Triple Triumph: Mum and twin daughters graduate together from same university

Posted on 29 October 2025 • Student stories

There was no mistaking the joy on the faces of Sarah Chappell and her twin daughters Megan and Abbey Douglas-Chappell when all three donned cap and gowns and celebrated their graduation from The Open University recently.

The trio from Cambridge all studied while living under the same roof with Sarah and her husband Andrew, stepfather to the 23-year-old twins, as they held down jobs and kept assignments on track.

Sarah said:

“It was amazing to graduate with my girls. We have come so far, and I am so proud of all they have achieved at such as young age.”

Now the jubilant trio are pursuing their dreams. After passing her law degree, Abbey is well on the road to a legal career with law firm Mills & Reeve in Cambridge.

She started a role there as a research assistant, progressing to become a paralegal and now she has been accepted on to a postgraduate solicitor apprenticeship at the firm and hopes to qualify in under three years.

She said:

“I’ve worked hard to reach this point and I’m excited to continue my journey towards qualification at Mills & Reeve, whose unwavering support has meant so much to me. 

“During Covid-19 I went away to a brick university and struggled with the isolation, therefore coming home to study at The Open University provided me with an opportunity to study flexibly whilst gaining two and a half years of work experience in a legal environment before I graduated and became a paralegal and now a graduate apprentice. It helped me prepare to balance study and a career.”

Her sister, Megan, who is actually her non-identical twin in spite of near identical looks, achieved a 1^st Class Environmental Studies degree whilst working in business continuity at Cambridge University Hospital. Now she has a job as a business support assistant for a sustainable urban planning company.

She said:

“Studying online at the same time with my twin sister and mum felt like our own little uni group. Weekend study sessions together kept us motivated. We pushed each other through tough days so it never felt lonely with the long days and nights at the books.”

And Sarah, who is a senior project manager for a biotechnology organisation, was awarded an MSc in Systems Thinking in Practice, which she says she uses every day in her work.

Of studying with the OU, she said:

“We found the OU a great experience and it enabled us to work, be at home, further our education and increase our employability. With the rising costs of brick universities this gave both my girls a chance to stay at home, work and complete their studies. They have significantly less debt that many of their peers.”

The Open University is the largest academic institution in the UK and a world leader in flexible online learning.

Traditionally, it has attracted more mature students, but increasingly the OU is seeing much younger students preferring to study part and full time with the OU while staying in the family home and gaining valuable work experience as they keep their living costs down.

For further information please visit The Open University