In what sounds like the plot of a Disney Channel movie, a 13-year-old boy is set to earn his bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota this spring.
Elliot Tanner is on pace to graduate with a degree in physics that includes a minor in math, while his peers are finishing up the seventh grade, according to the Associated Press.
Tanner is not only crushing his classes with a 3.78-grade point average, but he is also tutoring his fellow classmates at the University of Minnesota.
In an interview with the AP, Tanner said his goal is to be a high-energy theoretical physicist and teach physics at the university.
“I have an incredible passion for physics,” Tanner said. “It’s been one of my favorite things to do.”
Tanner is now continuing to plan for his future as he has been accepted to the University of Minnesota’s Physics Ph.D. program. The only problem is that his parents have to find a way to pay for it.
“We’re just trying to explore all our options, and coming up with dead ends,” Michelle Tanner, Elliot’s mom, said. “Trying to apply for any scholarships, fellowships, grants, and we have not been successful.”
Even still, Michelle Tanner shared that she knew her son would excel in school as he was reading, something most don’t do till 6 or 7, at age 3. He was also doing math, a skill taught to those aged 6 to 10, at the same age.
Tanner was homeschooled by his parents, and soon they began teaching him with high school curriculum, which only took him two years to complete. It was then that higher education was the only option, and at age 9, he began taking college classes.
“People who hear Elliott’s story say he doesn’t get to be a kid, or he grew up too fast,” Michelle said. “He still very much is a kid, and the only difference is he goes to school in a different building.”
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