Doctorate Day
Every year, the University of Zaragoza celebrates the Solemn Ceremony of Investiture of new Doctors and recognition of those distinguished with extraordinary doctorate prizes, a ceremony in which the graduates of the University's Doctoral School and holders of the most important title awarded by the institution, the doctorate, are recognised.
The event is attended by the doctoral students who defended their doctoral thesis during the previous academic year, including those who received the Extraordinary Doctorate Award.
The ceremony is presided over by the rector, José Antonio Mayoral, accompanied by the director of the Doctoral School of the University of Zaragoza, Fernando Sanz Gracia, the deputy director and the secretary of the School, Eva Cerezo Bagdasari and Mª Eugenia Marqués López. The secretary general, Mª Ángeles Rueda, read out the oath of the new doctors.
Shortly before the start of the ceremony, the rector poses with the graduates for the traditional photo on the external stairs of the Paraninfo, and then, in the hall of the Paraninfo, the academic retinue and the authorities, preceded by the sergeants-at-arms, make their way to the Paraninfo Hall while a choir invited to the ceremony performs works from their repertoire until the members of the retinue have taken their places on the podium. The academicians make the route covered with a biretta, while the new doctors carry it in their right hand, as they have not yet been invested by the rector. The biretta symbolises the helmet of Minerva, goddess of wisdom, and its imposition is an acknowledgement of the doctors' wisdom.
For the investiture, the doctors are arranged by branches of knowledge and within them by doctoral programmes. Each of them takes the biretta on his or her right hand and hands it to the rector, who places it on his or her head. The dean or director of the centre to which the doctoral programme to which the new doctoral student belongs presents a diploma, while the photographer captures the moment with his or her camera. Once the birettas have been imposed, the doctors who have been awarded the extraordinary doctorate prize are called up and receive, in addition to the extraordinary prize diploma, a University of Zaragoza insignia.
Due to the act of the imposition of the biretta on the doctor by the Rector, this ceremonial act is popularly known in the University as "La Birretada". The birretada is attended by graduates of the Doctoral School from all branches and programmes and is a great experience to share with the family, to take photos to remember and to celebrate.
The Doctoral Day is the culmination of several months of preparations by the Doctoral School and a lot of hard work to make sure that everything runs smoothly. All this work is compensated by the satisfaction of the participants at the end of the event and we look forward to seeing you at the next birretada!
History of Doctorate Days: