31 August 2017
From Frue Plads to Frederiksberg
Welcome
The Matriculation Ceremony at the University of Copenhagen is a tradition that dates back more than 500 years. For the first time ever, the Matriculation Ceremony will be held in Frederiksberg and not in the university area around Frue Plads in the city centre.
Frederiksberg Campus will be the site of the University of Copenhagen’s traditional Matriculation Ceremony held on 1 September this year. The ceremony has been moved from Frue Plads, where there is not enough room for the new students because of major renovation work on the site.
At the same time, it is Rector Henrik C. Wegener’s first Matriculation Ceremony since he took office earlier this year.
Traditions follow suit
The address may be different, but the traditions and rituals will come along to Frederiksberg. On the day of the event, a stage will be mounted from which the rector will speak to the new students attired in his rectorial gown and chain. The University of Copenhagen Funky Big Band and the University Choir will deliver the musical entertainment, while the central ritual of students shaking hands with the Rector or Prorector for Education Lykke Friis will of course also take place – on a staircase specially designed for the event.
The handshake is a symbol of the student's promise to comply with the university’s laws. Today, the handshake has a more symbolic nature as the university and the students are subject to the same legislation as the rest of the population. But according to the rector, it is not without meaning.
“To me, the handshake is important. I see it as a mutual commitment and an obligation to constantly pursue wisdom and truth, think independently and critically and to contribute to a better world. In my opinion it is both central and topical in this so-called post-factual era,” Rector Henrik C. Wegener says.
10,264 new students are invited
The University of Copenhagen has admitted 7,221 new undergraduates this academic year. But the guest list for the Matriculation also includes 1,914 Danish and international graduate students, who come with bachelor’s degrees from other universities, and 1,129 international students, who will be studying at the University of Copenhagen for a shorter period.