Ann McLean Left School With O-Levels. At 79, She Collected a Degree.

Ann McLean, a Dundee-born great-grandmother who left school with O-levels, collected her first university degree at age 79 at an Open University graduation ceremony in Glasgow in October. She earned a degree in international studies after six years of online study that began when Covid hit, The Courier reported.¹

O-levels were school exams taken by many students in the UK as teenagers. For Ann, they turned out to be a very long intermission.¹

A long interest, then a small first step

Ann has always been passionate about world affairs, according to The Courier, which describes her as Dundee-born and pictures her at home in Tayport, Fife. When the pandemic arrived, she turned that interest into coursework.¹²

She didn’t start by signing up for a whole degree. She first enrolled with The Open University for a certificate of education in international studies. She earned a distinction in that first year.¹

“And then I got a distinction for one year so I thought, well, I’ll try again.”

That is how she put it in The Courier’s feature. Another distinction followed, and the trying-again kept going until it became a full degree, six years in all.¹

Related: Vietnam Veteran Returns to College After More Than 60 Years and Earns His Degree

Tutorials, WhatsApp and a busy calendar

The degree was taught entirely online. Ann joined tutorials and WhatsApp groups with fellow students from across the UK, all while keeping up a busy social life and time with her family.¹

“I was very motivated,” she said in the feature.¹

She was also discreet about it. Ann studied quietly and told few friends, and she nearly skipped the graduation ceremony in Glasgow altogether.¹

She had plenty of company

Open University Scotland’s 2026 ceremonies in Glasgow celebrated 1,735 graduates. Nearly half of them, 47%, said neither of their parents had gone into higher education.³

The university says its Scottish graduates range from teenagers to people in their 80s and 90s, so 79 doesn’t even put Ann at the top of the age chart.⁴⁵

What her story suggests for anyone thinking about it

• Start with something smaller than a degree. Ann began with a certificate and decided to try again only after earning a distinction in it.¹
• Missing qualifications may not stop you. The Open University in Scotland says most of its courses have no entry-qualification requirement, as part of its mission to widen access.⁴⁵
• Online study can fit around a full life. Ann’s classes were entirely online, and she kept up her social life and family time while studying.¹
• You don’t have to announce it. Ann studied quietly and told few friends.¹