Imagine getting accepted in 13 world class schools (Video)

While hundreds of thousands of youths yearly struggle to get admissions into Nigeria’s universities, writing the almighty JAMB over and over again, their compatriot, living in New York was accepted into eight of the best Ivy League schools in the world.

This is not to mention five other colleges (state universities) that also accepted him. And he has until May 1 to decide which one of them he will accept.

On March 31, when the official college decisions were posted online, Harold Ekeh, a 17-year-old Nigerian high school senior on Long Island was shocked to discover he was accepted to all eight Ivies, as well as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Johns Hopkins, Vanderbilt, New York University and SUNY Stony Brook.

His mother was with him when the great news came in.

“Everyone was so excited and surprised,” he said. “The hard work paid off.”

Ekeh’s impressive high school resume spans from conducting scientific research, to starting a college prep mentoring program, to serving as editor-in-chief of the newspaper and vice president of Model United Nations.

But Ekeh’s true passion is medicine. He says he plans to attend medical school and specialize in neurosurgery.

“I knew I wanted to go to a really good school that would allow me to get into a great medical school,” he said.

Ekeh said he didn’t have a certain college in mind until he visited Yale with his high school’s Model United Nations team.

“I got to see how passionate people are at Yale,” he said. “That skewed me to start leaning towards Yale in my junior year.”

Wherever he ends up, Ekeh says he’s looking forward to college courses that “spark my intellectual curiosity.”

“And I want to learn things outside the classroom,” he said. “I’m looking forward to hands-on internships and travel abroad opportunities.”

“And definitely the student life,” he added. “The new friends that I’ll meet. I’m sure I’ll meet long-lasting friends there.”

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