A former solicitor – who only retired at the age of 92 - Archie undertook his studies at East Sussex College, where he learned painting, photography and clay modelling as part of his studies at its Hastings campus.
A stroke five years ago limited some of his abilities, but Archie said he was grateful for help he received from staff and fellow students. He is planning to create a charity to support graduates – and plans to continue painting.
Archie said: “A friend of mine studied here... and she was quite enjoying it, so that gave me the idea when I retired as a solicitor to come here and do the BA fine art degree... I'm not too bothered about being the oldest graduate or not.”
At 96 years and 56 days, White is just short of being the world's oldest ever graduate. At the time of submitting his final piece of work to the University of Brighton exam board, East Sussex College said he was just 145 days short of the world record held by Shigemi Hirata, who graduated in Japan five years ago at the age of 96 years and 200 days.
Hannah Birkett, Brighton fine art course leader at East Sussex College, said: “It has been an absolute pleasure to teach Archie over the last three years. He brings a unique contribution to the course, and his personal development has been extraordinary.”