{"id":440,"date":"2026-05-21T15:34:21","date_gmt":"2026-05-21T15:34:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/orangecountymoversreport.com\/?p=440"},"modified":"2026-05-21T15:34:21","modified_gmt":"2026-05-21T15:34:21","slug":"12-year-old-south-bay-student-to-graduate-evergreen-valley-college-as-valedictorian","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/orangecountymoversreport.com\/?p=440","title":{"rendered":"12-year-old South Bay student to graduate Evergreen Valley College as valedictorian"},"content":{"rendered":"
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SAN JOSE, Calif. — <\/span>A 12-year-old student will graduate Friday from Evergreen Valley College with an associate degree in mathematics, a perfect 4.0 GPA and valedictorian honors. Phung-Hieu Diep, who goes by Hieu and whose initials spell “P-H-D,” is completing college years ahead of schedule.<\/p>\n

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When asked about his approach to learning, he said, “When I don’t understand something, I work really hard on it, ask questions and try to learn from mistakes.”<\/p>\n

His academic journey began in third grade, when he realized he was ready for more advanced coursework.<\/p>\n

“I realized in, like, third grade, that I was already able to do pre-algebra, instead of just multiplication tables. So that’s really where my journey started,” he said.<\/p>\n

He soon asked his father for greater challenges.<\/p>\n

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“I asked my dad if I could enroll in harder classes,” Diep said.<\/p>\n

What started as a single pre-calculus class at Berkeley Community College quickly accelerated.<\/p>\n

By age 10, Diep left middle school to attend college full-time. He’s had to attend six different community colleges to put together a full-time course load due to his age.<\/p>\n

Now graduating, he already has his next step plan.<\/p>\n

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“My current future goals are getting another degree,” he said.<\/p>\n

He plans to continue his education, with hopes of eventually attending UC Berkeley and then medical school.<\/p>\n

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When asked which medical school: “I don’t really know much about schools right now.”<\/p>\n

But Diep does know he wants to become an infectious disease physician.<\/p>\n

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“I chose that job to pursue because of my experience in outbreaks in catfish aquaculture from my research presentation,” he said.<\/p>\n

His research focuses on harmful bacteria impacting catfish farms in Vietnam, work inspired by a recent visit to his parents’ home country. Diep overheard local farmers talking about a problem and wanted to help solve it. That research work is now set to be published in a scientific journal, and he will present it in Washington, D.C. next month.<\/p>\n

Despite his academic achievements, Diep said he is still a typical 12-year-old in many ways.<\/p>\n

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“I usually call my friends on, like, Discord, Google Chat. Play ‘Minecraft’ or ‘Roblox,'” he said.<\/p>\n

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He also maintains friendships and activities outside the classroom.<\/p>\n

“So, I still hang out with some of my friends from elementary school. Like playing online video games and going to Taekwondo classes three times a week,” he said.<\/p>\n

At home, he does not always win arguments with his parents.<\/p>\n

“Not always,” he said when asked if he is always right.<\/p>\n

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Diep said adjusting with his college-aged peers has sometimes been challenging, but he’s made a lot of friends while on campus.<\/p>\n

“You know, it’s really hard, because sometimes you don’t know enough culture to understand what they’re saying,” he said.<\/p>\n

Even with his accomplishments, he continues to set personal goals: “to get better at Vietnamese and get a black belt in Taekwondo.”<\/p>\n

Beyond academics, Diep said one of the most important lessons he has learned was from Dr. Jose Cabrera at San Jose City College — a concept with what he calls “productive struggling.”<\/p>\n

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“The idea of productive struggling, that learning is supposed to be easy all the time. So I would tell, like other people, that it’s okay to struggle, because that’s just part of learning. But it’s also important to know when to ask for help,” he said.<\/p>\n

As he prepares to graduate at just 12 years old, Diep said his experience has been rewarding.<\/p>\n

“I tell people that, like, it’s been an amazing experience. College. Let me dive into math and other subjects,” he said.<\/p>\n

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For Diep, the journey is far from over, and he said he plans to keep learning.<\/p>\n

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Phung-Hieu Diep, 12, will graduate from Evergreen Valley College with an associate degree in mathematics, a perfect 4.0 GPA and valedictorian honors.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":439,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[84],"tags":[43,216],"class_list":["post-440","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-california","tag-society","tag-society-san-jose-children-college-student-students-education-stroke-of-genius-school-feel-good"],"yoast_head":"\n12-year-old South Bay student to graduate Evergreen Valley College as valedictorian - Orange County Movers Report<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/orangecountymoversreport.com\/?p=440\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"12-year-old South Bay student to graduate Evergreen Valley College as valedictorian - 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