Drumnadrochit 83-year-old achieves degree in history at Open University
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HARD work and curiosity paid off for a man from Drumnadrochit who was recently awarded a bachelors degree – at the age of 83.
Keith Abell, who was born in Leicester but moved to the Highlands forty years ago, received a honours BA degree from the Open University in Glasgow in October.
Previously working in the IT department for the Highland Council, Mr Abell has always enjoyed learning about a variety of subjects.
He said: "I first started doing Open University courses in 1982, and that was mostly work-related. The first one I did I think was on databases.
"After I retired in 2011 I started doing a few courses out of interest, most of which was History, but also French and Maths.
"Once I was talking to my daughter and she suggested to try and get a degree!
To get a degree, Mr Abell would have had to get a total of 260 credits for a BA degree, however he had exceeded the total of credits over time already.
He said: "I got in touch with them and they said that credits could be dated back to a maximum of 16 years and creadits specific subject to get a degree.
"However, they said I could qualify for a degree by passing one more history module.
Mr Abell took on a module on the history of empires and was told he passed the final exam in July this year and received his degreee at a ceremony in Glasgow on October 28th, the day before his birthday.
He said: "History is something I have always enjoyed, it's a bit of a hobby for me.
"It's not something I had been thinking of but I am very pleased by the achievement, and going down to the graduation ceremony was quite exciting and a good day out.
"They say that as you get older it's good to keep your mind active as possible, and I see myself with that regard. You have to discipline yourself a lot and be organised, be able to plan to meet deadlines.
"As I aged, I noticed my attention span has diminished. So in my experience it is better for an elderly student to plan for two one hour study sessions rather than one two hour session; the former is far more productive."
