Tanishq Abraham got international media attention in 2015 when at 11, he graduated with no less than three college degrees from Sacramento’s American River College. He was the youngest graduate in the history of the college and he graduated with a perfect 4.0 GPA.
“Even on the first time I came to a college class, I wasn’t really nervous, so, this isn’t much of big thing to me,” Tanishq had said when he was 11-years-old. And in case you’re wondering, Tanishq graduated from high school at 10. But Tanishq was barely getting started. A year later, news outlets covered how the then-12-year-old kid got acceptance letters from both the University of California Santa Cruz and the University of California Davis.
Tanishq spoke about how at first students are generally a little confused by his presence in class, “But once they get used to me, they don’t treat me that differently. We’re all just friends and have fun.” That doesn’t mean Tanishq wasn’t pumped about continuing his studies, saying “I’ve been waiting for this for quite some time now. I’ll finally be working on my bachelor’s.” And work he did, graduating less than two months ago with a bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering at UC Davis – with honors. In fact, his undergraduate research work on revolutionary new drug delivery methods landed Tanishq his first author’s credit.
And although he won’t officially start his doctoral studies in biomedical engineering till later this year, Tanishq – who just turned 15 – is already taking graduate courses. Then again, considering his drive and the fact he’ll be attending as a Dean’s Distinguished Graduate Fellow, it’s not that surprising. Neither is the fact that he’s a member of two of the most prestigious honor societies in the U.S: Phi Kappa Phi and Phi Beta Kappa.
And what’s next after he nabs his Ph.D.? An M.D., of course. And after this real-life Dougie Howser becomes a full-blown doctor and discovers a life-changing protocol to help humanity? Tanishq has his eye on the presidency, something he’s been vocal about for years – like so many other kids.
As for Tanishq’s younger sister Tiara, many may think of what a burden it would be to grow up in the shadow of a genius brother. But parents Dr. Taji Abraham, a veterinarian, and Bijou Abraham, a software engineer, are proud and supportive parents who encourage their kids to have fun and explore the world and knowledge at their own pace.