LSE alumni welcome new graduates to the community

Friday 19 December 2025

Graduates in front of Centre Building with Christmas decorations in the background

Congratulations to the newest members of LSE's global alumni community.

Graduation is one of the most anticipated moments in the LSE calendar. Twice a year students, family and faculty come together to honour years of dedication and hard work; and twice a year we get to welcome a new group of graduates into the LSE alumni community. This week 3,800 graduates from 23 academic departments joined our rich and diverse alumni network, whose population now exceeds 240,000 and which spans nearly every country across the globe.

At LSE graduation is not the end of the journey. It is the beginning of a lifelong connection as armed with their social sciences degrees these graduates join a powerful network of alumni who are shaping the world in various ways.

Throughout the week we were delighted to welcome some of our alumni back to campus to speak at the graduation ceremonies and share their words of wisdom. Again and again, we heard them stress that this is a community that alumni can connect with at any stage in their life wherever they are in the world; and that it is a community committed to giving back and supporting the next generation.

This is just the beginning

Abadesi Osunsade (BSc in Government and Economics 2009), Founder and CEO of Hustle Crew, remembered that mixture of excitement and uncertainty from her own graduation day when she thought she needed to have everything figured out. Her advice today is not to worry about having a perfect plan.

Alumna Abadesi Osunsade standing on stairs in Centre Building

Take each year as it comes, keep learning and keep going. Alumni connections become more important the longer you are out of university. You'll find LSE people everywhere, ready to help.
Abadesi Osunsade, BSc in Government and Economics 2009

Use your LSE network

Roberto Napolitano (BSc Marketing and Communications 2010), Chief Marketing Officer at Innovate Finance, echoed that sentiment praising the strength of the LSE network.

Alumnus Roberto Napolitano standing in front of red LSE letters

It's always the person that you meet from LSE that is going to give you a hand and help you. A lot of my mentors have been from LSE, so I strongly recommend you reach out to the network. Be unapoloogetically yourself and believe in the future you want to build for everyone. We are all privileged to have studied at LSE - let's use that power for the better.
Roberto Napolitano, BSc Marketing and Communications 2010

Share your wisdom

The LSE alumni network is so unique, and its value is magnified by the way the community reaches out to support each other in difficult moments and to propel fellow alumni forward through opportunities.

After an impressive 20-year long career in investment banking, Jenny Chong (BSc Business Mathematics and Statistics 1997 and MSc Information Systems Development 1998) is still connected with LSE through mentoring. She stressed that alumni shouldn’t doubt how valuable that mentoring can be.

Alumna Jenny Chong standing on stairs in Centre Building

I think we can give so much more back. Just the advice, the wisdom, the experience that we have that we can share with them that's really fulfilling and really satisfying.
Jenny Chong, BSc Business Mathematics and Statistics 1997 and MSc Information Systems Development 1998

Stay connected

Abimibola Akinyemi (MSc Social Policy and Planning in Developing Countries 2004), whose passion for institutional accountability and equitable partnerships led her to many countries around the world working for Oxfam and Tearfund UK, drew on the glass half full/half empty metaphor when she spoke about LSE and how much it means to her.

Alumna Abimibola Akinyemi standing in front of purle LSE banner on plaza

People ask if the glass is half full or half empty, but the glass is always full - half water, half air. That’s a huge opportunity in life. LSE is like that glass: full of wealth, quality learning, and doors opened. …. Many of us came to LSE because of those who went ahead and invested back. So I encourage graduates: please don’t walk away - stay connected and give back.
Abimibola Akinyemi, MSc Social Policy and Planning in Developing Countries 2004

The Alumni Centre is your home on campus

Alumni Centre desk decorated for graduation

The doors of the Alumni Centre were open all week to welcome graduates into the LSE Alumni community, and they will always remain open so LSE alumni know that they have a home on campus.

As we wish our new graduates the very best with the next stage of their journey, we leave the final words to Ukrainian content creator and entrepreneur, Max Klymenko (MSc Inequalities and Social Science 2019), who explained why the world needs LSE graduates when he said “Who is going to fix the world if not them.”