A 17-year-old student made history at Arizona State University for being the youngest person to graduate with a doctorate degree. Dorothy Jean Tillman II received her degree in integrated behavioral health earlier this month, according to the Associated Press.
Prior to this achievement, she earned her bachelor’s degree in humanities from Excelsior College in New York in 2018, as well as a Master of Science from the Unity College of Maine in 2020.
Tillman was accepted into the doctoral program at ASU when she was 15-years-old. She was homeschooled and started her college education at just 10-years-old.
“People in my life like my grandmother [Dorothy Tillman], who was part of the Civil Rights movement, she of course harped on the importance of education and consistently learning something always,” Tillman told Good Morning America about the motivations behind her pursuit of higher education at a young age. “But the way I always held education so high on my own, aside from being raised that way, was finding different things to be educated about.”
“I feel like that urge to learn something new just never didn’t exist for me,” she added.
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One of her professors noted how unique her academic career has been, saying that her contributions haven’t gone unnoticed throughout her studies.
“She really led change and worked on different forms of management to really reduce healthcare stigma and improve that student population there to be able to enter and accept student health services,” Dr. Lesley Manson, a clinical associate professor at the university, told GMA. “It was wonderful to see her and help her navigate some of those personal and professional interactions and grow through those experiences.”
“It’s a wonderful celebration…but this is still something so rare and unique,” they added. “She has innovative ideas and motivation, which is wonderful, and truly, I think what is inspiring is that she embodies that meaning of being a true leader.”
For now, Tillman is still figuring out what her next step will be “just like any other teenager,” she said. The 17-year-old founded the Dorothyjeanius STEAM Leadership Institute to help youth in arts and STEM subjects.
“I’m really just grateful that the world is my oyster, and that I’ve done so much so young,” Tillman told the AP. “And I have time to kind of think that through.”
