Children Spotlight of the Week: Benyamin Bamburac: The 14-Year-Old College Graduate Defying All Odds

At just 14 years old, Benyamin Bamburac has already accomplished what many can only dream of, a double degree in Mathematics and Computer Science from Lewis University, making him the youngest graduate in the school’s history.

While his peers are navigating middle school, Benyamin is navigating graduate-level coursework, already working toward his Master’s degree, which he plans to complete within a year. Even more inspiring, he graduated with a stellar 3.9 GPA.

Benyamin’s journey didn’t begin in the traditional classroom. A public school once told his parents that he would be “wasting his time” in grade school. Undeterred, his parents chose homeschooling, where Benyamin tested out of high school and junior college by age 10.

His father, Djordje Bamburac, humbly credits Benyamin’s brilliance to his own self-driven passion for learning:

“I did not teach him. He did it himself.”

By age five, Benyamin was already studying calculus. By age 14, he was taking advanced college courses alongside much older students, balancing academic rigor with humility and maturity.

According to his professor, Dr. Safwan Omari:

“We had to make sure that it’s an inclusive environment for him.”

Despite his incredible achievements, Benyamin remains grounded. He lives at home, enjoys learning, and is already thinking ahead. His dream? A career in artificial intelligence research.

But for now, he’s ready to enjoy a well-earned break with his family is planning a summer vacation.