Tsinghua University School of Economics and Management (Tsinghua SEM) held a commencement ceremony for the Class of 2026 at the Tsinghua University Comprehensive Gymnasium on June 28, 2026.

The Class of 2026 and their families and friends attended the ceremony, which was presided over by Bai Chong-En, dean of Tsinghua SEM. The commencement speech was delivered by Shi Yigong, academician at the Chinese Academy of Sciences and president of Westlake University.

The 2026 Tsinghua SEM commencement ceremony

Before the ceremony started, recap videos of Tsinghua SEM's various academic programs were played, providing a nostalgic glimpse at the unforgettable time the graduating students spent at the university's campus. In the videos, teachers also offered advice and sent their best wishes to the graduates who were about to embark on a new journey.

At the beginning of the ceremony, everybody stood and sang the anthem of the People's Republic of China. Then, Bai Chong-En welcomed the Class of 2026 and their families and friends, and outlined the number and employment status of the graduating students. The 2025-2026 academic year saw a total of 1,509 students graduate from Tsinghua SEM.

Bai Chong-En presents the Chen Daisun Memorial Scholarships to the winners. (From left to right: Fan Bolin, Sun Xueqiao, Chen Zhiruo, Bai Chong-En.)

Next, the Chen Daisun Memorial Scholarships, the highest honor that Tsinghua SEM bestows upon its graduating students, were presented. The scholarship recognizes graduates who have an exemplary moral character, achieve academic excellence, possess brilliant comprehensive qualities, show outstanding developmental potential and embody Tsinghua University's undergraduate education philosophy.

Bai Chong-En announced that this year's winners were Fan Bolin, an information management and information systems major who enrolled in 2022, Sun Xueqiao who enrolled in 2022 in a dual-degree program combining economics and finance, and computer science and technology, and Chen Zhiruo, an economics and finance major who enrolled in 2021.

Graduate representatives deliver valedictory speeches. (The first row, from left to right: Yao Dayi, Zhang Zinan, Fu Sixuan, Bella Shih; the second row, from left to right: Zhang Jiehao, Shi Yu, Mikhail Khadzhabekian, Nie Xiang.)

After the scholarships were presented, eight graduate representatives delivered valedictory speeches: Yao Dayi and Zhang Zinan, graduates of undergraduate programs, Fu Sixuan, a graduate of the undergraduate minor program, Bella Shih, a graduate of a master's program, Zhang Jiehao, a graduate of a doctoral program, Shi Yu, a graduate of the MBA program, Mikhail Khadzhabekian, a graduate of the Tsinghua-INSEAD Dual-Degree EMBA Programme, and Nie Xiang, a graduate of the EMBA program. They spoke about the benefits and inspiration they gained from the Tsinghua experience, and expressed gratitude for the guidance their teachers provided as well as their classmates' company. They also expressed hope that all the graduates would continue to foster the spirit of Tsinghua and carry out Tsinghua SEM's mission, stay true to their aspirations, embrace a new start and strive for a bright future.

Shi Yigong delivers a commencement speech.

Bai Chong-En then introduced Shi Yigong, an academician at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the commencement speaker. Exempted from the entrance examination, Shi was admitted to Tsinghua's Department of Biological Science and Technology in 1985. He received a doctoral degree in molecular biophysics from Johns Hopkins University in 1995, and then pursued postdoctoral research at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. From 1998 to 2008, he served as assistant professor, associate professor, professor and Warner-Lambert/Parke-Davis Professor in the Department of Molecular Biology at Princeton University. In 2008, he returned to work for Tsinghua full-time, and later was appointed as the vice president of the university. Since 2018, he has been the president of Westlake University and also a chair professor there.

Shi's research focuses on molecular mechanisms of apoptosis, major membrane proteins, and the structures and functions of macromolecular machines within cells. His work sheds light on the structure of the critical complex of the eukaryotic RNA spliceosome, and reveals active sites and molecule-level mechanisms. In 2003, he received the Irving Sigal Young Investigator Award. In 2010, he was granted the Sackler Prize in Biophysics, the Outstanding Scientist Award by the Hong Kong Qiu Shi Science and Technologies Foundation, and the C.C. Tan Life Science Achievement Award. In addition, he was awarded the Gregori Aminoff Prize by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in 2014 and has received many other major science prizes.

Shi Yigong's commencement speech focused on the topic of making choices. Based on the three stages of his life: graduating from Tsinghua, becoming a researcher and educator, and founding Westlake University, he offered three suggestions: stay true to your genuine choice, proactively embrace the next challenge at the height of your life, and try to strike a balance between your private desire and high ambition.

He talked about three critical choices that he made during his life: After receiving a doctoral degree, he gave up a well-paid job and chose to become a career researcher; at the height of his career at Princeton University, he decided to return to Tsinghua to lead the development of the biomedicine discipline; and later he chose to leave Tsinghua and devote himself to founding and running Westlake University.

Shi said that reflecting on the three major decisions over the last 30 years, he learned two crucial lessons. The first and most important is that you should stay true to your heart, instead of being driven by material interests; and the second is that you should seek change at the height of your life, rather than when you have your back against the wall. Shi said he often suggested his students "leave on a high note." He explained that when you are on an upwards course in your career, you are full of energy and confidence. If you choose to seek change at this stage, you are more likely to pick a more challenging career or area. In this way, you may make a forward-looking choice and define the future.

He pointed out that in today's diverse society, people are faced with much more choices. You shouldn't bother to make the so-called best choice. Compared with results, your attitude toward choice and the standards that you follow matter more. Life is much more fault-tolerant than you can imagine. You don't need to judge success according to the common worldly standards. You should distinguish between inner desires and external influences, honor and disgrace, gains and losses. You should dare to pursue what you love, explore and try in order to find the path that suits you.

Shi suggested the graduates, at the mentally, physically energetic stage of their lives, proactively make choices and be brave enough to try new things and explore. He said he hoped that they would grow into leaders in innovation and definers of the future. In addition, he reminded the graduates that they should keep Tsinghua's motto "self-discipline and social commitment" in mind, retain a sense of responsibility, and align personal ambition with the goal of national development.

After Shi's speech, Bai Chong-En delivered closing remarks. He said he hoped that the graduates would be inspired by Shi's words and think about their future, stay true to their initial aspirations, keep striving for better and learning, improve their ability, broaden their vision, choose paths based on their observation of the contemporary situations, and forge ahead in chosen directions. Eventually, he added, they would make contributions to the progress of mankind, and the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, and during this process reap joy and accomplishment, and live a meaningful, wonderful life.

Finally, all the teachers and students present stood and sang Tsinghua's school anthem. Amid the singing, Tsinghua SEM’s 2026 commencement ceremony came to a successful conclusion.

Graduates at the 2026 commencement ceremony

At the commencement ceremony, Bai Chong-En, dean of Tsinghua SEM, posed for photos with every graduate in the Class of 2026.

Bai Chong-En poses for a photo with a graduate.

Before the commencement ceremony, Tsinghua SEM held a reception in the sunken square in front of the Lihua Building. More than 1,000 graduates attended the event, along with their families and friends. The teachers and students of Tsinghua SEM sang songs, performed dances and played instruments to wish the graduates well in their future endeavors. The graduates also wished each other good luck, and shared this memorable, joyful moment with their teachers and families.

Participants in the reception for the graduates

Editor: Ren Zhongxi