“The world needs what you’ve gained from your liberal arts education”— Executive Dean Juli Wade
The Rutgers-New Brunswick School of Arts of Sciences staged a spirited sendoff for a record number of graduating seniors in the Class of 2026, holding four convocation ceremonies over two days that packed Jersey Mike’s Arena with graduates and their families.
“This year we are celebrating more than 5,800 graduates,” Executive Dean Juli Wade told the sea of scarlet-clad seniors that stretched the length of the sports arena’s floorspace. “We’re filling this arena close to capacity four times so every one of you can cross the stage and hear the applause.”
The school’s Convocation 2026, which took place May 19 and 21, was by turns celebratory and reflective, opening with a faculty procession displaying the 44 scarlet, white, and teal banners representing SAS’s academic fields and then going deep with student speeches that explored struggles, triumphs, and growth across four years of undergraduate life.
Adiva KhanAdiva Ara Khan, speaking at Thursday morning’s ceremony, told the audience how she was diagnosed with ADHD at the age of 18 and initially tried to handle it quietly. But over time she began discussing it openly with others, and that openness felt empowering.
“The more open I was about my struggles, the more I realized how many people were carrying struggles of their own, quietly and often invisibly,” said Khan, a political science major. “By sharing my story, I wasn't just speaking for myself anymore—I was helping create space for those silent struggles to be seen, acknowledged, and understood.”
Danasia Diamond Kelly, a criminal justice major and the speaker at Thursday afternoon’s ceremony, told her fellow graduates how she transferred schools several times before finally finding a home at Rutgers.
“I am a three-time transfer student; at this point, I have automatically learned how to adjust,” Kelly said.
Danasia Diamond KellyShe said her Rutgers experience shaped her into a graduate who wants to fight for justice as an attorney and eventually a congresswoman.
“Rutgers: thank you for being a place where students with complicated stories could still find space to grow,” Kelly said. “Thank you for being the place where so many of us stopped doubting and started believing.”
The School of Arts and Sciences is the liberal arts school of Rutgers University–New Brunswick and the university’s largest and most comprehensive school. The school serves as the intellectual center of undergraduate education, providing more than 100 majors and minors—everything from physics to philosophy; chemistry to classics, and from cognitive science to comparative literature.
The Class of 2026 included graduates from 40 countries and 33 U.S. states. Nearly 1,200 of them are first-generation college students.
One student speaker adorned his speech with several sentences of Spanish, an eloquent final touch that highlighted the courage and sacrifices of those who came before him.
Steven M. Araujo Vinueza“To those of us who carry multiple identities, languages, and worlds within us, this achievement means something special,” said Steven M. Araujo Vinueza, a public health major who spoke at the Tuesday afternoon ceremony. “It represents our families’ dreams, our cultures and histories.”
He then broke into Spanish followed by the English translation: “To my parents, and people like them: first generation immigrants, who were brave enough to leave their country, to leave the familiar behind in pursuit of something new and better, I am here today thanks to you.”
A record number of seniors participated in the 2026 convocation, with 4,012 graduates walking across the stage over two days. Tuesday afternoon’s ceremony was the first in SAS history to draw more than 1,000 participants.
Among the graduates, there were 843 with two majors, 31 with three majors, and two with four majors.
The graduates have big plans. They intend to become doctors, lawyers, authors, data scientists, public health advocates and teachers among many other career choices. Some are focused on research. Serena DeSouza, a cognitive science major with minors in music and psychology, plans to continue exploring the impact of music and dance on brain health.
“I’m fascinated by the possibility that creative expression can strengthen both the mind and sense of self,” she said.
Dean Wade, in her remarks, told the graduates that their skills, knowledge, and commitment are very much needed in the world.
“You graduate into a moment of significant global challenges,” Wade said. “Climate disruption that tests our communities, public health threats, conflicts that may be in distant parts of the world but hit home here in countless ways.”
She added: “Your education has trained you to ask better questions, weigh evidence, listen across differences, and act with both humility and purpose — exactly what this moment requires.”
Two seniors noted how their majors and minors bridged science and the humanities – a combination they said will help them in their careers and help them improve the world.
Nandni Patel, who is planning to go to medical school, envisions a career path that would make use of her majors in biological sciences and women’s, gender, and sexuality studies.
“Whatever I do (in medicine), I want it to focus on women’s health,” Patel said.
