Trent University Durham GTA will honour the largest graduating class in its history during 2023 convocation ceremonies on Friday, June 16 at the Tribute Communities Centre (99 Athol St. East) in Oshawa.

During the morning and afternoon ceremonies, 425 graduates will be celebrated, including 364 undergraduates and 61 graduates from the Master of Management program.

“The University’s steady growth in the Durham region is reflected in the record-setting number of graduates this year,” said Dr. Scott Henderson, head of Trent University Durham GTA. “We look forward to celebrating all of their hard work and success at convocation.”

Additional highlights of this year’s Trent Durham convocation ceremonies include the first cohort of graduates from the Policing & Community Well-Being program and the first graduates from Durham’s Computer Science B.Sc. program. Dr. Stephen Stohn, chancellor of Trent University, will also address graduates at convocation.

Friends, families and grads can watch the ceremonies live at trentu.ca/live, follow @TrentAlumni and @TrentUniversity on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, and share their own comments and photos during the ceremonies using the hashtag #TrentUGrad.

Honorary degree to be presented to Christine Elliott

President and vice-chancellor Dr. Leo Groarke will preside over Trent Durham’s afternoon ceremony and will present an honorary doctorate of laws to former Ontario minister of Health and deputy premier Christine Elliott.

Elliott was elected MPP for both Whitby-Ajax and Newmarket-Aurora, serving as Ontario minister of Health and deputy premier from 2018 to 2022, and as Ontario’s first patient ombudsman (2016 to 2018). Elliott is also an advocate for vulnerable community members and a community volunteer who is co-founder and former director of the Abilities Centre, a multi-purpose athletic, recreation, and performing arts facility where everyone is welcome, and everyone’s abilities are celebrated.

“It is a tremendous honour to be awarded an honorary degree from Trent University, Ontario’s top undergraduate university,” Elliott said. “After serving the Durham region as MPP for many years, I’m grateful to be associated with an excellent university that has been a catalyst for growth and academic achievement in this region since opening its Trent Durham GTA campus.”

Student Awards

During the 2023 Durham convocation ceremonies, Trent Durham GTA will honour two of its most accomplished students with the Muldoon Medal, which was established in 2019 in honour of Joe Muldoon, former head of Trent University Durham GTA, to recognize graduating students from both the honours and general degree programs who achieve high academic standing. The 2023 recipients are: Davina Persaud, Business Administration (Honours); and Sarah Solomon, English (General).

Convocation Schedule

A detailed breakdown of Trent Durham GTA convocation ceremonies follows:

Friday, June 16, 2023 – 10 a.m. ceremony:

Degrees will be conferred for Bachelor of Social Work, Bachelor of Arts Honours, Bachelor of Science Honours, Bachelor of Arts General, and Bachelor of Science General
in Child & Youth Studies, Computer Science, Policing & Community Well-Being, Psychology, and Sociology.

Friday, June 16, 2023 – 2 p.m. ceremony:

Degrees will be conferred for Master of Management, Bachelor of Business Administration, Bachelor of Arts Honours, Bachelor of Science Honours, Bachelor of Arts General, Bachelor of Science General in Anthropology, Communications, English, History, Media Studies, and Philosophy as joint degrees with Business Administration. All postgraduate certificates will also be presented. Christine Elliott will be presented with an honorary doctorate of laws.

Trent University held ten ceremonies at the Peterborough Campus from June 6-9 and June 12-13 to honour 2023 graduates. Across both campuses, more than 2,600 graduates were celebrated – a record 2,266 undergraduates and the largest class of graduate students—357 Ph.D., master’s and diploma graduates.

Visit the Convocation 2023 site for event coverage, including photo galleries, remarks from honorary degree recipients, and alumni information.