Boy, 12, Is Now an Ivy Leaguer

Jeremy Shuler might be Cornell's youngest student ever
By Arden Dier,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 16, 2016 7:41 AM CDT
Boy, 12, Is Now an Ivy Leaguer
Jeremy Shuler with his parents, Andy and Harrey.   (Texas Tech University)

Like many students heading off to college, Jeremy Shuler is excited to attend classes—including multivariable calculus and intermediate Latin—and meet new people. Partying, however, is out of the question: Jeremy is only 12. The real-life Sheldon Cooper—also from Texas—is believed to be the youngest person to ever attend Cornell University, reports the Washington Post. His parents, both aerospace engineers, say he had a passion for learning from the start. He knew the alphabet and numbers at 15 months old and could read both English and Korean at 2. At age 5, he was studying pre-calculus and reading Lord of the Rings. That's when his mom decided to quit her job to focus on homeschooling Jeremy, reports Texas Tech University.

"We gave up Wikipedia," says Jeremy's dad. "We would just ask Jeremy, 'What is the capital of Chad?' and he would tell us. He's much smarter than either of us, for sure," he adds. "It's a challenge to keep him challenged." At age 10, Jeremy took the SAT, scoring in the 99.6 percentile, before earning his high school diploma, per the Ithaca Journal. He was accepted to Cornell this spring on the condition that he live with his parents, who've since moved to Ithaca. "I know it's the right choice, it's the only way he can be challenged and grow," his dad says. A Cornell rep admits the situation is "highly unusual," but Jeremy "will be able to thrive." He can't wait. "I've been preparing for college for a long time," says Jeremy, who plans to study engineering and math. (This 11-year-old has three college degrees.)

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