This 16-year-old is UofT’s youngest graduate since at least 1979
CTV
Honciuc Menendez is barely old enough to get a driver’s licence but on Friday he’ll officially graduate from the University of Toronto with distinction.
Honciuc Menendez is barely old enough to get a driver’s licence but on Friday he’ll officially graduate from the University of Toronto with distinction.
In doing so, the 16-year-old international student from Ecuador will become the youngest to graduate from the university’s faculty of arts and science since at least 1979, the year the institution began tracking such data, the university states on their website.
Another 16-year-old - Vivian Xie - did graduate from the school in 2021 but Menendez is believed to be a bit younger.
He will earn a specialist degree in physics to go along with a major in mathematics.
“I’m really proud and excited to be graduating from UofT,” Menendez told CTV News Toronto ahead of his graduation. “I’m excited for convocation on Friday because it’s the culmination of four years of hard work and research.”
Menendez said his interest in science began when he was very young. He travelled a lot with his mother due to her career as an engineer, and he was constantly surrounded by books.
“I was surrounded by books like math books, puzzle books, encyclopedias and atlases,” he said. “Even before starting school, I was captivated by educational videos, websites and apps. I loved going to museums. I loved going to science festivals”
