WHAT’S BEING CLAIMED:
- A boy genius from Belgium is on track to complete an undergraduate engineering degree next month at the ripe age of nine.
- Currently enrolled at the Eindhoven University of Technology (TUE), mentors have told his parents that their son’s absorption capacity is extraordinary that he was able to finish his studies ahead of time.
- The child prodigy hopes to pursue a medical degree in the future so he can invent a way to create artificial organs.
While most kids are still learning basic Math and learning how to spell, a 9-year-old Belgian boy is about to graduate next month with a bachelor’s degree in engineering.
Child prodigy Laurent Simons, currently an electrical engineering student at the Eindhoven University of Technology (TUE) has impressed teachers and peers alike at the university describing him as “simply extraordinary”.
However, his parents, Lydia and Alexander, admitted to CNN that initially, they didn’t believe Laurent’s grandparents when they told them about Laurent’s academic talents.
Following multiple tests over the years to determine the best course of action for the boy’s education, his mentors told his parents that Laurent is ‘like a sponge’, which means due to his absorption capacity being so high, a lot of material has been covered in a short span of time. As a result, he completed his courses way ahead than the college-aged students at the university.
While offering accelerated programs for students who can handle them is standard for the course, the university said that they’ve never had a student quite so young.
Laurent is the “fastest student we have ever had here. Not only is he hyper-intelligent, but also a very sympathetic boy,” Sjoerd Hulshof, TUE education director of electrical engineering, told CNN.
His father also shared that after completing his undergraduate degree, his son plans to enroll in an engineering doctorate then on to a medical degree.
Simon’s parents also told CNN that Laurent’s life goal is to develop a way to create artificial organs, which suits his sympathetic nature.
“The absorption of information is no problem for Laurent” Alexander told CNN, adding that his son hopes to focus on research and “apply the knowledge to discover new things.”
However, amid all these, Laurent also enjoys taking time out to play outside with kids of his age.
“We don’t want him to get too serious. We need to find a balance between being a child and his talents,” said his father who said he encourages their son to be a regular child.
Source: PEOPLE