14|Year|Old HPU Senior Is Spending His Summer Doing Biology Research | Watch HPU

Chapters & Transcript

0:00

Move over Sheldon Cooper, we've got our own young genius in Guilford County. A bright future ahead. WMFY News 2's Manning Franks sat down with the very young rising senior at High Point University about his passion for science.

So, for those of you who are unaware, High Point University tells its students in their slogan be extraordinary. Well, I got to tell you there is something truly extraordinary about the student that I had the pleasure to talk to, because saying to him I wasn't doing that at your age would be an understatement. For many students, So, do we fill it up to like there?

0:38

summer is usually time to pour yourself into some rest and relaxation. Why silver? Oh, wait, because it because it bonds with protein. But, for Kal Burgess-Hicks, I'm working with Dr. Alexander Moser on uh circadian biology and determining the regulatory proteins that uh govern the oscillating uh 24-hour mechanism called the core clock. He's pouring himself into his work with long hours of scientific research. Ah, okay. Only he'll need someone to drive him to the lab.

And how old are you? I'm 14 years old and I am a biology major and I am a senior here at High Point University.

1:18

Ever since he was a kid, Kal has always been on the cutting edge. Uh I started uh reading when I was around one year old, maybe a little less than that. One may argue he has his education down to a science. My uh public school journey was roughly standard until uh late 2019 where I decided to switch from public school to home school. That way I got to learn at my own pace and at my own rate. And, you know, I started learning, getting into algebra, uh physics, chemistry, biology, uh just the basics. Only a few years later Kal found himself at GTCC before transferring to High Point University in 2023.

You have to be careful about proposing a project idea in front of him because he's going to latch onto it.

2:03

He's going to want to run and start this new project. He's always interested in starting new things. Kal's professor, Dr. Moser, continues to be impressed not only by the student's brilliance but by his determination. Kal came in wanting to know more about computational biology and I was very rudimentary in it, especially when it came to Python. He has taken off with looking at how the coding and everything works. However, Kal doesn't attribute any of his work towards sheer brilliance. And you don't necessarily even need to be gifted to be good at academics, you just need a good work ethic.

No matter where life takes him next. I'm hoping to apply for a MD-PhD program. He will always be ready to reinvent the wheel.

But, I also like to see challenges in every corner of my life. In High Point? Yes, it's a toxic trait, but still. I'm Manning Franks, WMFY News 2.

Kal Burgess-Hicks, a 14-year-old senior biology major at High Point University, is spending his summer conducting circadian biology research with HPU professor Dr. Alexander Moser. Homeschooled since 2019 and reading fluently by age one, Kal transferred to HPU in 2023 after starting at GTCC and is now picking up computational biology and Python. He credits work ethic over innate talent and hopes to eventually pursue an MD-PhD program on his path to becoming a neurosurgeon.

14-Year-Old HPU Senior Is Spending His Summer Doing Biology Research

14-Year-Old HPU Senior Is Spending His Summer Doing Biology Research

Introduction

What is this 14-year-old HPU senior researching?

How did homeschooling help this prodigy learn faster?

Do you need to be gifted to excel academically?