What he had to pass
The list of hurdles is the substance of this story. Zewail City did not waive its requirements for a twelve-year-old; it put him through them. Proficiency examinations in mathematics, physics, chemistry and biology. An English language test. A thinking-skills test in STEM. A character interview. And a test equivalent to the high school diploma, the qualification he would otherwise have been six years away from taking.
Professor Salah Obayya, director-general of research institutes at Zewail City, put the conclusion in one sentence: Yahya “has to be a genius to pass the admission exams successfully given his young age”. That is an assessment from the institution that set the papers, which is the strongest kind available.
What Zewail City is
Zewail City of Science and Technology is Egypt's research university founded in the name of Ahmed Zewail, the Egyptian chemist who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1999. It is a selective, English-medium institution built specifically to keep Egyptian scientific talent in Egypt.
Yahya's place is funded by the Innovators Support Fund of Egypt's Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, which is the machinery a state uses when it decides a particular student is a national asset. Professor Mahmoud Abdrabou, the university's acting executive president, committed publicly that the institution would support him every step of the way to overcome any challenges.
His father's account
His father, Abdel Nasser, described the work rather than the gift. “At the academic level, I worked hard to develop his intellectual abilities,” he said. He also addressed the objection that is always raised first about a child entering a university: that he will not cope socially. Yahya, his father said, has no problem at all with studying and interacting with students older than himself.
The family lives in Damietta Governorate, on the Mediterranean coast east of Alexandria, and Yahya attended an official language school there. His mother is not named in the article, and Yahya himself is not quoted.
What is documented, and what is not
Firm: his full name as University World News gives it, Yahya Abdel Nasser Muhammad Elnajaar; his age, twelve; his grade, six; his school type and governorate; admission to Zewail City of Science and Technology; the complete list of examinations he passed; the Innovators Support Fund scholarship; and the statements by his father and by two Zewail City academics.
Not documented: his exact date of birth, so the birth year here is derived from his age in December 2023; which faculty or programme he entered, which the article does not specify; whether he has since enrolled and how he has fared; and his mother and siblings. The transliteration of the family name varies across coverage, and the form used here follows University World News.
Why Egypt made this a state matter
Most countries handle a child capable of university work as an administrative problem for one institution. Egypt handled this one through a national fund. The Innovators Support Fund exists to identify and finance exactly this category of student, and its involvement converts an admissions decision into policy.
The reasoning is not hard to reconstruct. A research university named for a Nobel laureate, an entrance examination sequence designed to be hard, and a twelve-year-old who cleared it: the story does more for the standing of Egyptian science education than any recruitment campaign. What the record does not yet contain is the part that matters most, which is what happens to a child inside a university built for adults. Nothing in this material follows him past the admission.
| Person | Country | Milestone | Age / Stat |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yahya Elnajaar | Egypt | He was still in grade six when Egypt's science university admitted him | Age 12 |
| Viemens Bamfo | Ghana | Admitted to the University of Ghana at 12 (2019) | Age 12 |
| Dafne Almazán | Mexico | Completing a psychology degree at 13 | Age 13 |
| Shania Muhammad | United States | Langston University's youngest graduate, at 15 | Age 15 |
| Nirbhay Thacker | India | Completing a four-year engineering degree in one year (2018) | Age 16 |
What is documented — and what is not
✓ Documented
- Admitted to Zewail City of Science and Technology at twelve, while in grade six at an official language school in Damietta Governorate
- Passed proficiency exams in maths, physics, chemistry and biology, an English test, a STEM thinking-skills test, a character interview and a high-school-diploma equivalent
- Scholarship from the Innovators Support Fund of the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research
- Quotes from his father Abdel Nasser and from Professors Salah Obayya and Mahmoud Abdrabou of Zewail City
? Unverified, disputed or wrong
- His date of birth is not published; the birth year here is inferred
- The faculty or programme he entered is not specified in the article
- The transliteration of the family name varies across coverage
- Nothing documents his progress after December 2023
Questions people ask about Yahya Elnajaar
How old is Yahya Elnajaar?
He was twelve in December 2023. No source used here gives his date of birth, so the birth year on this page is approximate.
What did Yahya Elnajaar do?
He was admitted to Zewail City of Science and Technology in Egypt at twelve, while still in grade six, after passing the university's full set of entrance examinations.
Which exams did he pass?
Proficiency examinations in mathematics, physics, chemistry and biology, an English language test, a thinking-skills test in STEM, a character interview and a test equivalent to the high school diploma.
What is Zewail City?
An Egyptian research university named for Ahmed Zewail, the Egyptian chemist who won the 1999 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
Who pays for his studies?
The Innovators Support Fund of Egypt's Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research.
What did the university say?
Professor Salah Obayya said he has to be a genius to pass the admission exams at his age, and Professor Mahmoud Abdrabou committed that the university would support him every step of the way.
Where is Yahya Elnajaar now?
Not documented. Neither source used here follows him beyond December 2023, and the faculty he entered is not specified.
Quick quiz: how well do you know Yahya’s story?
Which school grade was Yahya Elnajaar in when he was admitted to university?
Which university admitted him?
Which fund pays for his studies?
Sources
- 12-year-old 'genius' admitted to Egyptian university — University World News, 2023-12-21
- 12-year-old 'genius' admitted to Egyptian university — Egypt Business
Checked by the Geniuses.club editorial team. Ages are given as of September 2026.
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