Izah Azahari
A total of 629 graduates of Politeknik Brunei (PB) were celebrated yesterday during the 7th Convocation Ceremony at the International Convention Centre (ICC), Berakas.
Of the total of graduates, 280 are male students and 349 are female students who received their Level 5 certificates at the ceremony.
This year’s event was organised in two sessions with 224 graduates in the morning and 220 graduates in the afternoon session, taking into account the Early Endemic Phase as well as the standard operating procedures (SOPs) and guidelines set by the Ministry of Health.
The morning session began with the procession of students as well as the main procession of the PB Board of Governors and PB Senate members followed by the arrival of the guest of honour, Minister of Education Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Hamzah bin Haji Sulaiman.
The afternoon session saw Minister of Development Dato Seri Setia Ir Awang Haji Suhaimi bin Haji Gafar as the guest of honour to hand out certificates.
Opening the morning session after the procession was the recitation of Surah Al-Mu’minun verses one to 10 by PB School of Business Academic Officer Muhammad Hazmi bin Haji Razab with translations delivered by PB General Studies Division Head Haji Mohd Jaafar bin Haji Johari.
Opening remarks were given by PB Acting Director Lim Kian Boon as the Chairman of the Working Committee of the Convocation Ceremony who noted that due to the pandemic, several graduates were unable to attend.
The acting director said that 2,493 students have pursued their studies in PB to date and the rate of students who have completed their studies in PB for 2021 is 90.8 per cent.
The acting director also revealed the PB Five-Year Development Plan 2021-2025 which will focus on four fields – Institutional Governance, Quality Education and Training, Infrastructure Development and Strategic Partnership.
The event continued with a speech by the Minister of Education.
The main highlight of the day was the Convocation Award Ceremony presented by the Minister of Education, who handed certificates to graduates from Level 5 Diploma in Business Studies, Accounting and Finance; Business Studies; Information Systems; Architecture; Electrical and Electronics Engineering; Science Technology; Telecommunication and Systems Engineering; and Nursing.
The minister also presented four awards during the ceremony – Best Student Award; Academic Excellence Awards; Enrichment Excellence Awards; and Innovation Award.
The morning ceremony concluded with a Doa Kesyukuran read by Chief Monitor of Brunei-Muara District Mosque Zone III Mosque Affairs Officer Haji Abdul Aziz bin Abdul Ghani.
Among those present in the morning ceremony were Deputy Minister of Education Datin Seri Paduka Dr Hajah Romaizah binti Haji Mohd Salleh in her capacity as the Chairperson of PB Board of Governors, members of the PB Board of Governors and award sponsors.
Meanwhile, the afternoon session began with a procession of students as well as the main procession of the PB Board of Governors and PB Senate members, followed by the arrival of the Minister of Development.
The minister presented certificates to graduates of Level 5 Diploma in Entrepreneurship; Marketing; Business Studies (Human Resources Management); IT Network; Digital Media; Web Development; Network Security; Library Informatics and Computing; Civil Engineering; Interior Design; Mechanical Engineering; Petroleum Engineering; Midwifery; and Paramedic.
The afternoon session concluded with a Doa Kesyukuran read by Mosque Affairs Officer Haji Mohd Azrol Alim bin Haji Zaini.
The graduates had attended a three-year academic session undertaking various programmes offered by PB’s different schools. The Level 5 Diploma is recognised by the Ministry of Education through the Brunei Darussalam National Accreditation Council.
Of the total, 198 students received their Level 5 Diploma award in Business programmes, 149 in ICT Level 5 programmes, 195 in Science and Engineering Level 5 programmes and 87 students received their Level 5 Diploma award in Health Sciences programmes.
This year’s PB convocation ceremony took place in a different atmosphere as the whole nation is transitioning to the Early Endemic Phase in curbing the spread of COVID-19.
For the convenience of the public, especially the family and friends of the graduates, PB provided a platform to broadcast the ceremony online via live streaming through the official PB YouTube channel.
