On Tuesday, June 25 2019, a graduation ceremony was held in the Administration Bureau Conference Room.
President Yokoya presented degrees to each graduate and gave the congratulatory speech to the 6 graduates.

After the ceremony, the commemorative photograph was taken and the graduates enjoyed the graduation ceremony with the president, executive directors and their supervising professors.

*Number of Graduates in June
【Doctoral Graduates】
Information Science 2
Biological Sciences 1
Materials Science 3

Total 6

【Congratulatory Remarks to Graduating Students】

 I would like to offer my heartfelt congratulations to the 6 students who have been awarded doctoral degrees today.

 Including the 6 graduates today, NAIST has conferred 7,979 master's degrees and 1,628 doctoral degrees since its establishment, with international students comprising 314 master's and 301 doctoral degree recipients.

 Having received your doctoral degrees, you will start your new lives in society as professional researchers and engineers.

 Currently, science and technology is facing an unprecedented era of revolutionary changes. In recent years, keywords in science and technology are based on information science: Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT), and Data Science.
These technological innovations will, of course, bring about enormous change throughout society as well.

 These innovations in ICT technology have led to notable developments in science and technology fields outside of information science. For example, in the field of biological sciences there is the existing research area of bio-informatics and in materials science the presence of the new research area of materials informatics is increasing.

 In pursuit of a 'Super Smart Society' in which a myriad of things are connected to the internet fusing the 'cyber world' and the 'real world' and which is based upon analysis of huge amounts of real time-collected data that may be accessed from around the world through networks, a new research paradigm is developing called 'data-driven science' or 'AI-driven science.

 Based on the awareness of this era, in April last year, NAIST unified the previous 3 graduate schools to establish the Graduate School of Science and Technology in order to enhance interdisciplinary area education programs.

 It is currently thought that the computer ability will surpass sum of our human ability in the 2040's and technological singularity will be achieved, and, at that time, the majority of the jobs existing today will disappear and it is predicted that new jobs will appear. What kind of era will the 2040s be? What is for sure is that it will be a time when you will be the central part of society.

 You have developed specialized knowledge and experience from the various fields of information, biological and materials sciences. However, from now I hope that you will be active as researchers and engineers, responding flexibly to developments in science and technology through looking at related fields to gain a broad understanding of various areas of study to continually pursue the opening of new frontiers for exploration.

 Please actively undertake the creation and application of new science and technology to effectively overcome whatever singularity may bring.

 Through your doctoral thesis research, you have the valuable experiences through which you developed the ability to identify problems, explore and implement solutions to these problems, evaluate the outcomes, and write academic papers on the outcomes through discussions with people having various viewpoints.

 This experience, while not always enjoyable, along with the network you have created here at NAIST will be a key factor in ensuring your future as researchers and engineers.

 NAIST's role does not end with us sending you out into society. Rather, the NAIST faculty and staff considers our role as facilitating the building of strong relationships with alumni so that each and all of you will be able to continue your creative lives in an ever-changing community of science and technology.

 Recently Homecoming Day is being held during the fall Open Campus and we hope to continue to hold this kind of event. We hope that you will come and visit at that time.

 Also, in addition to alumni association activities centered on our network of graduates, NAIST aims to further strengthen its international network of graduates active throughout the globe through our overseas offices, etc., and hope that you actively participate in these efforts.

 I would like to congratulate you all again and in conclusion, we look forward to your future endeavors and success.

Naokazu Yokoya, President, Nara Institute of Science and Technology
June 25, 2019