Speech to the MBBS Graduates of the Kulliyyah of Medicine, IIUM 2025
My dear graduates,
Today is a moment of deep significance — not just for you and your families, but for all of us at the Kulliyyah of Medicine. We come together to celebrate your journey, your sacrifices, and your growth. But more than that, we celebrate the beginning of your noble path ahead as doctors who will serve not just with skill, but with soul.
At IIUM, we have always aspired to produce more than just competent doctors. We have aspired to nurture healers. Healers who see their work as an act of worship. Healers who recognise that every breath of a patient, every touch of healing, every word of comfort — is part of their ibadah. This is what we mean when we say: medicine with a soul.
In our Kulliyyah, we uphold a Tawhidic epistemology — a worldview where all knowledge comes from Allah and must lead back to Him. Tawhid is not only the foundation of our faith; it is the foundation of how we teach, how we learn, and how we serve. And so, when you step into the hospital or the clinic, you do so not only as a professional, but as someone who carries the weight of trust — a trust from Allah, a trust from the ummah.
You are graduating into a world that is in need of people who are not only skilled, but principled. Not only precise, but compassionate. Not only efficient, but ethical. That is why we remind you — competence, compassion, and conscience must always go together. They are not three separate paths. They are one.
Competence is the foundation. It is your clinical judgment, your scientific knowledge, your professional performance. It is the standard we all expect of you. It is what allows your patients to trust you. But competence alone is not enough.
Compassion is the heartbeat of medicine. Without it, even the best treatment feels cold. With it, even simple care can become transformative. And yet, compassion will be tested. There will be moments when you feel exhausted, discouraged, or detached. That is when you must renew it — by returning to Allah, by recalling your niyyah, by reminding yourself that you are here to serve.
Conscience is your internal compass. It is the integrity you uphold when no one is watching. It is your fear of Allah and your love for the truth. It will protect you when systems fail you. It will anchor you when everything else becomes uncertain.
You chose this path because you felt a calling. A desire to help. A desire to heal. That desire must always be kept alive, not for applause or accolades, but because you see this profession as part of your faith. That is what makes your work sacred. Every diagnosis you make, every decision you take, is an act of responsibility and submission.
The world will not always be kind. The job will not always be easy. There will be pressure, bureaucracy, burnout. And yet, I want you to remember — compassion is not finite. It can be replenished. Through prayer. Through rest. Through reflection. When you feel tired, do not only rest your body. Rest your heart in the remembrance of Allah.
Remember also that you are not alone. You are part of a family — this Kulliyyah, this university, this ummah. Reach out when you need help. Lean on your peers. Stay close to your mentors. Keep learning. Keep growing.
Your graduation is not an end. It is the beginning of a lifelong commitment to serve, to uplift, and to bring healing. You are now ambassadors of the Kulliyyah of Medicine and the spirit of IIUM. You carry with you a sacred trust — to practise medicine with a soul.
May Allah SWT bless you, protect your sincerity, and make your hands a means of healing, your tongue a source of comfort, and your heart a light for those in darkness. May He guide you with wisdom, strengthen you with patience, and reward your service with barakah in both worlds.
Congratulations, my dear doctors. May your journey be one of competence, compassion, and conscience.