Similarly, Ibrahim Mudassar plans to work in Silicon Valley building technology to benefit people’s lives. Mudassar is a computer science major but said his minor in philosophy is also critical to his career goals.
“I think that philosophy is especially important with figuring out a way to create technology that actually helps people,” Mudassar said. “Philosophy helps me think of the bigger picture, the ‘why’ of doing things.”
Finally, beyond discussions of academics and careers, students noted how their time at Rutgers provided one of the most valuable life skills: The ability to connect with others and build enduring friendships.
Shriya SrinivasanShriya Srinivasan, the student speaker at Tuesday morning’s ceremony, spoke of her first uncertain moments after arriving at Rutgers from her hometown in California.
“Outside my window, people moved in groups, laughing, calling out to one another, moving with a kind of certainty I didn’t feel yet,” Srinivasan, who is majoring in computer science and data science, told her fellow graduates. “And I remember having a thought I didn’t want to admit:
“Everyone else got a map to belonging, and somehow I missed mine.”
Yet that would soon change with the arrival of her roommate, and the two of them venturing out to the dining hall together.
“That tiny decision, saying “together” instead of “I’ll be fine,” became the first brick in something that would eventually feel like home,” Srinivasan said. “Congratulations, Scarlet Knights. We didn’t just find home here. We made it.”
In the section below, meet a small but representative sample of students from the School of Arts and Sciences Class of 2026, and enjoy a photo gallery capturing the Convocation 2026 Ceremonies.
Ashvi Desai
Hometown: Parsippany, NJ
Major: Genetics with a minor in psychology
Plans after graduation: I plan to take a gap year working in the medical field before applying to medical school. I would also like to get master’s in public health because I eventually want to go into healthcare advocacy.
What I will most about Rutgers: Being so close to my friends. College is unique because you live right next to your friends. If I need anything, I can go to them, or they can come to me. And then there’s the in-between friends that you’ve had a class with, and you appreciate their company. I feel like I will never get something like this again, so I am soaking up those last moments.
Serena DeSouza
Hometown: Piscataway, NJ
Major: Cognitive Science with minors in music and psychology and certificate in international dance studies
Plans after Graduation: Continue my research on the impact of music and dance on brain health
What I will miss most about Rutgers: My amazing professors!
Michael Fridkin
Hometown: West Windsor, NJ
Major: Computer science with a minor in philosophy
Plans after graduation: Pursuing a master’s in data science (AI and analytics) here at Rutgers. I want to help create AI that aids people in medical research.
What I will miss most about Rutgers: Getting to know people from all walks of life. There is a lot of room for personal growth.
Zianida Hussein
Hometown: Plainfield, NJ
Major: Psychology with minor in public health
Plans after graduation: I just became a business owner, and I plan to attend graduate school in the spring.
What I will miss most about Rutgers: I will definitely miss the love from my Rutgers community and lunchtime on College Avenue. I am so happy yet sad to go.
Danasia Kelly
Hometown: Medford, NJ
Major: Criminal justice with a minor in psychology
Plans after graduation: I want to go to law school, become a lawyer, and become a congresswoman. As a lawyer, I would like to practice family law. As a congresswoman, I would truly represent the people, meaning everyone as a whole. I want to support policies to let everyone know that we do exist. Black women in Congress exist. Black women in politics exist.
What I will miss most about Rutgers: Everything. I love Rutgers so much. Specifically, my Livi apartment. And all of the staff and faculty that supported me and made me feel at home.
Adiva Ara Khan
Hometown: East Brunswick, NJ
Major: Political science with minors in critical intelligence studies and economics.
Plans after graduation: I am planning to work for a year or two to gain some professional experience, ideally in the field of law and focus on public policy. I would like to go to law school and eventually practice law in areas such data privacy, AI governance, and with a focus on civil rights for minority communities in a national security context.
What I will most about Rutgers: I am going to miss walks on College Avenue especially through Voorhees Mall with my friends during the springtime. The cherry blossoms are the most beautiful things we see during this time. It’s always enlightening, inspiring and it gives me a little joy every year.
Emily Liu
Hometown: Voorhees, NJ
Major: Biological sciences
Plans after graduation: I plan to apply to dental school, and am going to take a gap year to work as a medical assistant and to continue the research that I worked on over my undergraduate years.
What I will miss most about Rutgers: The community, my friends, and the different spots on campus where we hang out and study together. My friends are like my family, and I will miss having everyone around.
