Some of the biggest names in Welsh business were presented with honorary awards by the University of South Wales on Tuesday, July 14.
Deputy Chair of the Principality Building Society, Dr Eurfyl ap Gwilym, Chief Executive of New Law Solicitors, Helen Molyneux, the Chief Operating Officer of the Admiral Group, David Stevens, and one of Wales’ leading economists, Gerald Holtham, were all awarded honorary doctorates.
All offered their own advice to the university’s newest graduates.
Gerald Holtham said: “I have been lucky enough to have had a varied career as a financial journalist, working for the OECD, as an academic, in the City, and as a public policy advisor to governments around the world.”
He added: “The threads that tied all these together were the qualifications I got in economics at university.
“I took it that I had acquired a way of thinking and a set of tools that could be used in different circumstances. But you have to be open-minded, think things through and choose the right tool from the box.”
Helen Molyneux said: “We all know that a university education helps lead to a more interesting and better paid career. But the value – to you and your communities – goes far beyond that.
“Research has found that graduates enjoy better health and live longer. They suffer less from depression and their children will do better at school.”