simply yours to enter. It is ours to create—together. Thank you.