Aug 5, 2026
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Add us on GoogleStudents who walked into Prof. Nathan Thomas’ programming class, COP 2270: C for Engineers, in 2023 likely did a double-take. The person leading the class was as young as them, if not younger. Was it a joke? Perhaps some sort of mistake?
It wasn’t. Thomas has just been awarded a Guinness World Record for being the youngest professor ever, beating a record that was more than 306 years old.
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Thomas is 21 today, but he was 18 years and 346 days old when he first accepted the engineering teaching position at Miami Dade College. It was a school he was familiar with.
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At the age of 10, Thomas dual-enrolled at Miami Dade, later transferring to Florida International University at 14. Over the next four years, he earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering, chalking up honors in each degree.
And in his spare time
Thomas is teaching online these days. That’s because he’s chasing yet another degree. In 2028, he’s expected to graduate with a law degree. He plans to use that, along with his other degrees, to find work in the intellectual property law field, focusing on STEM.
“Engineering taught me how to break down complex problems in a structured way, and that’s carried over into how I approach law school now,” Thomas told Guinness World Records.
Thomas’ parents are engineers and growing up in that environment, he said, helped him learn to think in a structured manner. And his mother’s assistance cemented it.
“[My mom] had a way of making things feel simple even when they weren’t, and I think some of that stuck with me more than I realized at the time,” he said.
While he hasn’t lost the love for learning, he says there’s another sort of reward in encouraging that passion in others.
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“The part about teaching that I like most is watching something click for a student,” he said. “You can kind of see it happen in real time, when a concept that felt impossible a few minutes ago suddenly makes sense.”
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Not just school
There is life beyond the classroom for Thomas. He enjoys music, playing classical piano and jamming out to Drake or EDM when he’s in the mood to chill. He’s a fan of the Boston Celtics and New England Patriots and plays tennis, golf and basketball.
As for the age gap when he’s at the front of the classroom? Thomas says it’s really not as big a deal as you might expect.
“Once you’re in that setting, everyone’s there for the same reason, which is to learn,” he said. “Age doesn’t really factor into that. I just focus on trying to do my job well and helping students in whatever way I can. If someone’s willing to put in the effort, that’s really all that matters to me.”
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Chris Morris is a veteran journalist with more than 35 years of experience at many of the internet's biggest news outlets. In addition to his activities as a writer, reporter and editor, Chris is also a frequent panel moderator and speaker at major conferences, including CES and South by Southwest.
