By Ashley Camp
Every week, students enter a classroom in the Talmage Building, frustrated as the fundamental theorem of algebra and the concept of mathematical induction cumulate into gibberish in their textbooks.
Jacob Hobbs, from Albuquerque, N.M., works as a Math 110 teaching assistant, giving examples on the white board and answering questions to turn students? discouraged frowns into satisfied smiles.
But being a math TA is not the only thing that makes him unique. Hobbs is only 17.
Like Hobbs, many young students come to BYU early to get a head start on adult responsibilities.
In August 2002, the youngest student to graduate from BYU with a degree in communications was just 15 years old. Laura Austin graduated a year after her brother, Ben, who also graduated, with a degree in management, when he was 15.
At 18, David Stephenson became the youngest BYU graduate for April 2002. Stephenson continues at BYU, pursuing his master?s degree in chemical engineering.
?I don?t really consider myself a genius,? he said. ?I just apply myself.?
Stephenson said he came to BYU early because his two older brothers proved graduating early could be done. All three brothers received bachelor degrees in chemical engineering before their missions.
Stephenson graduated from high school through home school when he was 16 and got his degree in two and a half years.
Stephenson said despite the stress of taking many classes, he has several opportunities because he is done with his undergraduate degree.
?One semester, I did take 21 credits,? he said. ?I sort of killed myself, but it worked out. I?m glad I did it.?
Before Stephenson could take classes though, he had to be admitted to BYU.
BYU?s early admit program allows a student to leave high school early to become a full-time BYU student. The requirements include having a 3.7 high school grade point average and a 27 or higher on the ACT. They must also have a letter from a high school counselor and parent or legal guardian stating they can no longer benefit from high school attendance.
Seth Tobey decided to take advantage of BYU?s early admit program.
?It was a good head start and tons of friends here have changed my life,? said Seth Tobey. At 19, he became BYU?s youngest graduate for April 2003 with a degree in accounting.
Tobey came to BYU when he was 17, after beginning concurrent enrollment two years earlier at a community college in Ohio.
?It was a change that I needed to make to fit my personality,? he said.
BYU?s concurrent enrollment program allows students to attend college classes while going to high school. They must complete part of the admissions application, have at least a 3.7 high school GPA, complete their junior year and submit a voucher each semester, signed by the applicant, parent and high school counselor. A student in concurrent enrollment cannot take more than 11.5 credit hours.
The admissions committee evaluates other early college students, such as home-schooled students, on a case-by-case basis, said Kirk Strong, director of high school and college relations.
?If they?ve graduated, we usually consider them, even though they are younger,? Strong said.
Although these programs are available, Strong said BYU encourages students to get the experience they can from their high school and peer environment.
Joyce Harrison, a guidance counselor at Mountain View High School, said she asks questions to parents and students when they consider abandoning high school: will they function adequately in a college environment; are there other opportunities at the high school to meet their academic needs, such as AP classes; and do they have a high maturity level.
?You kind of talk reality to the parents, ?do you want your 13-year-old, 14-, 15-, 16-year-old, mingling with 18-, 19-, 21-plus-year-olds??? she said.
Some early college students agree their decision to opt out of high school made them miss out on experiences.
?I missed out on getting any leading positions in choir or band,? said Alan Walton, who started college at 16. ?They give those positions to seniors, thinking the juniors will have a chance next year.?
Walton said his social relationships were affected by his decision to go to college early.
?During the past three years, I have been trapped between two different worlds,? Walton said. ?I?m not as far as people in my grade, but ahead in education as the peers my age.?
For those students who choose to abandon high school early, the government provides scholarship incentives.
The New Century Scholarship Program, created by the Utah State Legislature, provides scholarship funding to students who get their associate?s degree before they graduate from high school.
The Centennial Scholarship is a similar state legislature-funded scholarship for high school students who graduate early. It awards up to $1,000.
Qualifying early college students can also apply for regular BYU scholarships.
Hobbs received the Brigham Young Scholarship when he came as an early admit student. He said he uses this formal education opportunity to serve others.
?People who are logical and people who are smart should be the first to realize that it is not about them,? Hobbs said.
He said although he has missed out on high school activities and friendships, he has learned to adapt.
?In the past few months, I?ve resolved that even though I am young, I don?t have to be,? Hobbs said. ?I don?t have to shrink and make myself seem smaller than everyone else.?