Thursday, February 24th, 2026, marks the graduation day for ten students from the English Department. Those graduating students are Afra Sausan Putri, S.S., Cecilia Ade Natasya, S.S., Jardin Urbania Basundoro, S.S., Shimping Fitriana Dwi Fatmawati S.S., Saidatunnisa, S.S., Khairunisa Diva Dijah Adji, S.S., Maura Thirza Azzahra, S.S., Safira Dwihapsari Pratiwi, S.S., Florinesya Zahwa Raihania, S.S., and Yosafira Alma Kartika, S.S. The graduation ceremony took place in Grha Sabha Pramana, Universitas Gadjah Mada, before the English Department graduates moved to Poerbatjarakra building in Fakultas Ilmu Budaya (FIB) to attend the Mangayubagya ceremony.
After the Mangayubagya ceremony, two English Department graduates, Maura and Florinesya, are pleased to share a glimpse of their college experiences and emotions amidst the moment that marks the turning point of their lives. Maura stated that she is relieved now that she has finally concluded her journey in college, yet she couldn’t shake the bittersweet feelings that enveloped her. “Because we’re going to be separated from our college friends—but at least it’s over,” she said.
For Florinesya herself, gratitude and delight took hold of her on this special day. She explained that witnessing a large number of people who celebrate their graduation today makes her feel grateful to be part of those graduates. Florinesya also mentioned that her journey was a tough one, but she is deeply thankful for having met a lot of supportive people in the English Department. “The learning environment is also very pleasant; the people are very helpful—even though it’s full of ups and downs,” she admitted.
Revisiting her memories of college, the biggest struggle for Florinesya was to deal with her uptight schedule, especially balancing between academic and organization activities. “Sometimes I feel like I can’t keep up with my classmate, whose progress is far ahead of me, since I also have to focus on events outside class,” she confessed. Maura, too, mentioned academics as the biggest challenge for her, “In order to keep up [in class], I had to study harder.”
Nevertheless, a lot of happy memories filled their college experience. Maura mentioned that friendship is the one thing that rendered her experience happy. “Especially in FIB, the environment is very tolerant. I think we can be ourselves here without being judged by others.” As for Florinesya, she mentioned English Days, the Dies Natalis of the English Department, as the event that left quite an impression on her during college days. “Because I was the head of English Days two years ago, and I found many helpful people during that,” she recalled.
In writing their final thesis as a graduation requirement, both Florinesya and Maura are driven by their interest in a specific literature field. Maura shared that her thesis, The Subversive Child and Imaginative Power: Challenging Authority in Salman Rushdie’s Haroun and the Sea of Stories, stems from her particular interest in children’s literature. Florinesya also admits to enjoying the topic of her thesis, Mapping the Crisis of Witnessing: A Dialectic Vicarious Trauma Analysis of the Contradictory Narrative in Colleen Hoover’s Verity. She then revealed an impressive fact: it took her only three weeks to finish her thesis.
As college has ended and they’re preparing to take the next step in their lives, Maura and Florinesya shared the same plan for the future. Both of them are planning to further their education in graduate school. “I like studying, so while my passion to learn is still there, I want to take a master’s program immediately,” Flo confessed. As for Maura, she planned to gain job experience first while looking for a master’s scholarship abroad.
In whatever path they take, we hope the English Department graduates can flourish and thrive in their own way. Here’s to a bright future. Congratulations!
Penulis: Gulma Zahra Auradatu
