UTech welcomes youngest-ever student
14-year-old Jada Wright warmly embraced by university’s top brass
UNIVERSITY OF Technology, Jamaica (UTech) President Dr Kevin Brown and some members of the leadership team, on January 16, warmly welcomed Jada Wright, the youngest student to ever successfully matriculate to read for a degree at the institution.
The young scholar began studies in the BSc in Computer Science in the School of Computing and Information Technology, Faculty of Engineering and Computing at the start of the semester on Monday, January 15. Brown specially invited Jada and her parents for an introductory meeting and to provide an opportunity to exchange thoughts and expectations as she settles into full-time tertiary studies at UTech.
In warmly welcoming Jada, who was accompanied by her mother, Judian Wright, who is also an alumna of UTech, Dr Brown noted that several members of the leadership and management team across the university, including himself, are past students, sharing that “As an institution, even within our own ranks we have produced some quality people who are leading the ship.”
The president asserted that “this is the expectation that we have of all our graduates; that we would have done a good enough job to allow them to operate at high performance”. Adding that “this is the same expectation for Jada”, Dr Brown noted that “she is entering an institution with a strong history of delivering computer science”, and pointed out that “we have modernised our curriculum, introduced AI and added a whole raft of modern technology courses”.
The president assured Jada of full support across the board at the university as she, in turn, meets all the requirements of her academic studies. He encouraged her to immerse herself in opportunities for a full university student experience, including participation in clubs and societies, student leadership, sports, and the opportunities to participate in international competitions.
During the discussions, the confident and articulate Jada shared that, in addition to having a strong affinity to UTech, Jamaica, of which both her parents are graduates, it was her discovery of the “exciting” offerings of the computer science programme, that aligned with her dreams and aspirations of becoming a software engineer, that cemented her decision to apply to the university.
“THE BEST CHOICE FOR ME”
Jada explained that she gleaned details of the UTech, Jamaica computer science programme through her thorough online research prior to applying to the university. “During the summer, I spent an entire day researching about the programme. I downloaded all the course outlines. I went through the PowerPoints so I could get an idea of what kind of content every class would cover, and then I compared that to other schools and I realised that you focus more on practical skills ,I would say, and that’s pretty much when I decided that I think this would be the best choice for me. So it took a lot of research, and I watched all of the orientation videos online as well,” Jada noted.
She added, “So I was j ust researching and, based on how you were explaining the programme, especially in one particular orientation video. In that video, they were explaining all the different projects that you guys have done and I was looking on how you explain all the projects and all of the enthusiasm, and I really just recognised that I want to do something like this.”
Jada’s mother shared that this type of laser focus on goal-setting and an independent drive to seek out new knowledge has always characterised her daughter’s outlook.
The young UTech, Jamaica student, who turned 14 i n November 2023, has already amassed an impressive portfolio of achievements which belie her age. Jada conquered her Primary Exit Profile exams which earned her a place at Hampton High School in her home parish of St Elizabeth while studying to sit two Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) subjects, both of which she received with grade ones. In high school, Jada achieved an additional seven grade ones in CSEC and found the time to brainstorm and establish a homeschool online-based programme at her parents’ institution, the Caribbean Online Academy. The new venture, Caribbean Online Academy, is currently incubated at UTech, Jamaica’s Technology Innovation Centre.
Despite her age, the budding computer software engineer, who also wants to be an entrepreneur, is not daunted by the uncharted tertiary journey ahead. She is filled with excitement and is ready to immerse herself in the anticipated hands-on total university experience in charting the future to achieving her dreams.