Champagne moment for medical graduands

Hands on: A wave of final-year health sciences students surges towards the results pamphlets scattered among them in the Barnard Fuller quad on Tuesday evening.

It was an unexpectedly wet start to the week '“ and more so for the nearly 300 final-year health sciences students who gathered for the traditional snap, crackle and pop of champagne corks in the Barnard Fuller quad.

As is tradition, the final lists of those who passed were scattered among the hopefuls after a short congratulatory message from dean Prof Marian Jacobs. And then it was time to shower the successful graduands with bubbly.

It was good news for 163 new MBChB graduands, 26 in BSc Communication Sciences Disorders (speech and language pathologists and audiologists), 58 in BSc Occupational Therapy and 51 in BSc Physiotherapy.

There was a 100% pass rate for the BSc Communication Sciences Disorders cohort, and two distinctions.

Emma Dodd won the University Gold Medal for speech and language pathology. There were no gold medal winners in audiology or occupational therapy.

Four physiotherapy students passed with distinction and Anna Dubanowicz won the Physiotherapy Gold Medal. Ten MBChB students graduated with first-class honours and 16 with honours.

Jacqueline Cirota won the MBChB University Gold Medal for the most distinguished MBChB student graduating with honours.