In 1938 Ingeborg Syllm-Rapoport submitted her doctoral thesis on diptheria in what was supposed to be the culmination of years of study. Syllm-Rapoport lived in Germany, however, and her mother was Jewish, so the Nazi regime denied her application because she was considered a “first degree cross breed.”
Now, nearly 80 years later, Syllm-Rapoport has finally been awarded her doctorate degree, making her the oldest recipient of such a degree in history.
Diptheria is a deadly disease that was one of the leading killers of children in the 1930s.
Syllm-Rapoport was only 25 years old when she first wrote her doctoral thesis. But while she might be a centenarian now, she proved more than up to the task of both writing and defending her thesis before an academic committee.
Turns out that Syllm-Rapoport’s original thesis could not be found, so she had to write a new thesis from scratch. Age had led to poor eyesight, making it difficult to both conduct research and use a computer, but with the help of friends and family she was able to complete her thesis.
Syllm-Rapoport now has her PhD, but it was a long time coming and a long, twisted road.
Not long after her Doctoral degree was denied to her, Syllm-Rapoport fled to the United States where she continued her training and eventually pursued a medical degree at the Women’s Medical College of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.
She would later land her first job as a medical doctor in Cincinnati, where she would eventually meet her future husband Samuel Mitja Rapoport, a physician and biochemist.
The young couple quickly built a reputation for their medical and scientific knowledge. For better or worse, however, they also built a reputation for their communist sympathies.
With anti-Communist hysteria sweeping the nation, the couple moved to Eastern Europe in 1950.
Mr. Rapoport would go on to found a biochemical institute, while Mrs. Syllm-Rapoport would go on to found a neonatology clinic.
Neonatology refers to specialized care for infants, and especially premature and sick infants.
Eventually, Ms. Syllm-Rapoport retired. In 2004 her husband passed away.
