Over 200 students graduate from RGU in Colombo, Sri Lanka

The event was held as Sri Lanka was hit by one of its worst weather disasters with Cyclone Ditwah triggering devastating flooding which left more than two million people affected.

The graduation was rescheduled four days later than intended to allow the graduates and families to travel when it was safe to do so.

Donella Beaton, RGU’s Vice Principal for Partnerships, who hosted the graduation in Colombo, said: “This has been a dreadful time for Sri Lanka and its people and we of course, particularly think of our students and graduates, and our partner IIT at this time.   It was humbling to be in Sri Lanka as events unfolded and to witness the kindness and resilience of the Sri Lankan people as they dealt with the disaster.

"The IIT graduation ceremony is always a celebratory event in our RGU diary as we recognise the success of our new graduates in Data Science, AI, Big Data and Business Analytics. These programmes transform ambitious students into the AI and Data Science professionals that industries are desperately seeking, addressing the shortage of skilled specialists in this field. The approach taken by IIT and RGU is impressively resulting in over 95% graduate employability, in line with RGU’s own employability ratings in the UK.”

One of the RGU graduates from IIT who has completed the BSc (Hons) Artificial Intelligence & Data Science was Pooja Illangarathne. She was unable to attend the rescheduled graduation, as she was participating in an all Asia AI competition in Taiwan.

Pooja, who graduated with First Class Honours said: “My final-year project, ‘Bunting’ became the foundation of an incredible journey. What started as a university research project was first recognised at Cutting Edge 2025, where I was honoured to receive the award for Best Undergraduate Project in Artificial Intelligence and Data Science.

“This journey eventually led me to the APICTA Awards 2025 in Taiwan, where I had the privilege of representing Sri Lanka and IIT on an international stage. Competing against outstanding projects from 17 economies was both challenging and inspiring, and I was deeply honoured to be awarded Second Runners-Up under Tertiary Student Project - Innovative Solutions Category. Representing my country at such a prestigious global platform was a truly humbling experience.

“Throughout this journey, I was incredibly fortunate to receive constant guidance and encouragement.  Looking back, this journey has been a powerful reminder of how passion, perseverance, and the right support system can turn a student project into an opportunity to represent one’s country on a global stage.”

The partnership between RGU and IIT Sri Lanka will reach 10 years in 2026.