Poland’s Oldest High School Student Fails Exams Again, But Keeps Trying
In May 2025, thousands of Polish students waited for their Matura results, the country’s final high school exams. Among them was a man who first missed this milestone during the Second World War. Józef Peruga, born in 1939 in Turek, entered life during one of Europe’s darkest periods. World War II disrupted his childhood education, and as a child, he was held in a German camp.
After the war, family survival came first. He helped care for his grandparents when they were sick and worked on a small farm, mowing hay and milking cows, rather than sitting in classrooms.
As an adult, he trained as a mechanical technician and built a steady working life, taking jobs as a locksmith, bus driver, and later in a carpet factory. About 16 years ago, friends encouraged him to return to school, and he finished an adult technical program. When he saw a classmate in his 60s pass the Matura, it felt personal. He decided he wanted that moment too.
The Matura Challenge And Recent Setbacks
In 2025, Peruga prepared to sit the Matura again at age 86, becoming the oldest student in Kalisz to attempt the exams. That year, about 255,500 students took the Matura nationwide. In Kalisz alone, roughly 1,550 students participated.
He sat exams in Polish, German, mathematics, and geography. Earlier attempts showed mixed success, as he passed German and geography but struggled with written Polish and mathematics. Eye surgery complications affected his vision and made written exams more difficult.
Failing written math and Polish meant he could not immediately retake them and had to step back from earlier plans to study economics at university. Over time, his motivation changed, and he began pursuing the exams mainly for personal satisfaction rather than academic career goals.
A Generational Moment That Added Pressure
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Exam season carried extra emotional weight because his grandson also took the Matura that year. The grandson sat exams about 230 kilometers away in Jelenia Góra. When the results arrived, Peruga felt mixed emotions.
He expressed happiness about his grandson’s passing while also feeling disappointed about his own result. His reaction showed realism and persistence. At times, he suggested stepping back, but in other interviews, he said he might retake the exams in another city.
His Story Certainly Resonates Beyond One Exam
Peruga’s journey shows how education can change in meaning over time. Early in life, education often connects to career paths. Later, it can represent unfinished chapters or personal pride. His experience also shows how Poland’s education system allows adult learners to re-enter formal exams decades later.
Few students sitting the Matura carry memories dating back to World War II, and even fewer keep returning after public disappointment. Each exam attempt sends him back to classrooms filled with teenagers, yet he keeps showing up. And that in itself is quite admirable.