A 15-year-old boy can now add UCLA alum to a long list of descriptors that typically reflect the accomplishments of a high-achieving adult three times his age.
Moshe Kai Cavalin will graduate Sunday with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from the Westwood university. He started his college career when he was 8 years old.
Before starting at UCLA, Moshe Kai graduated from East Los Angeles College at the tender age of 11.
"I consider myself a regular kid who works hard and does his best," Moshe Kai told NBC4 in 2009 after he graduated from the two-year college.
There, Moshe Kai was the youngest in his class, but often tutored his 19- and 20-year-old peers. He was one of three students to graduate from East LA College with a 4.0 GPA.
He went on to study at UCLA on a prestigious Regents Scholarship, which awards $2,000 a year for two years to about 100 students.
After he receives his bachelor's diploma from UCLA Sunday, Moshe Kai, pictured below, plans to take a year off to work on his bucket list.
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Goals for the 15-year-old – who is already a best-selling author and accomplished martial artist – include finishing his latest book (this one about bullies), getting his pilot’s and driver’s licenses, learning French and playing classical piano.
He may go on to obtain a master's degree but says his future is completely open.
"It would be silly to point to one door when my future offers me many open doors," Kai said in a university news release published last year. "I have good choices ahead, and I have plenty of time to choose what to pursue."
Moshe Kai is a member of an elite group of the country's youngest college graduates. He's just four years older than the world record holder, Michael Kearney, who graduated with his bachelor's degree in 1994 at age 10.
Gordon Tokumatsu will have a full interview with the 15-year-old college graduate on the NBC4 News at 5.
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