After years of studying, they have finally reached their goal. This weekend, around 2,600 students graduated from ISU. They received their degrees and were honored at various graduation events over the weekend.

“I’m really relieved that I have all that behind me now,” said Mary Woeste, graduate in linguistics. “It was a challenge to get everything done in time.”

Woeste said that especially in the last weeks before break, it was hard for her to stay focused and motivated.

“When you’re so close to the end, you’re also really close to not having to care about your assignments and projects anymore, so why even bother? Fortunately, I powered through and made it.”

Around 490 graduates this year came from the college of liberal arts and sciences, while around 420 students received their degrees at the college of engineering.

“The overall number of students has definitely increased over the past couple of years,” said Laura Doering, registrar at records and registration.

Of all the events she attends at ISU every year, Doering said she enjoys the annual commencement ceremony the most.

“It really is the culmination of their hard work and effort. These students are the reason why my colleagues and I are all here. We work all year to help them prepare for life and be successful.”

Qiaoyi Tong, graduate in agricultural business, said that for the past couple of weeks, she had been counting down the days until the very end.

“I’m happy and excited that I made it, but I’m also kind of sad, because it’s very hard to say goodbye and leave, when you’ve been here for such a long time.”

Tong said her future is still kind of uncertain.

“I really want to go to grad school, so I’ve applied to four different ones. Now all I can do is wait.”

Woeste said that a lot of students who graduate now tend to be unsure what to do once they receive their degrees.

“I got an internship where I’ll go do language research in Papua New Guinea for two years. I’m going to travel to different areas getting data on types of languages and how they function, so I’m really excited about that.”

The time at ISU was one of the best times in his entire life, said Subhadarshi Sarkar, graduate in electrical engineering.

“It wasn’t always smooth sailing and there were a lot of downtimes, but all in all, if I had to make a decision, I’d come back here in a heartbeat.”

Sarkar said that he already has a permanent job in Boston, but he’ll eventually return to Ames since one of his most precious memories occurred at ISU.

“In my first year here, when it started snowing on campus, it was the first snow I had ever seen,” Sarkar said. “We don’t have any snow in my home country, India, so seeing the white campus was a special moment for me.”

Doering said that there are tons of possibilities for students who want to re-visit the campus.

“They are all part of the ISU family now and we encourage them to come back and share their experiences.”

Doering said she wishes all the graduates success in both their personal lives and their professional lives

“I’d also advise them to laugh, sometimes even at yourself and enjoy the ride and the adventure. Use what you’ve learned to take care of this world and give something back to others.”