Uni of Suffolk Graduates 2026: Every gown has a story

If you walked down the Ipswich Waterfront this week, you would have noticed something different in the air. A marquee, caps and gowns, friends, families and loved ones.

This week marked the end of degrees that, for many, changed the course of their lives entirely.

The Graduates

Thousands of graduates threw their caps into the air over the past week, here are some of their stories:

• Alice Lawes, 21, from Ipswich, studied Graphic Design.

She secured a job as a Graphic Design Executive at Ipswich Town Football Club shortly after exhibiting at June's Arts Degree Show. She will miss "the playful, friendly atmosphere" of her course most.

• Vicki Webber, from Sudbury, graduated in BSc (Hons) Biological Sciences.

She received the Royal Society of Biology Top Student Award - which recognises outstanding undergraduate biologists. She has secured a place to study Veterinary Science and Medicine. "It has always been my goal to help the animals who are displaced and need an advocate with the right medical knowledge to care for them," she said.

• Zoe Saunders, SU President of Activities and Wellbeing, graduated with a First Class degree in Criminology and Sociology. "I know the strength and determination it took to get to this point and I hope all graduates take a moment to reflect on their own journey and achievements," she said.
• Gemma Upson, 45, a Fine Art graduate from Ipswich who celebrated by crocheting caricatures of every one of her course tutors and technicians and presenting them at her ceremony.

Her final year exhibition included 30 crocheted album covers, all created freehand, with no pattern and invited viewers to leave memories of the records in a book beside the work. "It's hand-on-heart one of the best things I have ever done," she said of her three years on the course.

The Honorary Doctorates

Two honorary doctorates were awarded this week.

• Emma Freud OBE (yes, that Freud) - broadcaster, film producer, co-founder of Make Poverty History, - and the executive producer at Comic Relief!

She has lived in Suffolk for most of her life and described the county as having "magic inside it."

She is currently developing Yesterday into a West End musical, set in Suffolk. "We set Yesterday in Suffolk because you have to write about what you know," she said.

• Dr Alison Weir - the UK's top-selling female historian, with more than 40 books and three million copies sold worldwide.

She described the occasion "one of the most special days of my life." Her most recent novel covers Ipswich-born Cardinal Thomas Wolsey.

On the town, she said: "Sadly, his college is long gone thanks to Henry VIII, but you've got a great university instead."

"Suffolk has magic inside it — it's made me who I am, it's given my children all their best qualities."— Emma Freud OBE

The incredible stories of this year’s graduates prove that behind every gown is a different story. Different sacrifices. Different starting points. Different reasons for not giving up.

Congratulations, University of Suffolk Class of 2026.