Class of 2024 Counts Down to Graduation!

Five, four, three, two, one! The Class of 2024 celebrated their 88 days till graduation with a full day of photoshoots, live performances, and a toast to their achievements and the future ahead!

^{Top Left: Angelo Joseph Giovannoni. Top right: Yuhong Marcus Zha, Dylan Stringer, Brian Liu, Connor LaJaunie. Bottom left: Yuxuan Li and Jay He. Bottom right: Damya Bhatia}

Seniors envisioned themselves on their big day as they tried on grad gowns and lined up for professional portraits and diploma photos. With only three months left before graduation day, it was the perfect moment to pause, catch up with friends, practice a cap toss, and capture memories in the making.

^{Top left: (left to right) Mingyin Mia Xue, Yucheng Frank Bao, Shreesh Tripathi, Ishaan Gupta. Top right: Sihan Robin Xie, Zhiqi Angy He, Xiao Sophie Peng, Yiting Eadin Wang Bottom left: Lingzhi (Pika) Zhang. Bottom right: Zara Shahnaz}

For Scarlett Xiao ’24, a finance major from Chongqing, China, being an NYU Shanghai student means cherishing a unique freedom and the chance to make friends from all over the world. “I’m mostly excited to meet with a lot of my friends in this particular room right now and talk about our future plans,” she said during the senior portrait session. After graduation, Xiao will pursue a Master of Management in Analytics degree at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. 

“88 Days is really a celebration of an end of a journey and starting something new,” said Jeff Weng ’24, a business and finance major from the US. Weng is one of many seniors whose NYU Shanghai experience was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and he says he’s cherishing every moment of his second semester in Shanghai. “I think even in this short time, I’ve been able to meet a lot of new people and make new friends,” he said. After graduation, Weng is excited to embark on his professional career. He’s already accepted a job working at a bank in Dallas, Texas.

Later that evening, members of the Class of 2024 gathered to celebrate at the 88 Days Countdown party, clinking glasses of apple cider while reminiscing as a photo slideshow played back moments from the past four years of their lives. They also cheered on talented classmates and friends who took the stage for a variety of performances—from k-pop dance routines and a Chinese kung-fu demonstration to musical duets and an a cappella appearance by the NYU Shanghai Chamber Singers.

Following the performances, NYU Shanghai Chancellor Tong Shijun, Vice Chancellor Jeffrey Lehman, and Provost Joanna Waley-Cohen shared their own heartfelt wishes for the soon-to-be-graduating class before the final countdown and toast.

In his remarks, Chancellor Tong highlighted the special relationship he has built with this year's graduating class. “You are the first cohort of students who came to this school under which I became chancellor of NYU Shanghai, so I have more reasons to be proud of the progress and achievements you have made over the past four years!” 

Vice Chancellor Lehman encouraged students to spend their last three months considering the relationships, ideas, and values they’ve gained while at NYU Shanghai. “The relationships that you have with your classmates, the relationships you have with some of your faculty—carry those forward and allow them to continue to define who you are.”

“One of the things you become acutely conscious of is how incredibly precious these remaining days are,” Provost Waley-Cohen said. “If you don't know yet what your next stage of life will be, do know that you'll be going out into the world well-equipped...and that among your classmates and among all of us…you have an enormous family that will support and always be there for you.”

Congratulations, Class of 2024! Let the countdown to graduation continue!