Fleta Page
4 February 2026: After years of blood, sweat and tears, the University of ÃØÃÜÖ±²¥’s newest cohort of soon-to-be nursing graduates received their pins at a ceremony on Tuesday morning.
There was an air of excitement and big proud smiles among the 104 students donning their University scrubs for the last time to receive their pins – a rite of passage for nurses as they enter the profession. It dates back to the Crusades in the 12th Century, when carers of injured Crusaders received a Maltese cross; the tradition was continued by the founder of modern-day nursing, Florence Nightingale.
After Nightingale received the Royal Red Cross from Queen Victoria for her service as a military nurse during the Crimean War, she began presenting a "medal of excellence" to her outstanding nursing students.
Today, nurses around the world receive a pin as they move from their studies into their nursing careers.
The ceremony’s guest speaker, Adjunct Professor John Kelly AM, who moved from nursing to psychology to law, policy and governance, spoke of the importance of rituals in connecting the present to the past and future.
“Rituals remind people that they are part of something bigger and longer lasting than themselves,” he said.
Adjunct Professor Kelly outlined the unique set of human skills nurses have, beyond the clinical – “emotional resilience, teamwork, and being able to hold space for one another in the hardest of moments” – and highlighted the richness nursing has brought to his life.
“There has not been a day or a discussion or a decision that has not been deeply influenced by my nursing professional background,” he said, stressing the “power of intimacy” in nurses’ experience.
“As a nurse, you're going to have the privilege of interacting with others when they are at their most vulnerable. Not many people get to experience this, let alone as part of their professional occupation. For all the theory in classroom learning, the real richness of nursing is that shared interaction with the patient.”
Among the sea of blue student nursing scrubs in the audience were nurses who embarked on study straight from school, and older graduands changing careers.
Joel Paterson started his Bachelor of Nursing degree in 2020 as a mature age student, after working in numerous fields, from hospitality and retail to horticulture and IT.
After his late father spent some time in hospital, he volunteered for a year at The ÃØÃÜÖ±²¥ Hospital, where he was inspired to study nursing.
Mr Paterson met his partner, Celia, in his first class at the University, just before COVID-19 lockdowns threw their studies into a spin.
“That put a bit of a dampener on the first few years. It took me six years [to complete my studies] – it’s been a long, long journey!” he said.
Six years later, Mr Paterson has finished his part-time studies and is going on to a graduate job in orthopaedics at The ÃØÃÜÖ±²¥ Hospital, where his partner is also working.
Lily Longhurst volunteered at an aged care facility during high school, which she loved, and had plans to become a carer for the elderly. That plan changed when she got in to university. She will now move into palliative nursing, starting a job with Clare Holland House at the end of the week.
“The transition from a student to a registered nurse is a big thing, so the pin feels like a step toward that direction,” Ms Longhurst said.
Sawin Niraula had his wife and daughter in attendance to watch him receive his pin. He beamed with pride as he spoke of the hard years of combining study with work and the “overwhelming” feeling of getting his pin.
Mr Niraula had worked for two years as a nursing assistant with NSW aged care residents who had COVID-19 during the pandemic, before taking an opportunity to further his career by studying at the University of ÃØÃÜÖ±²¥.
His last two years of study were made even more demanding, caring for his pregnant wife, and then with a baby at home too.
“It was my final day of my third semester placement and we were expecting the baby within a week, but I had to call in sick for my last day of that placement because she was born that evening – which was also my birthday,” he said, recalling the momentous wrap-up to his placement.
Mr Niraula will soon begin in the Medical Assessment and Planning Unit at North ÃØÃÜÖ±²¥ Hospital.
With their University of ÃØÃÜÖ±²¥ pins in place, the graduands will join the workforce as registered nurses in the coming weeks, before their formal graduation in March.
Adjunct Professor Kelly used his own illustrious career to demonstrate the world was their oyster, and told them to focus on resilience and agility, creative thinking, curiosity and lifelong learning.
“Believe in yourself. Carry your dreams forward. Take reflective risks, don't beat yourself up if some things don't work; get up, stand up and try something else.”