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Conferment Vocabulary

Marshals
Cadets of the National Defence University will be acting as the marshals during the Doctoral Degree Ceremony. The tasks of the marshals include, for example, assisting those participating in the ceremony and acting as a member of the Guard of Honour.

Conferment Committee
The Conferment Committee, set by the Rector of the National Defence University, is in charge of the arrangements of the Degree Ceremony and events. The Committee includes, for example, a representative of the NDU's professors and the representative of the doctors, i.e. gratists. The chair of the Conferment Committee is Senior Planning Coordinator, Doctor of Military Sciences Max Sjöblom.

Doctor Honoris Causa (Honorary Doctors)
Six honorary doctorates of Military Sciences will be conferred in the National Defence University’s Doctoral Degree Ceremony. Those conferred Doctor Honoris Causa are significant actors and influencers in different fields of society and their work has also been important to the National Defence University.

Officiant
Officiants are the organisers of the degree ceremony and they see to the arrangements of the ceremony.

Primus Doctor
The Primus Doctor is the doctor who received the best grade for their dissertation. During the conferment ceremony the Primus Doctor will answer the primus question that has been formulated by the research council.

Conferrer of Degrees
During the conferment ceremony the conferrer of degrees awards the promovendis their academic degrees. In the National Defence University’s Doctoral Degree Ceremony, the Conferrer of Degrees is Professor Vesa Tynkkynen.

Promovendi
According to academic tradition, the doctor being conferred a degree is called a promovendi. The promovendi’s partner will participate in the events and during the sword ceremony they will turn the whetstone as the promovendi sharpens their sword.

Sword-whetter
The sword whetter is the promovendi’s partner who will sharpen (whet) the promovendi’s sword during the sword ceremony on the eve of the conferment ceremony. A promovendi participating in the ceremony alone will have a sword-whetter named for them by the Conferment Committee.

Ultima or Ultimus Doctor
The Ultimus (men) or Ultima (women) Doctor is the doctor who received the second best grade for their dissertation.

Head Marshal
The Doctoral Degree Ceremony's marshals are led by the Head Marshal, who is also responsible for the guest of honour invited to the ceremony.

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