Illustrator earns degree at 69 to help cut pay gap

An illustrator from Bath who left school with two O-levels has said he earned his first degree at the age of 69 in a bid to increase his earning potential.

Stephen Spicer, now aged 70, fell in love with illustration as a boy and began working in the underground press in the late-1960s, before he was offered a freelance teaching job at Bath College.

He said he enrolled at Bath Spa University after realising he could earn more money with a tertiary qualification.

"People with less experience and more paper earned more than me so I decided to do something about it," he told BBC Radio Bristol.

Mr Spicer left school with two O-Levels, in art and English.

In the late-1960s, he worked on publications that did not have official approval, known as the underground press.

"I had my own shop with my friends until we got raided by the police and broken up, then I went to Chelsea School of Art," he said.

"Later I got offered a teaching job at Bath College and did that as a freelancer for 10 years."

After finishing his BA (Hons) in 2024, he said he had aspirations to carry on learning but was hampered by the rules on finance.

"The only thing I regret about not doing it earlier is that I can't get any loans from Student Finance," he said.

"If I did do a masters, it would just be a vanity thing as I wouldn't actually need it for anything."

Mr Spicer said he enjoyed his university experience despite being older than his peers.

Now with his degree in hand, he continues to work as a freelance illustrator.

"The internet and Instagram are a great tool to put yourself out there, if I can stop putting silly pictures on my Instagram account," he joked.

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