Eric A Chicago-based female teenager, Dr Dorothy Jean Tillman II, has just set a remarkable academic record after receiving her doctorate from Arizona State University, in the US at the age of 17.
She disclosed this on Tuesday via her Instagram post, sharing that she started college when she was 10 years old.
In an interview with ‘Good Morning America’ that she posted, Tillman said the remarkable feat felt “surreal” and “full of reflection and inspiration”.
In 2020, Tillman earned a Master of Science degree, and the following year, at the age of 15, she gained admission to the Doctorate of Behavioural Health Management program at Arizona State University.
After her successful completion of the doctoral programme, at the age of 17, Tillman defended her dissertation, earning her doctoral degree in Integrated Behavioural Health from ASU’s College of Health Solutions.
Tillman, now 18, was celebrated during ASU’s spring commencement on May 6, 2024, when Tillman joined her classmates in person.
“Everything that we were doing didn’t seem abnormal to me or out of the ordinary until it started getting all of the attention,” she said on Tuesday.
Tillman attributes her educational pursuits and successes to the guidance of her grandmother and the trust she placed in her mother’s advice.
According to Leslie Manson, the associate professor who supervised Tillman’s dissertation through ASU’s online program, Tillman holds the distinction of being the youngest person to complete a doctoral degree in integrated behavioural health at ASU.
“It’s a wonderful celebration … but this is still something so rare and unique.
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