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I know that Hagrid is not really the right age, but still: by the end of Chamber of Secrets, the Minister of Magic knows that Hagrid had not opened the Chamber fifty years before. Even if Fudge did not trust Dumbledore on that point, it is clear that after DH, Kingsley could well have declared Hagrid innocent of all charges, and thus allowing him to have a wand.

My question is simple: considering that Hagrid is innocent after all, could he have re-attempted Hogwarts even if he is older than 10? And in a broader way, are there any canon examples of overage wizards/witches who still attempted Hogwarts?

As implied in the last question, I'd rather have canon-based answers (Novels, Pottermore, JKR) but no Wikia.

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22

I would say yes he could have, maybe not after CoS but definitely after the series had come to an end. JKR confirmed that both Harry and Ron did not resit the final year and thus did not graduate, however Hermione did go back and complete her final year and graduated. She may not exactly be a mature student but she was definitely overage.

From the Pottercast interviews with JK Rowling in 2007:

SU: Oh, speaking of Ron/Hermione—

JKR: Yeah, did they graduate from Hogwarts?

SU: Yes, did they?

JKR: Harry and Ron didn't go back, Hermione did. Did you bet right? You must've, I mean, come on. No one's gonna think Hermione wouldn't go back.

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  • Oh, right. I forgot about Hermione's NEWT.
    – Orlahm
    Commented Apr 25, 2014 at 9:49
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    Given that he worked as a professor, it's unlikely that he would want to return to complete his schooling. I see no Canon reason why he would be refused the opportunity to take his owls and newts if he so desired.
    – Valorum
    Commented Apr 25, 2014 at 10:25
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    A point of interest is that Hagrid was allowed to be a professor despite having no qualifications. Would he need, or even want, to get qualifications? He's doing what he wanted to do anyway.
    – Mac Cooper
    Commented Apr 25, 2014 at 16:30
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    I would think that he might go back so he would be allowed to use his wand, though at his age I wonder if there isn't some kind of GED system so he can get through OWLs and NEWTs to get the privilege.
    – Dave Johnson
    Commented Apr 25, 2014 at 17:40
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    I've always thought it was rather obvious that the umbrella had his wand in it. We are basically told as much in CoS. It is insinuated that expelled students are not permitted to use magic.
    – Dave Johnson
    Commented Apr 25, 2014 at 17:49
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As a supporting fact for Simon's excellent "yes" answer, JKR also stated that she intended to have a character who only got to Hogwarts late in life (she never included the character but she never repudiated the IDEA of an adult attending Hogwarts when answering).

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