7 Years Later, Yao Ming Finally Graduates from College

Yao Ming can finally add another item to his long list of achievements: college graduate.

China's greatest basketball player finally earned his bachelor's degree from Shanghai Jiaotong University (SJTU) on July 8, seven years after initially enrolling.

Not only that, but the 7-foot-6 former Houston Rockets center and NBA Hall of Famer was also named class valedictorian.

During his undergraduate commencement speech, Yao spoke about what it was like being a student at SJTU after retiring from sports in 2011. Speaking to 3,300 fellow graduates, Yao recalled how a promise he made to his parents to eventually finish college after he first entered the Chinese Basketball Association at the age of 17 helped him resist the urge to drop out several times, even when he struggled with his advanced mathematics class.

“Over time I came to believe the process of learning is more important than the result,” Yao said. 

Yao also offered up some advice to his peers.

“Try to combine your own future plans with society’s development, because only by doing so will you give yourselves more room to explore,” he said.

Yao earned a degree in economics from SJTU's Antai College of Economics and Management.

For more, check out our 2014 interview with Yao Ming.

[Images via ChinaNews.com]