Guest blogger Laura shares her experience of her Northumbria graduation, including what she wore and how she celebrated afterwards. You can read more from Laura on her personal blog here.
Three years have been and gone and on Monday I got to celebrate this with friends and family. It was the most amazing day and I wish I hadn’t stressed about it so much in the run up. I spent the whole run up stressing about what I was going to wear, having my photo taken and falling on stage but honestly, I don’t know why cause it all became so unimportant on the day.
What I Wore
The month leading up to my graduation I spent stressing over what I should wear and what colour I should wear. I was adamant that someone would judge me if I wore the wrong type of dress or the colour clashed with the hood. I had a red and gold hood and so was concerned anything other than white, black or red would look stupid. In the end I settled for an Oh Polly bodycon midi dress in brown (but when it arrived it was a brick red/burgundy colour). I’m so glad I chose a dress that I felt comfortable in rather than a dress that I thought other people would expect me to wear for graduation.
I was also so concerned at the fact I had to do my own makeup. As I have stated in previous posts I feel I am good at doing my own makeup but I always feel more comfortable at events when I get my makeup done by someone I feel knows what they are doing. So going into Monday I was so worried what my makeup was going to look like on photos but I kept it simple with my usual makeup routine and the Charlotte Tilbury Beauty Glow palette (if you buy one thing from Charlotte Tilbury buy this palette… its so pretty and so handbag friendly). Luckily looking back on photos, it wasn’t awful and lasted from 10am till 2pm the next day (your girl may have got a bit messy but she looked good in the process).
The Ceremony Itself
A whirlwind of emotions is probably the best way to describe the ceremony. We laughed, we cried, we felt physically sick with nerves but for an hour and a half you feel proud. The ceremony at Northumbria was really great and the nerves are there but you are in front of people for the whole of about 30 seconds to be handed a fake diploma (your real one is sent in the post) and shake the chancellor's hand then you walk off stage. For me, I just wanted to get from one end of the stage to the other without falling on my face but the room was so full of love and pride once I got on stage I felt confident. I had made it to the other end before I had noticed.
What I Did
When I imagined my graduation, I imagined an intense day where I rocked up to the ceremony and then had drinks and a meal with my family. However, what I actually did was completely different. my parents had to drive home after my graduation so they came up the day before and we went for some drinks and a meal the night before and then I met them at the ceremony and we went for some lunch, then they left. Although this wasn’t as I had planned it worked out for the best as I found it reduced the stress of the day and I got to spend my graduation day and night with Angus and my flatmates who had all been there to support me through my final year. I actually think the separation of family and friends was great and I got to really enjoy the experience with the most important people in my life.
So I think what I am trying to say, but probably not very well, is to anyone out there who is graduating soon or in the future, don’t stress about it. The people you know and love will be there for you no matter what clothes you wear or if you fall on stage, they are there to support you and show you how proud they are.
