On June 24, 2025, Shanghai University of Finance and Economics (SUFE) grandly held the 2025 SUFE Commencement Ceremony (the “Ceremony”). The first cohort of Master of Finance (MF) graduates from Dishui Lake Advanced Finance Institute, SUFE (SUFE-DAFI), who robed in academic gowns and carried their dreams, stepped onto the Ceremony stage alongside graduates from across SUFE, embracing their well-deserved moment of glory.
Reproduced from: SUFE Official WeChat Account
To the Oceans of Stars: A Promising Future Awaits
On the morning of June 24, 2025, the 2025 SUFE Commencement Ceremony took place at the Comprehensive Gymnasium on Guoding Road Campus. In attendance were SUFE’s Party and administrative leaders, including LIU Yuanchun, YAO Lingzhen, LI Zengquan, LIU Liya, LIU Qingsheng, ZHOU Guoliang, and JIN Yuying; XIA Jijun, Assistant President; CAO Dongbo and CHU Hua, Members of the University Party Committee Standing Committee; JIN Wenzhong, SUFE Trustee, Outstanding Alumnus, and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Orient Securities Capital Investment Co., Ltd.; heads of university functional departments and schools; faculty representatives; and all 2025 undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral graduates. Together, they witnessed this honorable moment.
Faculty, students, SUFE alumni, and graduates’ family members joined the Ceremony through the main venue, satellite venues, and on-campus/off-campus live streams. The Ceremony was broadcast simultaneously on SUFE’s official platforms, including its WeChat Channels, Weibo, and TikTok accounts.
Before the Ceremony, the 2025 graduates gathered to watch a graduation video, revisiting precious memories of their academic life at SUFE; Chinese and international student representatives staged a vibrant flash mob to showcase the vitality of SUFE students and convey graduation wishes through heartfelt singing.
Passing the University Flag: Carrying Forward the Legacy of “Virtue and Erudition, Economic Service for National Renewal”. A large university flag was solemnly passed among attendees in the main venue. Graduates took turns holding and caressing the flag, expressing gratitude to their alma mater. The spiritual heritage of SUFE, which was rooted in its century-old motto “Virtue and Erudition, Economic Service for National Renewal”, was passed along through their hands. SUFE’s profound historical foundation merged with the graduates’ youthful vitality, symbolizing the transgenerational inheritance of SUFE’s spirit.
All teachers and students stood tall with their heads held high. Amid the solemn strains of the national anthem, the Ceremony officially began.
LIU Yuanchun, President and Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of SUFE, delivered the final “lesson” to graduates before their departure, titled “The SUFE of the Future and the You of the Future”. Facing changes in the times and the world, he proposed that to build a world-class new finance and economics university in the digital and intelligent era, SUFE must fully strengthen its digital foundation, enhance core capabilities in digital and intelligent new finance and economics, nurture new humanistic sentiments for the digital age, operate with an open approach, and develop a scenario-driven, industry-education integrated talent development system. Addressing the 2025 graduates who were about to step into the world and face the challenges of the era, President LIU put forward two hopes: 1. Growing with SUFE, and fully enhancing new competencies to adapt to and lead the new era; continuing to evolve amid uncertainty, grasping “meta-knowledge”, boosting innovation and adaptability, and elevating thinking patterns to meet future challenges. 2. Growing with SUFE, and building a value community rooted in “Virtue and Erudition, Economic Service for National Renewal”; uniting four virtues, “benevolence” for those with virtue, “wisdom” for those with erudition, “integrity” for those dedicated to economics, and “courage” for those serving the nation, to foster love for humanity, the Party and the country, the nation, the collective, family, and oneself. In closing, President LIU urged graduates to respond to the country’s needs and the era’s calls through practical action and dedication, uphold their ideals, aim high, and contribute to the great cause of national rejuvenation and building a powerful nation.
The Ceremony proceedings were hosted by ZHOU Guoliang, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of SUFE.
On the Ceremony stage, graduate representatives reflected on their academic journeys, shared youth insights, expressed deep gratitude and reluctance toward their alma mater, and voiced their hopes for the future.
SHEN Shijia, undergraduate representative from the School of Information Management and Engineering, vividly recounted her academic experience integrating cutting-edge technology with social responsibility. She shared lessons and reflections from participating in research projects, cited examples of using data models to predict economic indicators, looked back on her experiences in social practice initiatives such as the Thousand-village Survey and Knowledge & Action Cup, and talked about applying classroom theory to rural revitalization and the silver economy. “The algorithms taught by our alma mater are never cold code, but rather social cogs that warm the years”, she said, noting that these experiences deepened her understanding of knowledge’s social value.
