Real Life Young Sheldon: Boy With IQ 168 Gets NYU Masters At 13 After Overcoming Cancer, Tourette Syndrome

13-year-old Joe Petraro-Hyppolite caught everyone’s attention with his exceptional academic intelligence. Petraro-Hyppolite is from Long Island, New York, and has been accepted into a master’s program at New York University, where he plans to study sports medicine next year as possibly the school’s youngest graduate student, The New York Post reported. He also overcame cancer and Tourette syndrome, according to his school officials and family.

Meet Joe Petraro-Hyppolito with 168 IQ at 13

Petraro-Hyppolito’s remarkable academic journey began after he reportedly scored a 1,590 out of 1,600 on the SAT at the age of 10. “My IQ is 168,” Joe Petraro-Hyppolite told CBS. “Whenever I tell people, it’s like, ‘Oh, young Sheldon, Doogie Howser.’

The young prodigy is currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree and is expected to graduate in May 2027. He shared that his academic interests span several fields, including sports management, kinesiology and biology.

He is currently at Louisiana State University, where he will likely graduate

in May before his master. “I’m also excited because new doors are opening,” Joe Petraro-Hyppolite said before joining NYU.

Beats cancer, Tourette syndrome

Petraro-Hyppolite is a cancer survivor, his mother shares. In September 2021, he was reportedly diagnosed with leukemia. He also struggled with undiagnosed Tourette’s, a nervous system disorder that landed him in special education classes.

As he talked about everything he had to overcome in his life, his mother Anne Petraro-Hyppolite shared that she was even more proud of her son. “It’s just surreal. For him to graduate from high school so young, it was surreal, but this is … everything he’s doing is surreal,” she said. “He just loves to learn. He’s like a sponge,” she told CBS, as quoted by The New York Post.

He reacts

Although gifted, the 13-year-old shared that intelligence does not guarantee an easy academic life. He said he had to learn it a few times like everyone else before he could remember it. “It’s not like I was born out of the womb knowing everything I know. I have to learn it once or twice. Then I’ll know,” he added.

Other interests

Aside from academics, Joe Petraro-Hyppolite is said to be active in community activities. According to multiple reports, he has voluntarily checked himself into a nursing home.

Petraro-Hyppolite is said to want to become a paleontologist, while his interests continue to include science, health and athletics.

However, it remains unconfirmed whether Joe Petraro-Hyppolite is the youngest student ever accepted into NYU’s master’s program. In response to the claims, a school representative told The Post Friday that he was looking into whether Petraro-Hyppolite would officially be the youngest student at the university.

In 2017, Chiang Ching-liang of Taiwan became, at age 13, the youngest student ever to be accepted into an undergraduate program at NYU, the Taipei Times reported.