The University of Experience was taking its first steps in Castile and León, specifically in Salamanca, and Visitación had heard about it. It was in 1997 – the program had already been taught at the Pontifical University for four years – when he had the opportunity to enroll. … It was nearly three decades ago, and the century barrier had already been overcome, and this centenarian has not left her classroom since. At 101 years old, he still goes twice a week -Tuesdays and Thursdays- to hear from a “diverse group” of teachers teaching, demonstrating that despite their seniority, they have neither lost their “curiosity” nor their “desire to learn.”
“I’ve always been a very active person,” he says in a chat with ABC. She graduated in teaching, but did not devote herself to teaching because she had to take charge of the family business in her city. At the end of that professional stage, he settled with his children in Salamanca and thought about resuming his training. “I even thought about going back to university,” he explains. She was 55 at the time, and chose the School of Arts and Crafts, where she attended for nearly two decades.
That stage was closed and the doors of the University of Experience were opened. “I tried to enter in 1996, but places were very limited then,” he recalls. The following year his chance came and he has been involved ever since. At the beginning of this course, she obtained accreditation that distinguished her as the oldest student In the activity with two other colleagues who were registered from the beginning -1994-.
Keep the initial “curiosity” and “desire to learn” intact. For an activity that highlights its “diversity”. “For me, it was exceptional,” he emphasizes about the classes where all kinds of profiles match. “Here there are teachers, high school teachers, banking professionals, business professionals…” he says. Thus maintaining “contact with people”. “You learn something from everyone; “From those who know more and those who do not know,” he says as a philosophy of life.
So, we should add the company to all the content watched during classes. “Of all my friends, many of them have already fallen by the wayside, and this has also helped me continue to be surrounded by people,” she explains. “I am very grateful”She insists that as a student, despite the difficulties that the years add to her sight or hearing, she has the support and accommodation of the professors at this university for veterans so that she can follow the classes like any other.
For this course, Visitación chose from among different itineraries for the trip centered in Salamanca. They will review this topic from different perspectives with professionals from different branches. “One of the topics I chose that caught my attention the most because of everything we learned was women.”The 100-year-old student says that in that course she was able to delve into content about “evolution, what it represents, and how difficult” the role of women has been “throughout history.” She explains that Visitación wants to continue to surprise and discover, and as long as the force continues, she will continue to sit in the classroom.
actually Last year, Al-Khibra University reached its record high, with an enrollment of 6,139 students -70% of them are women-, that is, an increase of 10% compared to the previous one. In 2025-2026, everything indicates that records will continue to be broken, training tracks have risen from 36 to 44 with a total of 27 face-to-face sites across all provinces and a further fifteen online sites.