2024 Spring Graduation Ceremony speeches at Yushima Campus by Naoto Ohtake, president and CEO
Science Tokyo President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Naoto Ohtake
March 25, 2025
Speech to recipients of bachelor's degrees
Good morning, everyone.
First of all, to all the students completing their degrees, I would like to extend my heartfelt congratulations on your graduation.
In the face of rapid change and uncertainty, including the covid-19 pandemic, your determination, creativity, and resilience have been truly remarkable, and we celebrate together the culmination of your hard work. Like President and CAO Tanaka, I also want you to take pride in being Science Tokyo's first graduates.
To the families, friends, and loved ones who have tirelessly offered their comfort and support: Thank you, on behalf of everyone at Science Tokyo, for entrusting these individuals to us, and for everything you have done during these challenging times.
On this special day, 269 students graduate from Science Tokyo with bachelor's degrees in the medical and dental sciences fields.
Graduates: Throughout your time at university, you have explored not only your medical, dental, and nursing specializations, but also the liberal arts and humanities to formulate your own distinctive vision for patient care and medicine itself. You have sought the questions and answers that define your path to new discoveries and a better and brighter life, society, and planet. I want to congratulate you for these efforts, and thank you for adding the first page to the history of Science Tokyo.
Today, I would like to touch on one thing that I think is important for anyone who is advancing to the next stage of their life. The concept I would like to highlight is "freedom." I am sure that you have already recognized that the origins of research lie in the researcher's curiosity and free thinking. There are many examples of how research findings born out of the interest of a single researcher have changed history. Such researchers possessed the freedom to select their own way. This is also true for you. After you graduate, you will be on your own path and there will be many choices ahead of you, including becoming a doctor in a particular hospital or a researcher. I hope that each of you will embrace the freedom that you have been granted, make courageous and impactful decisions, and live your life to the fullest.
There is another aspect of freedom worth considering, and that is the freedom from stereotypes. When you come across an opinion that is completely different from yours, I urge you not to reject it right away. Give it some thought. If you can unlock the chains of bias and compare your opinions impartially to those of others, you have achieved freedom from your stereotypes. This leads to significant personal growth and development. Perhaps you have already experienced this during your time as students. I hope you will continue to do so in the future.
Our vision for Science Tokyo is to create a vibrant and compassionate university where the students, faculty, and staff work conscientiously, and together with society, to envision a better, brighter future. This means taking on challenges such as creating new academic disciplines and industries, as well as addressing societal issues like pandemics and carbon neutrality. We want to share this vision with everyone connected to Science Tokyo, including of course, alumni. Through dialogue, we will become one unified, dynamic team working together to create truly innovative solutions. I, together with Chairman Asano of Science Tokyo's alumni association for the medical and dental sciences fields, warmly welcome you, the first graduates of Science Tokyo, to join us in turning this exciting vision into reality.
Class of 2024: You have a chance to utilize your freedom and make changes for the better. So, let me leave you with a question. As you move forward, will you take the paved, well-trodden path to a known destination, or will you blaze your trail to new landscapes and discoveries? From today, the choice is yours.
I look forward to seeing you all thrive in your careers, and your lives. Once again, congratulations on your graduation.
Thank you very much.
Speech to recipients of master's and doctoral degrees
Good afternoon, everyone.
First of all, to all the students completing their degrees, I would like to extend my heartfelt congratulations on your graduation.
In the face of rapid change and uncertainty, including the covid-19 pandemic, your determination, creativity, and resilience have been truly remarkable, and we celebrate together the culmination of your hard work. Like President and CAO Tanaka, I also want you to take pride in being Science Tokyo's first graduates.
To the families, friends, and loved ones who have tirelessly offered their comfort and support: Thank you, on behalf of everyone at Science Tokyo, for entrusting these individuals to us, and for everything you have done during these challenging times.
On this special day, 134 students graduate from Science Tokyo with master’s degrees, and 172 students earn their doctoral degrees in the medicine and dental science fields.
Graduates: Throughout your time at university, you have explored not only your medical, dental, and nursing specializations, but also the liberal arts and humanities to formulate your own distinctive vision for patient care and medicine itself. You have sought the questions and answers that define your path to new discoveries and a better and brighter life, society, and planet. I want to congratulate you for these efforts, and thank you for adding the first page to the history of Science Tokyo.
Today, I would like to touch on one thing that I think is important for anyone who is advancing to the next stage of their life. The concept I would like to highlight is "freedom." I am sure that you have already recognized that the origins of research lie in the researcher's curiosity and free thinking. There are many examples of how research findings born out of the interest of a single researcher have changed history. Such researchers possessed the freedom to select their own way. This is also true for you. After you graduate, you will be on your own path and there will be many choices ahead of you. I hope that each of you will embrace the freedom that you have been granted, make courageous and impactful decisions, and live your life to the fullest.
There is another aspect of freedom worth considering, and that is the freedom from stereotypes. When you come across an opinion that is completely different from yours, I urge you not to reject it right away. Give it some thought. If you can unlock the chains of bias and compare your opinions impartially to those of others, you have achieved freedom from your stereotypes. This leads to significant personal growth and development. Perhaps you have already experienced this during your time as students. I hope you will continue to do so in the future.
Our vision for Science Tokyo is to create a vibrant and compassionate university where the students, faculty, and staff work conscientiously, and together with society, to envision a better, brighter future. This means taking on challenges such as creating new academic disciplines and industries, as well as addressing societal issues like pandemics and carbon neutrality. We want to share this vision with everyone connected to Science Tokyo, including of course, alumni. Through dialogue, we will become one unified, dynamic team working together to create solutions. I, together with Chairman Asano of Science Tokyo's alumni association for the medical and dental sciences fields, warmly welcome you, the first graduates of Science Tokyo, to join us in turning this exciting vision into reality.
Class of 2024: You have a chance to utilize your freedom and make changes for the better. As you move forward, will you take the paved, well-trodden path to a known destination, or will you blaze your trail to new landscapes and discoveries? From today, the choice is yours.
I look forward to seeing you all thrive in your careers, and your lives. Once again, congratulations on your graduation.
Thank you very much.
Update history
- This article was updated on April 30, 2025.
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