16-year-old genius & Mac geek going to college

[jimN]

can't help but think he'll miss out on the extra-curricular side of things

and i don't just mean the drinking. College/univ is as much about growing up and gaining independence/autonomy as it is about learning an academic subject. Just not sure he'll get that at his young age.

Puts me in mind of teh little kids they wheel out over here (england) every year who have passed a GCSE (standard examination for 16 year olds) at increasingly young ages. Invariably these children sit IT and are taught/pushed by their parents. Worse still they pass but not with A grades. For most children (or so the press would have us believe) this year the average mark was at least an A or higher (they had to bring a new grade in as exams were too easy). I don't see the point in taking the exam early if you are going to get a 'bad' grade, it is no use turning around and saying at interview that you took it when you were 6, i'd want to know why not take it later and do it right.

I appreciate the comments about how dull it can be to lag behind your peers but sometimes people are pushed for all the wrong reasons.

 

[iGary]

Heh - I got him by the nads. I skipped all of college.

 

[SpaceMagic]

If our teenage years are the best of our lives, I'm shooting myself now.

At 16 you've done all the childish stuff and I was ready to move on. I didn't do amazingly at GCSEs or in my recently finished A-Levels (GCSE: 4 A*s, 6 As and a B, A-Levels: A A B) because I was never pushed. If I had felt pressured or seen results (i don't mean to be arrogant) but I could have done 5 A levels and gotten As in them. Some friends hate me for this, because they know I did absolutely no work to get my grades, while others struggle.

Now that I'm entering University any progress will be up to me. This way I feel I'll do much better. I congratulate this guy for being so motivated and obviously quite mature (setting up a business at 11 is impressive). He stated that he is apprehensive about the social side of things, but I'm sure he'll settle in.

Also, he is an Apple User, so show some respect for one of our brothers

 

[jimN]

best years of your life

If our teenage years are the best of our lives, I'm shooting myself now.

The best years of your life can only really be assessed retrospectively and that's when you normally turn round and say bugger can't believe that i let them pass me by. I know that the years at school around GCSE and A level were carefree and fun and i had plenty of time for the things i wanted to do. Life is very different now and it isn't always quite so plain sailing but, as i've said to my little brother, i think that as you get old the peaks get higher and the troughs get lower- you might not be up so much but the stuff that gets you up is awesome. Sadly the stuff that sends you down can be crushing.

I would say that having the money to do things distinguishes this part of my life from my teens, but having the responsibilities that mean that i can't afford to do those same things is another distinction. Ahhh life, a great succession of knock backs and then you die!!

 

[Lau]

If our teenage years are the best of our lives, I'm shooting myself now.

So far, life has got better and better each year since I was 18, and I intend for this to continue for a fair while yet! Being 13-18 years old was so awful for me, and with a bit of a rocky start after I left home (had a great time, but screwed up a bit ). 21 onwards has been pretty darn good.

So think of life starting .... now

 

[SupraMan]

Hey all! A friend ran across this thread and brought it to my attention. I'm amazed that this thread exists! Fantastic that it is on MacRumors, as well. Though I haven't been a member here, I'm obviously a serious Mac fan.

Interesting. But skipping four grades? That has to be a messed up way to grow up.

By the way, the integer total is five grades (count the ones you listed)...strictly speaking, I was out of school for about another semester messing around with tests and other schools, so I didn't get the "benefit" of that time in school. As such, one could say I missed out on 5 1/2 years of K-12.

Then again, I spent almost three years in junior college. To my defense for taking longer than usual, over that time, I obtained 23 A grades and a B while exhausting the highest levels of Mathematics taught at any community college in the area.

If anyone would like to talk, I'm always available on AIM under "goodsonscott."

Cheers

-- Scott Goodson

 

[wordmunger]

Hey, great to see you here. When I was in college (University of Chicago), a 12-year-old and a 13-year-old (brothers) were both enrolled. They pretty much didn't hang out with any of the older students. I don't know -- it sort of seemed like they were missing out on the normal college experience. Are you feeling that way, or can you connect with the other students?

