Published 11:58 IST, December 11th 2019
Belgian boy who was set to be world's youngest university graduate quits his studies
University informed Belgian boy and his parents that considering the number of exams left that he needs to give, he won't be graduating before his birthday
- World News
- 3 min read
A nine-year-old Belgian boy named Laurent Simons made headlines that he was set to become world's youngest to graduate from the University. However, in a sudden turn of events the University informed Laurent and his parents that considering the number of exams left that Laurent needs to give, he won't be graduating before his birthday on December 26.
Parents accuses University
After the decision, it led to a dispute between the parents and the university administration. Hence, the boy dropped out of university. The parents accused the university of lying and calling them ‘pathetic’. His Instagram post reveals an email from the university examination committee that clearly mentioned the date of his graduation. However, Laurent accused the university of changing the dates after he argued about his failure in an oral examination.
In a statement released by the university, they described the boy as exceptionally gifted. The university further said that they proposed another plan to the family, according to which Laurent will achieve his degree in mid-2020. Alexander Simons, father of Laurent Simons said that until last week, there was no delay and suddenly his graduation degree has been postponed by six months. The parents decided not to avail of the offer by the University and concluded Laurent’s education in Eindhoven. There was no specific date provided by the University to the parents for his graduation.
The 9-year-old plans to pursue a Ph.D. once he has completed his graduate course along with medicine but he says before that he needs some vacation. The boy has an IQ of 145 and is currently pursuing his bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from Eindhoven’s University of Technology which concludes next month. According to reports, Simon completed his high school in a time span of just one year.
Sjoerd Hulshof, who is the program director said that all the professors are enthusiastic to mentor little Simons. He further added that his brain is three times faster than the smartest kid they have ever encountered. In his past time, Simons likes to walk with his dog, play video games like Minecraft and Fortnite. He also likes to post pictures on Instagram. Simons admires Nikola Tesla and dreams of creating an artificial human body in his own laboratory someday.
Updated 12:40 IST, December 11th 2019