James Mellon
Hometown: Houston, Texas
Major: English and pursuing 4 plus 1 program in education
Plans after graduation: Becoming an English teacher. I am going to be back at Rutgers (earning a master’s in education) and teaching in a local school district. I really enjoy teaching English because it teaches the most important literacy skills. If you want to promote critical thinking skills, English is the way to go.
What I will miss most about Rutgers: My community for sure. My friends who supported me. I live at Demarest Hall, a special interest community, and it’s really helped me find great friends as well as the local music scene, and many other interests that I enjoy.
Elio Perez
Hometown: Palisades Park, NJ
Major: English with a minor in creative writing
Plans after graduation: I am taking a gap year and looking for a job in publishing and will also be working in a school as a teaching assistant. After that I am going back for my masters in creative writing.
What I will most about Rutgers: Having a community with common interests. I have had a lot of access to people involved in creating writing in ways that I don’t get when I am home. We workshop and share our work; our stories. I am also in student theater. Being able to be in those spaces is very valuable to me.
Ibrahim Mudassar
Hometown: Woodbridge, NJ
Major: Computer science with a minor in philosophy
Plans after graduation: I want to be a software engineer and work in Silicon Valley for a startup. I want to make cool technology that changes people’s lives.
Ever since I was a kid I have been interested in computers and how they can change people’s lives. I think that (my) philosophy minor is especially important with figuring out a way to create technology that actually helps people,” Mudassar said. “Philosophy helps me think of the bigger picture, the ‘why’ of doing things.”
What I will miss most about Rutgers: Definitely having a walkable community where friends our super close to you. Having that proximity to everyone, including people who are likeminded and smarter than you so you can learn even more.
Nandni Patel
Hometown: Voorhees, NJ
Major: Biological sciences and women’s, gender, and sexuality studies
Plans after Graduation: I am premed and am taking a gap year working as a scribe in an orthopedic practice, and I am also going to be doing part-time cancer research. Ultimately, after medical school, I want to develop a focus on women’s health that reflects both my majors at Rutgers.
What I will miss most about Rutgers: My friends and the people I met. Just being here and being able to spend time with them in such a close-knit community. Doing all the clubs and the activities and just seeing a new face as I walk down the street and saying 'hi' to them.
Yash Shah
Hometown: Iselin, NJ
Major: Computer science and data science with a minor in quantitative economics
Plans after graduation: I will be starting in July as a software engineer for a fintech company in New York City.
What I will miss most about Rutgers: At a technology company you are surrounded by people who are software engineers or some adjacent tech field. At Rutgers, I have had the opportunity to interact with people from every major on a daily basis. That opportunity to talk to people about different topics is just super interesting, as well as being able to take a random class that interests you. I took one in astronomy. Those experiences are what I am going to miss most.
Shriya Srinivasan
Hometown: Saratoga, California
Major: Computer science and data science with a minor in business administration.
Plans after graduation: I am going to take a month to chill out a little bit and travel with my family. Then I am going to start work as a product manager at Nokia in Sunnyvale California. In a few years I want to go back to school and get my MBA and then see where life takes me from there.
What I will miss most about Rutgers: Definitely the people and the friendships I have forged over the last four years. Every person I have met has a near and dear place in my heart. Now all my friends are moving to different places, and that’s definitely scary because we are not going to be a minute walk away, but I know I will always have a place to visit and will spend time with them.
Nicholas M. Vinco
Hometown: East Brunswick, NJ
Major: Urban planning and design
Plans After Graduation: I'll be finishing the Master of City and Regional Planning program at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, which I began during my senior year.
What I will miss most about Rutgers: I'm fortunate enough to have met many friends throughout my four years of undergraduate education at Rutgers. I made connections within my major, worked on campus for Student Orientation and Transition Programs, and joined many student organizations like the Rutgers Association of Philippine Students and Habitat for Humanity. Throughout that journey, I was able to find a sense of community. Now, my friends and I are all starting to pursue diverging paths and will hopefully reunite again, but I'll miss seeing them around campus.
Steven M. Araujo Vinueza
Hometown: Hightstown, NJ
Major: Public health with a minor in data science, societal impact track
Plans after graduation: Travel and spend time with family and looking into graduate studies. Public health has been my passion for the last four years. The fact that I would be able to contribute to solving health crises on small or larger scales is a driving factor for me.
What I will miss most about Rutgers: The vibe that it has. You can’t go anywhere without running into someone that you know.
Convocation 2026 Photo Galleries
