Guinness World Records has recognised Nathan Thomas as the youngest male professor after he began teaching at age 18.
The Florida academic was 18 years and 346 days old when he joined Miami Dade College in August 2023.
His appointment ended a record held by Scottish mathematician Colin Maclaurin for 306 years. Maclaurin became a professor at age 19 in 1717.
Thomas also surpassed Alia Sabur’s age benchmark by 16 days. Sabur became the youngest female professor at 18 years and 362 days.
Thomas taught COP 2270: C for Engineers to students near his own age. The course covered computing, programming and engineering concepts.
“Age doesn’t really factor into that,” Thomas told Guinness World Records.
He said every student entered the classroom with the same goal of learning. His priority remained helping students understand difficult subjects.
Thomas enrolled at Miami Dade College at age 10. He later transferred to Florida International University at 14.
By age 18, he had earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering. He received honours for both qualifications.
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Thomas, now 21, currently teaches online courses. He is also studying law at the University of Miami.
He expects to complete his Juris Doctor degree in 2028. Thomas plans to enter the field of intellectual property law with a focus on STEM. The Guinness announcement formally documented his record on July 23.
