From Her University Degree to Her Past Gig as a Waitress, Why Kate Middlton Is an Unlikely Queen

Born Commoner

Unlike most previous queen consorts, Princess Kate’s no aristocrat: She comes from a middle-class English family. Parents Carole and Michael Middleton worked for British Airways before starting their own now-defunct party supply business.

First University Grad

When Prince William ascends the throne, Kate will make history as the first spouse of a British monarch — male or female — to have earned a university degree. She studied art history at Scotland’s University of St Andrews and graduated in 2005.

A Very Long Courtship

While Prince Harry and Meghan Markle got engaged just a year after they met, William didn’t propose to Kate until 2010 — eight years after they started dating as college students. The British press cruelly nicknamed her “Waity Katie.”

Career Experience

Prior to joining the royal family, Kate toiled as a deckhand at a marina, “did a bit of waitressing” while at university, she’s said, then worked at fashion retailer Jigsaw and her parents’ company after graduation.

An Older Bride

Kate was 29 when she married a 28-year-old William in 2011 — far older than many others in her position: Princess Diana was a 20-year-old bride; Queen Elizabeth II said “I do” at 21; and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother was 22.