A custodian, Michael Vaudreuil at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Massachusetts is used to picking things up at school; but over the weekend, he picked up something he will definitely want to keep: a college degree.

The 54 year-old graduated with a mechanical engineering degree from the same place where he's cleaned and emptied the trash for the past eight years.

His filling board read: "Old dog has new tricks."

Vaudreuil shares his success story with newsmen: "Graduation was a crowning achievement, one of the best days of my life."

After his plastering business went under in 2007 and took most of his life with it, Vaudreuil took the custodian's job. He had lost his house, his business and his hope, "I was just a shell of a person at that time," he recounted.

So he got the custodian's gig at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, which just so happened to have tuition-free classes for employees.

“This was my last chance. After dabbling in some psychology classes, I got serious and took on mechanical engineering, which was a natural fit because I am more of a hands-on kind of guy.

“I found the classwork challenging, but I loved being stretched intellectually. And being a student of a certain age in class wasn't a burden at all.

"I was never once made to feel uncomfortable; never felt like I was getting any easy pass," he emphasised. My presence (as a non-traditional student) didn't attract a lot of attention. Or so he thought.

Vaudreuil’s graduation attracted media attention, as several students he had classes with through the years said they found him to be an inspiration.

With all of the media attention his graduation has attracted, Vaudreuil said he's heard from several students he had classes with through the years. They told him they found him to be an inspiration even back then.

As he picks a new job, Vaudreuil said: "I've got plenty of gas in the tank. I'm chomping at the bit to get to work."

Determination.