Meet the University of Texas' oldest ever graduate, who earned his PhD at 78

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- "Don't quit."

That's somewhat of a life motto for Charles "Chuck" Corley, who just became the oldest person to ever earn a Ph.D. at the Cockrell School of Engineering and The University of Texas at Austin. 

Corley earned his Ph.D. in Electrical and Computer Engineering in December 2024 and walked across the stage in early May to be hooded by his advisor, Prof. Earl Swartzlander.

"You think, 'why am I doing this?' If you just keep thinking, 'if I just keep putting one foot in front of the other, I will eventually finish,'" Corley said. "You begin to realize, you know, 'I may not be first. I probably won't be first. I might be last, but if I just keep going, I will finish.' And that became kind of a model for the PhD is, you know, it's hard, it's hard to justify, but if I just keep going, I will finish. And there was satisfaction in that accomplishment."

It took him over a decade to complete the coursework for his PhD, and it was his fifth degree overall.

"After retirement, I thought, 'What am I going to do with a PhD?'" Corley said. "And I thought, 'well, I could put the plaque on the wall,'" he joked.

Corley said he probably could have done it sooner in life, but when he graduated from the Air Force Academy with a bachelor of science in electrical engineering in 1968, the Vietnam War was at its peak, and "there was a need for pilots," and "less opportunity to go to graduate school," he said.

So, he went through pilot training and then onto Vietnam. When Corley returned from deployment, he became an instructor pilot at the old Reese Air Force Base in Lubbock.

After that, the Academy sponsored his master’s degree at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology so he could return to the Academy to teach. He taught four and a half years at the Air Force Academy.

Before starting PhD coursework at UT, Corley studied computer programming at Austin Community College. He actually graduated from the program alongside his daughter in 2013.

"In the process, my granddaughter, as a high school student, was taking courses at ACC, so there was a semester in which we had three generations at ACC which, which was a lot of fun," he said. "And then my daughter and I graduated in summer of 2013, and I started University of Texas that fall."

Corley said UT was the logical choice because he was already in Austin, and it was local. But he said he's grateful for the experience.

"They were gracious to admit me," Corley said. "I had an advisor, Dr. Earl Swartzlander, who was very supportive and said, 'You know, I will sponsor you.'"

"So many other professors, you know, are kind of inclined to pick up younger students because there's more, more history to be earned being associated with the younger students. So I'm very grateful that I had that opportunity," he said.

Corley also expressed immense gratitude to his wife and family, who supported him through his education.

"The whole graduation experience from UT has been heightened by the presence and the support of my family," Corley said. "You know, everyone faces that question, 'Am I going to walk?' And the answer from my children and grandchildren says, 'Well, of course, you're going to walk,' and the celebration was all in their hands."

He said earning a PhD was a lifelong goal, and that "don't quit" mindset -- which he picked up through running and training for marathons -- kept him going.

"Like I said earlier, I could have potentially done this a lot earlier in life, but for the intervention of the Vietnam War, I think it would have changed my life dramatically in terms of what I did and what I became, but I was just always desirous of kind of finishing the education to the point of having a PhD," Corley said.

Corley's favorite part of being a Longhorn? Sports. Specifically, the women's volleyball team "has just been captivating" for him. "We watch volleyball regularly, so that's been a lot of fun to be associated with the school that has such success in those athletic programs."

As for what's next, Corley isn't entirely sure. But he said he might finally get around to finishing some home projects he's been putting off. Corley also said it's "tempting to think about possibly teaching again," but he has no solid plans yet.

Read more about Chuck Corley's life and education on the University of Texas' website.