Myra makes history at Cambridge

The story began four years ago when Myra quietly signed up for an access course at Exeter Further Education College in her home county of Devon. “I just thought I would give it a go, take it step by step, and see how far I got. Telling myself I could give up if I stopped enjoying it – but I never did,” she says.

She joined a class of men and women who were either planning a career change or had dropped out of further education, and quickly became a star and the first-ever student on Exeter College’s access programme to gain a place at Cambridge. In order to apply she had to take GCSE maths – “a bit of a doddle once I could understand what on earth the questions were about".

Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridge, was her first choice. “It just seemed the perfect answer to the problems of isolation that mature students can experience in a university community largely geared to much younger students. Being an all-female college, it’s a really friendly fun place,” she says.

As her father predicted, Myra married young, and very happily, had two children and travelled all over the world. She ran a smallholding and became president of her local Women’s Institute, organising a programme of educational courses for older women.

Her family played a part in Myra’s decision to study at Cambridge. Her daughter Louise, son-in-law Andrew, and twin grandsons were living in the city. “I had the best of all worlds, the chance to study in Cambridge and the joy of seeing my family every week. My daughter and I enjoyed a role reversal as she would check that I was attending all my lectures and bake cakes and pies to keep me going."

Most of her friends were supportive of Myra’s new life – others disapproved. “They either thought it was a waste of money as I wasn't expecting it to lead to a career, or that I was 'punishing' myself by rejecting my comfortable life,” she says."They were so wrong - I saw it as a wonderful challenge."

Myra’s two dogs, Tess and Flo, and two elderly cats, accompanied her to Cambridge each term where she was allowed to live out of college. In and around the university she become accustomed to explaining that she wasn’t a senior academic or a faculty spy but just a humble student.

“Reactions of the students were so positive. The biggest hurdle was making my ageing brain work at the required speed . I’m sure it was good for me – but it was sometimes tiring and a huge learning curve.”

Last year Myra’s daughter Louise and family emigrated to Australia. Louise has flown back to be beside her mother when she receives her degree in the grandeur of the Senate House. “I’m incredibly proud of her – it’s a tremendous achievement,” says Louise.

With a degree under her belt, Myra plans to have a bash at writing popular history books, researching subjects she got a taste for during her course. Next week she’s off to Australia for a well-earned holiday and a reunion with her three-year-old grandsons who are longing to see their extremely clever granny again.

Myra is just one of many Cambridge students from unconventional backgrounds who will be graduating from Cambridge in the next few weeks. Lucy Cavendish students range in age from early 20s to 60 plus, with an average age of just under 30.