Our heartiest Congratulations to the graduates of NUS Law’s Class of 2020 and 2021!

After having virtual Commencement ceremonies earlier this year, our graduates were finally able to celebrate their achievements with in-person Commencement ceremonies on Friday, 15 October 2021. As Safe Management Measures (SMM) were implemented to ensure the health and safety of all participants, three separate ceremonies were held at the NUS University Cultural Centre, with over 300 students from the LLB, LLM and PhD programmes graduating from the Faculty.

This year’s Commencement ceremony featured guest speaker, Mr Tan Min-Liang ’02, Co-Founder and CEO of Razer Inc. The NUS Law alumnus debunked a common trope that he was disillusioned with his law career and gave it up to start Razer, and shared how studying law and his early years as a lawyer made a profound impact on his subsequent career in computer gaming. “Just remember, as you step out to the world, you will meet the people who will matter to you. Life is short and you should pursue your passion. Despite all these difficult times, you will find opportunity and you will succeed!” he said.

Tay Wei Xuan ’20 graduated as the Valedictorian of the Class of 2020, giving an inspirational speech from the International Court of Justice in The Hague, said “The courage to pursue what I love found me after two long years into law school. I chose to save up to take a gap year feeding koalas in Brisbane. I chose to pursue my interest in the less conventional field of international law. And, in what was the most frightening moment of my parents’ lives, I chose, not to get a Training Contract (TC). I do not doubt most of us worked hard, even struggled, to be here. We can be so incredibly proud – those late nights, forfeiting recess weeks, Wikipedia-ing answers to tutorials. Still, it is difficult not to recognise the privilege we now have. NUS Law has privileged us with a legal education which, among many things, equipped us with the skills to stand up for others and ourselves.”

Quoting Oscar Wilde, he said, “To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that’s all”. I encourage all of us to value ourselves, and head out into the world to live.”

Jerry Wang Qiyu ’21 graduated as the Valedictorian of the Class of 2021, winning the Chief Justice Prize, Leo Chia Heng Prize and Lee Kuan Yew Gold Medal. He won the Law Society Book Prize for Top 2 Students consecutively in AY18/19 and AY19/20, as well as subject prizes such as the Rajah & Tann Tax Prize, Lucien Wong Corporate Finance Law Prize and Tan Sook Yee Property Law Prize. He was also the Champion for the Attorney General Cup 2019 and represented New York University in the Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot during his Master of Laws at NYU.

He reiterated in his speech that, “More importantly, our sense of duty and responsibility to society must always remain unchanged. Our legal training has equipped us with the ability to look at issues from a different perspective, to understand issues from a legal standpoint. Such skill is truly a privilege, empowering us to help people in society who may not know about their rights; who may not how to defend themselves in law. Let us muster our courage to step into our careers, be open-minded and flexible to adapt to the changing times but at the same time, never forget our duty and responsibility.”

To the Classes of 2020 and 2021, we wish you all the very best. May your courage, strength and perseverance carry you through the journeys ahead towards personal and professional success.

To all Class of 2020 and 2021 graduates, the QR code below is to access and purchase your formal photographs:

1. Go to www.werkzgallery.com/nus and login with your student ID and default password
2. Fill in your details and save
3. Go to “My photos”
4. Click on the options to purchase
5. Revisit the same page after online payment for digital images
6. Scroll to the bottom of the page to download digital images