 

[SupraMan]

Hey, great to see you here. When I was in college (University of Chicago), a 12-year-old and a 13-year-old (brothers) were both enrolled. They pretty much didn't hang out with any of the older students. I don't know -- it sort of seemed like they were missing out on the normal college experience. Are you feeling that way, or can you connect with the other students?

On that note, here at UC Berkeley, there are a couple 13 year old twins attending. While I'm 16 and a Junior here, one of them is also a Junior! Interestingly enough, the other is a "mere" freshman. Aside from them, I get the impression from the College of Engineering that I am the youngest at this level. Indeed, they asked to run an article about me for the campus newspaper.

Here's the trick: I look like all of the other students. Some people don't believe me if I tell them my age straight out. Once my roommate found out, he went on a crusade to tell each person we met my age, but only after asking them how old they believed I was. 90% say 20, some of the rest say 19, and one or two have even said 21. Therefore, I can fit in arbitrarily well; I don't reveal my actual age to very many people, obviously.

 

[AP_piano295]

he doesnt look that geeky either I think hanging out at collage would be sweeeeeeet but Im just talking bout me.

 

[GFLPraxis]

What the heck? How do you skip grades?

I started college at 15, but I still had to do every high school grade

 

[GFLPraxis]

On that note, here at UC Berkeley, there are a couple 13 year old twins attending. While I'm 16 and a Junior here, one of them is also a Junior! Interestingly enough, the other is a "mere" freshman. Aside from them, I get the impression from the College of Engineering that I am the youngest at this level. Indeed, they asked to run an article about me for the campus newspaper.

Here's the trick: I look like all of the other students. Some people don't believe me if I tell them my age straight out. Once my roommate found out, he went on a crusade to tell each person we met my age, but only after asking them how old they believed I was. 90% say 20, some of the rest say 19, and one or two have even said 21. Therefore, I can fit in arbitrarily well; I don't reveal my actual age to very many people, obviously.

Heh, I went through the same thing, people were sure I was in my twenties

 

[devilot]

Sigh, I miss Cal... not the people (I didn't meet cool cats) but... I miss crew, and I miss Blondies, the 'asian ghetto,' intermezzo, raleigh's... man. I miss telegraph and durant! I miss having awesome shopping to cheer me up after a shoddy exam.

 

[lem0n]

16 year old to univerdity is not that odd, really, i would be 16 and in university if I go to uni in Canada [which has already started] but my school in Italy won't start until October so I'm already 17 [birthday in September]... een in high schol, I hve always been babied by everybody because I'm younger than everybody else... I know a guy who was born in 1990 [2 years younger than me] who is going to university this year too... He was born in January so he went to school with the 1989 when he started, then he skipped from gr 8 to 9... every year he did summer school, saturday school and never take any spare so he got enough credits to graduate with my class [one grade above him] now he's 15 and in university, but nobody really believes he's 15 anyway because he looks older for his age and is more mature than some of the 18 year old...

 

[ibook30]

Is it healthy to skip four grades ?
Well- maybe not entirely- but if one can with stand the burden- it's likely they will have the resources to heal.
Now - contrast that scenario with a kid who skips ahead like 10 or 20 years in life by having a child when he or she is fifteen. That's a much more common jump in years going on around us.
Here is where I fail to draw a conclusion after pointing out contrasts,,,

 

[mac-er]

Unlike most kids like this, Scott seems pretty normal and aware of the social consequences of his situation (based on his quotes).

At least he is acutally dating.

 

[SupraMan]

What the heck? How do you skip grades?

I started college at 15, but I still had to do every high school grad

Yeah; the key to my plan was to attend college exclusively, so I could take as many classes as possible. Calc 1 takes a year at most high schools, and a semester at a JC. The same advantage applies to most other courses; plus, in the end, you obtain transferable units rather than (at best) AP credit.

The whole process was decently complex, but also improvised. No one in the district had done this before, so every request must be granted by the board individually (no nice forms to fill out). The process was started after some testing performed following fifth grade, which was initiated in curiousity of high standardized tests scores for 1st-5th. Also, I wasn't supposed to be able to take the CHSPE until 10th grade, second semester. However, I was allowed to take it when I would've been in 10th 1/2, even though I was two years younger than the grade implied (so I was able to take the test a couple years earlier than "intended" to be permitted). I was coming up on 13 years when I took the test, which officially alliviated the need for special overrides by the board.