BEI Chen, master’s graduate representative and a Norwegian international student from the School of International Cultural Exchange and School of Finance, shared stories of his study journey in China. He talked about overcoming initial language barriers, embracing multicultural integration, learning international finance knowledge in class, and gaining hands-on experience through rural field trips in China. He noted that the supportive learning environment, rich campus cultural activities, and caring teachers and peers had turned his study abroad experience into a “journey home”. Looking ahead, he said his time at SUFE had equipped him with the most precious abilities: maintaining curiosity and an open mindset, pursuing lifelong learning, and growing continuously to accumulate his own strength.
SUI Yang, doctoral graduate representative from the School of Statistics and Data Science, spoke about how SUFE’s industry-academia-research platform had helped him understand “the warmth behind data”. He recounted his journey of pursuing research and achieving personal growth, and used regression analysis of employment data (a case from his research) to illustrate that “every effort an individual makes is part of the collective’s progress”. Facing the wave of AI, he encouraged fellow graduates to embrace change courageously, stay curious about new things, keep learning, and strive to be SUFE people who dare to explore and face uncertainties.
Passing the Torch: Wishes from Teachers and Alumni. At the Ceremony, faculty and alumni representatives offered blessings and expectations to the graduates.
Professor CHEN Yuanyuan, Vice Dean of the School of Economics and faculty representative, delivered a speech titled “Being the Helmsman of Your Own Life in an Uncertain Era”, sharing four pieces of advice: Take self-fulfillment as your sail to steer your life’s course, listen to your inner voice and find your unique life rhythm and value compass. Take open-mindedness and resilience as your rudder to embrace life’s ups and downs, seek small joys even in setbacks. Take lifelong learning as your oars to ride the tides of the era, use critical thinking to navigate technological waves. Take health and gratitude as your anchor, cherish your health and family bonds, and incorporate exercise into daily life. She encouraged graduates to illuminate their paths with wisdom, enrich their years with passion, and write a chapter of their era worthy of SUFE’s name.
Mr. JIN Wenzhong, a SUFE alumnus (1985 Bachelor of Statistics, 1988 Master of Statistics), SUFE Trustee, and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Orient Securities Capital Investment Co., Ltd., shared heartfelt wishes on behalf of alumni. He recalled witnessing the development of China’s capital market from scratch, and talked about the era’s transformation from “abacus calculations” to the “computing power revolution”. He urged graduates to become top professionals in the AI era, manage their lives with “compound interest thinking”, cultivate resilience and confidence, and develop team spirit and self-discipline. He encouraged the new generation of SUFE people to carry forward the motto “Virtue and Erudition, Economic Service for National Renewal” and embark bravely on their new journeys with hope for the future.
In 2025, SUFE named 240 students, including SHAO Yinuo, as “Shanghai Municipal Outstanding University Graduates”. At the Ceremony, President LIU Yuanchun presented certificates of honor to outstanding graduate representatives and congratulated them on their achievements.
President LIU Yuanchun then read SUFE’s decision on degree conferral, and all faculty and students witnessed the important moment when graduates officially completed their studies.
Vice President JIN Yuying presented honorary bachelor’s degree certificates to representative graduates, recognizing their diligence in studies and outstanding achievements in pursuing academic excellence.
Heading to the frontlines where the motherland requires you most to unfold your youth’s splendor, and forge your growth at the cutting edge of the era. The 27th SUFE Postgraduate Volunteer Teaching Corps will be dispatched to Guizhou, Yunnan, Gansu, and other regions to perform one year of volunteer teaching and grassroots social management services. ZHOU Guoliang, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of SUFE, presented flags to members of the 27th Volunteer Teaching Corps, 2025 Western China Program volunteers, and representatives of graduates employed in grassroots and key national fields, and announced their departure.
All faculty and students sang SUFE’s school song Jointly Forging Glory, with melody carrying the friendship of “solidarity and mutual assistance” among classmates and the youthful ambition of “boundless prospects ahead”. As the heartfelt strains of the song faded, the degree conferral session began.
Key SUFE leaders, representatives of the Academic Committee, and the Degree Evaluation Committee of SUFE turned the tassels on graduates’ caps, adjusted their academic gowns, and presented degree certificates to graduates, capturing this pivotal life moment in group photos.
“Your journey begins, and a boundless future awaits!” Dear 2025 graduates, you will carry the mark of “Virtue and Erudition” as you go forth across the country. May you measure the coordinates of the times with your aspiration to serve the country through economics, and write a magnificent chapter of your life with the passion of youth. Congratulations on your graduation!
