You can learn at any age, says 79-year-old grad

Students in the Faculty of Humanities and the Arts & Science program will graduate from McMaster Monday during convocation ceremonies to be held in downtown Hamilton.

Among the many students who will attend convocation is Jim Featherstone, who at the age of 79 will graduate from McMaster with a degree in history.

“Growing up, I was going to be the first one to graduate from university. I was going to be their [his parents] lawyer,” he said. “I disappointed them…when I opted to leave school and get an apprenticeship. Somewhere, that was always in the back of my mind – that I owed them.”

Below, Featherstone – this year’s oldest graduate and one of the oldest to ever graduate from the University – talks about his life, fitting in as a student and why, as a former corrections officer, he’d make an excellent exam invigilator.