Media personality Pierre Portelli and his daughter Katrina are among the new University of Malta graduates celebrating their achievement this week.

Portelli graduated with a Master of Arts in Media and Communications, while daughter Katrina achieved a Master's in Advocacy. 

In a video on the University of Malta's Instagram page highlighting the pair's dual graduation, Portelli said he earned a bachelor's degree 25 years ago.

In the video, the pair are asked a series of questions, from which it transpires that Portelli Senior is the more disorganised of the two (except in the kitchen) and that Katrina has a distinctive sneeze that even her lecturers recognise.

Katrina says the biggest lesson she learned from her father is to "keep going no matter what", and that it is never too late to do anything.

"Always be brave no matter what people say, and go for it," she said.

Portelli advised students not to let anything bring them down, and to appreciate the support system they had around them.

"Reach out to family, friends and even colleagues, even if you haven't seen them in a while," he said.

Writing on Facebook, Portelli said he was grateful to all those who formed part of the latest milestone of his academic journey. 

"In my 50s, I thought I knew my industry until I challenged myself to find out how the world has changed since attaining my BA. Thanks to Prof Ġorġ Mallia for luring me into picking up my studies again," he wrote, while also thanking media veteran Fr Joe Borg for his guidance and prorector Carmen Sammut, who served as the tutor on his dissertation.

Now working as a media consultant, Portelli's former roles include editorial director of The Malta Independent, head of the Nationalist Party's media company Media.Link and former member of PN's executive board.

He resigned from the latter role in 2021 after growing disillusioned with the party.