53-year-old Mumbai woman clears SSC exam 37 years after dropping out of school

It is never too late to start learning again. It is inspiring to hear stories of people who resume their education after many years. Like this 53-year-old woman who cleared her Secondary School Certificate (SSC) exams in Mumbai after 37 years of dropping out of school. The woman’s story was shared on LinkedIn by her son and it soon went viral.

Prasad Jambhale posted on LinkedIn how his mother cleared the SSC examination after 37 years. He shared that his mother was just 16 years old when her father died and due to financial crisis at home and to ensure that her siblings continue their education, she quit school and started working.

His mother started going to night school in December 2021, after she heard from a government school teacher that there is a new scheme for people who haven’t cleared their SSC. The cost of offline and online training, and study materials was all given free of cost by the government, he shared.

The woman kept it a secret initially from her family. Prasad Jambhale wrote that as he stays in Ireland, he used to call his mother during night time in India and he was told that she has gone for a walk by other family members. She even managed to keep the secret from his father and brother who stay with her.

Prasad Jambhale wrote in the post, “Her days, started with learning all the lessons from SSC curriculum, one day when I was back in India, she showed me her notebook and I was amazed to see how good she was in Algebra and English. She also showed me photos that how their group of people who left education are now celebrated, now that they have decided to resume. Even after so many years she was able to grasp different learning, and not just that, but was a brilliant student in her batch.”

He got married in February and his mother managed all her responsibilities. Then in March, she appeared for the SSC exams and managed to clear them with a whopping 79.60 per cent.

“Have always been very proud of my mother and now this would always imprint a lesson in my mind, never stop learning, even if has to take an age of 53 to pass the SSC,” he further wrote in the post.

See the post here.

Since being shared four days ago, the post has received more than 1.32 lakh likes. He even posted his mother’s photos and her marksheet.

“Amazing and truly Inspirational. Many congratulation to her,” commented a LinkedIn user. “She has proved that there is no age barrier for education…Congratulations to her,” wrote another. “This shows that there is no age for learning,” said a third.

What are your thoughts on this inspiring story?