Martin Sheen to start at university in Ireland next month

With The West Wing coming to an end, Martin Sheen has decided to take a break from acting to return to university.

The actor, who turned 66 earlier this month, has chosen the National University of Ireland in Galway for his studies after being granted an honorary degree from the university last year for his acting and “his consistent and meaningful engagement with civil society”.

A spokesperson for the university confirmed that Martin will be arriving for registration within in the next two week and will be a full time student, reading English literature, philosophy and oceanography.

Martin has previously revealed that he purposely failed his entrance exam to the University of Dayton when he was a teenager so that he could concentrate on his acting. About his return to studies after his 48-year-long gap year, he said: “I’m very serious about it. I never went to college when I was young and am looking forward to giving it a try.”