2025 Fall Convocation

Congratulations,
Fall 2025 McMaster graduates!

Congratulations to our graduating students, award winners, valedictorians, educators and all the friends and families who have supported this huge achievement! 

Check back on this page as we continue to add stories, videos and highlights from Fall 2025 convocation ceremonies and celebrations, including valedictorian and award winner profiles. 

Details of all convocation ceremonies can be found on the Office of the Registrar website. 

Share your special moments with us by tagging us on Instagram (@McMasterU) and use the hashtag #MacGrad2025. 

Grads to watch

The Valedictorians

Melissa Cortez.

Get to know Melissa Cortez, Fall 2025 Social Sciences valedictorian

'I might actually cry': Cortez on second-generation identity, care work, and the community she's found at McMaster.
Two pictures of Ritika Khetarpal — an old image of her as a little girl, proudly holding a certificate of achievement. And to the right, her as an adult, standing outside the McMaster Health Sciences building holding her bachelor's degree.

'I would dedicate my degree to my younger self': Ritika Khetarpal is the Health Sciences Valedictorian

Graduating Nov. 20 with a Master of Science in Global Health, Khetarpal is driven to make health-care systems more equitable by bridging research, innovation and policy.
Kay McCallum in a lab.

Kay McCallum is the Fall 2025 Science valedictorian

From chemistry to art conversation, a five-year research journey turned grad student McCallum into a department colleague and startup cofounder.

Convocation news

Information Box Group

Two people's headshots, both are smiling.

Ahmed Moussa and Claude Cournoyer-Cloutier awarded Governor General’s Academic Gold Medal

The prestigious award recognizes students for their outstanding scholastic achievements at the graduate level.