BY FRANCES WEISS

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

At age nine he was a college freshman, and at 21 a full-fledged M.D.

Sho Yano, who is graduating this week, is the youngest student to ever receive an M.D. degree from the University of Chicago according to IndoPinoy.

The New York Daily News reports that he also received a Ph.D. in molecular genetics and cell biology from the Pritzker School of Medicine and is preparing for a residency in pediatric neurology.

Dr. Joel Scwab, a professor of pediatrics who was on the admissions committee when Sho Yano was admitted in 2003 remembers him as “a nice, polite, 11-year-old boy dressed in a little suit.”

A child prodigy, Yano was reading at the age of 2, writing at 3, and composing music at 5. He graduated summa cum laude from Loyola University at 11, completing the usual four-year curriculum in three.

Because of concerns about his maturity, several medical schools turned him down, according to the Chicago Tribune. Even at Pritzker, some faculty members wondered if they would be depriving him of a normal adolescence, and the youngster was subjected to wisecracks and negative remarks by some students. However, Yano was puzzled by their attitude.

"I never understood that," he said to the Daily News. "Why would being allowed to challenge yourself be considered more damaging than being totally bored?"