6,000 students celebrate graduation at Summer Congregation

From June 26 to July 3, the historic Durham Cathedral played host to 24 ceremonies across all four of our faculties, 27 departments and 17 colleges, with graduating students joined by friends and relatives from around the world.

A festival of achievement

The Summer Congregation transformed Durham into a hub of celebration, where students celebrated their success in 37 different subjects.

Our Chancellor, Dr Fiona Hill and Vice-Chancellor, Professor Karen O’Brien were among senior University representatives presiding over the ceremonies, attended by over 17,000 guests.

Honouring excellence

We also recognised six exceptional individuals who have made significant contributions to their professional fields, by granting honorary degrees.

Honorary degrees were conferred upon botanist Dr Margaret Bradshaw MBE (Doctor of Science); journalist Hunter Davies OBE (Doctor of Letters); human rights advocate Dr Dalee Sambo Dorough (Doctor of Civil Law); computer scientist Anne-Marie Imafidon MBE (Doctor of Science); librarian Richard Ovenden OBE (Doctor of Letters); and businessman James Timpson OBE (Doctor of Science).

Celebrating alumni success

In a new addition to this year's Congregation, eight successful graduates and University community members were honoured as celebrants.

They included Natasha Boulding, co-founder of Low Carbon Materials, a previous finalist in His Royal Highness Prince William’s Earthshot Prize, and former Professor of Physics Douglas Halliday. 

‘A wonderful week’

Find out more

• Visit our Congregation webpages.
• Learn more about our Summer Congregation 2024.
• Students graduated from our Faculty of Arts and Humanities, Faculty of Science, Faculty of Business, and Faculty of Social Sciences and Health spanning 32 departments and 17 colleges.
• Learn more about our 2024 Honorary Degree recipients and read their orations.
• Check out our Alumni webpages for information on our global alumni community and how to get involved.
• Interested in studying at Durham? Explore our undergraduate and postgraduate courses.