Sigh, I miss Cal... not the people (I didn't meet cool cats) but... I miss crew, and I miss Blondies, the 'asian ghetto,' intermezzo, raleigh's... man. I miss telegraph and durant! I miss having awesome shopping to cheer me up after a shoddy exam.

Awesome! I know every place you mention here. I'm in Unit one, the new bulding Slottman, which is off of the Channing side of U1 (Durant is the north side).

16 year old to univerdity is not that odd, really, i would be 16 and in university if I go to uni in Canada

No, it's not necessarily rare for a freshman to enter at 16. However, I have not heard of too many 16 year old Junior-transfers.

Is it healthy to skip four grades ?
Well- maybe not entirely- but if one can with stand the burden- it's likely they will have the resources to heal.

Strictly speaking, in the beginning, I had to undure bypassing 5 grades. I came out the other side only four years ahead (three years in Junior college), but I also had a more robust transcript than most who attend only 2 years of JC.

Berkeley's Engineering News has run another article, if you guys care to read what they have to say. Interestingly, the picture is nearly a mirror image of the first. I guss my workspace has remained largely consistent, aside from the newest addition of the OSx86 box and a couple more LaCie drives. That article is here.

 

[iGary]

Did he get busted for hash yet?

 

[me_94501]

Sigh, I miss Cal... not the people (I didn't meet cool cats) but... I miss crew, and I miss Blondies, the 'asian ghetto,' intermezzo, raleigh's... man. I miss telegraph and durant! I miss having awesome shopping to cheer me up after a shoddy exam.

Intermezzo and Blondies are awesome.

When did you leave Cal? And was the "happy happy happy" guy there*?

Awesome! I know every place you mention here. I'm in Unit one, the new bulding Slottman, which is off of the Channing side of U1 (Durant is the north side).

I probably passed you while riding the 51.

 

[me_94501]

How many Berkeley students/alumni are there here?

 

[SupraMan]

Hmm, his PB is hooked up to a CRT...

Actually, it's slightly more blasphemous: that's an OSx86 box, independant of the PB

 

[devilot]

Intermezzo and Blondies are awesome.

When did you leave Cal? And was the "happy happy happy" guy there*?

First off, who is 'happy happy happy guy?' Anyway, I went to Cal right outta high school fall 2002 and became more and more miserable until I left the week before finals spring 2003. Sometimes I get a slight pang of regret because I miss being a Division I athlete (yay for priority enrollment!) and well, I miss the Berkeley area... and when I do get a bit bummed about leaving, it's easy for me to wonder whether or not I really was unhappy there...

It's at these crucial moments that my bf (who has been w/ me since senior year high school) gently reminds me of just how awful things were for me @ Cal. But don't get me wrong, I know thousands of people go and fall madly in love w/ Bezerkly, and I do miss the place, I just... didn't meet anyone I could connect w/.

 

[JeffTL]

I'm in my third year of college, 3.93 GPA, my last sample LSAT came up 163. No sex, no liquor, no drugs, no tobaco except unavoidable second-hand smoke at school, church every Sunday. I read a lot, edit Wikipedia, and collect vintage fountain pens. Studying Spanish and Latin.


I skipped a few grades, even did high school by correspondence, didn't seem to hurt me any.

 

[Rev.D.Gilmartin]

Skipped 5 years, not 4

This guy skipped five years, not four. Read the article or original post again.

 

[ZoomZoomZoom]

gotta be really hard to get girls... =\

 

[amin]

I find it amusing that there are numerous cases of mature teens moving ahead quickly and graduating a few years early, yet only a few of them are ever recognized. Of the few that are recoginized, they are called "geniuses", when the real issue is they are just more mature than the rest of their peers.

I had a friend in middle school who skipped all of high school and went straight to university. He definitely wasn't mature. He was socially inept. Whether he was a genius or not, meh.