From elected to electives

Martin Sheen, star of TV’s “The West Wing” and many Hollywood films, began a new career Friday, as a college student.

Sheen, who played President Josiah Bartlet on “The West Wing,” registered at National University Galway in western Ireland, where he plans to study philosophy, English literature and oceanography as part of a bachelor of arts degree.

Sheen has said previously he considered studying in Galway after meeting its president, Iognaid O Muircheartaigh, at a university fundraiser in Los Angeles last year.

The actor, who attended high school in his native Dayton, Ohio, said he deliberately flunked his entrance exam to the University of Dayton so he could pursue his dream of acting in New York City.