Park Soon-yi was 92 years old when she graduated from Keimyung University in Daegu, South Korea, in February. She received a bachelor's degree in Korean literature. The audience stood and clapped for almost two minutes. She is one of the oldest university graduates in South Korean history.
Park was born in 1933 in a small farming village. At that time, South Korea was under Japanese rule. Like many girls then, she could not go to school. Her family was poor. Her brothers went to school, but she stayed home to do housework. "I watched my brothers walk to school every morning," she said. "I promised myself that one day I would also carry a book bag."
Park did not start her education until she was 68 years old. In 2001, she joined a reading and writing program in Daegu. She learned to read and write for the first time. She studied hard and earned her elementary and middle school certificates. In 2012, at age 79, she received her high school diploma.
In 2017, at age 84, Park started university. It was not easy. She had never used a computer before. But her young classmates helped her. They studied together and called her "halmoni," which means grandmother in Korean. "She was always the first to arrive and the last to leave," said one classmate.
Park's final university paper was about Korean poetry. She received the highest mark in her class. Her professor said her work was excellent and showed deep personal understanding. Park's story has inspired many people in South Korea to keep learning at any age.