Pitt celebrated its newest graduates at winter commencement

Hail to Pitt's newest alumni - on Sunday, the University's winter commencement ceremony recognized students who recently completed their undergraduate or graduate degrees. Hundreds of recent graduates crossed the Petersen Events Center stage, joining the record-breaking Class of 2025 that walked in May.

The Honorable Deborah L. Wince-Smith, president and CEO of the Council on Competitiveness, addressed Pitt's newest graduates. Drawing on her scholarly background as a Cambridge-trained classical archaeologist and her rich professional experience, including more than two decades in senior positions in the U.S. government, she advised graduates to continue the pursuit of knowledge as they jump-start their careers.

"First, know that a rich, relevant and rewarding career always allows both the time and the space for the magic of serendipity to be fused with the alchemy of discovery," Wince-Smith said. "Second, trust and empower yourself with the ability to achieve, to draw upon the deep replenishing reserves of your intellectual acumen, your insight, your intuition and critical judgment so you can think big and tackle big problems. And third, I draw this axiom from my work as an archeologist, always remember to try to see and decipher the meaning and importance of what is unseen."

The undergraduate speaker was Nidhi Girish, a Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences and David C. Frederick Honors College student who earned a BS in neuroscience. Girish called on her peers to recognize the many ways their Pitt experience will carry them through their lives.

"I have been colored by every single moment and by every single person around me, and I have been reminded time and time again that life is not analogous to a race, but rather to a screenplay with an ever-changing, ever-adapting script, one that was not carved in stone by the passions we once walked through Towers' doors with," Girish said.

Larissa Allen, a School of Nursing PhD recipient who served as this year's graduate student speaker, celebrated the grit and perseverance displayed by every graduate.

"We also learned an important lesson together: the value of caring for ourselves," she said. "This journey required late nights, early mornings and more stress than probably felt manageable. But we learned that rest matters. Support matters. Self-care matters. And we are better scholars, professionals, friends and people when we honor that."

Keep scrolling to see unforgettable moments from the day.