Asian student with high-IQ achieves four A*s

Mahnoor Cheema, 17, has an IQ higher than Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking

• Pramod Thomas
• 14 May, 2024

By: Pramod Thomas

A British Pakistani girl has achieved four A*s in her ambitious effort to complete 28 A-levels, adding to her impressive record of 36 general certificate of secondary education (GCSEs).

Mahnoor Cheema, 17, who has an IQ higher than Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking, began her A-level journey in September after sitting 34 GCSEs and enrolled in 28 courses, reported MailOnline.

By November, she had completed four A-levels in environmental management, marine science, English Language, and thinking skills, earning top marks in all.

Her recent results, received in January, reflects her dedication and intellectual prowess, the report added.

Next month, Mahnoor will sit the final exams for eight more subjects, including Maths, further Maths, Chemistry, Biology, and Film Studies.

According to the teenager, she would be ‘bored and understimulated’ if she only did the standard three A-levels.

“Absorbing content and analysing and evaluating things comes naturally to me. I’m busy but I don’t take on so much that it’ll cause me stress or pressure – I try to do everything within my capabilities,” the grammar school pupil, from Slough, Berkshire, was quoted as saying.

“I have loads of interests, that’s why I wanted to do so many subjects – it doesn’t take that much time or effort. I think if you have the capability to do more, it should be explored – I would be bored doing only three subjects over two years.”

She added, “Burnout is a big thing for some people but I’m just motivated and driven and it doesn’t affect me.”

Born in the UK, Mahnoor moved to Lahore, Pakistan, with her parents in 2010, returning to the UK in 2016. Her mother, Tayyaba Cheema, noticed her daughter’s exceptional abilities from a young age.

By six, Mahnoor had read all the Harry Potter books, and by eleven, she had memorised the Oxford English Dictionary.

Her remarkable memory and intellectual abilities have allowed her to excel academically without the need for extensive note-taking. Alongside her favourite subjects like Maths and sciences, she also enjoys studying film studies and French.

As an aspiring medicine student, Mahnoor dreams of giving a TED talk one day. She dispels the notion that she is merely an exam robot, stressing that many of her subjects require critical thinking and creative skills. For instance, her film studies course involves creating, editing, and writing scripts for films.

Her unconventional sleep schedule includes going to bed for three hours after school, waking up at 7pm, and going back to sleep at 2am.

Her mother helps manage her study timetable to ensure she has time for friends, travel, and hobbies. Despite her demanding academic pursuits, her parents, including her father Usman Cheema, a barrister, impose no pressure on her to exceed her personal goals. Laila, 14, Jibran, ten, are her siblings.

Currently, Mahnoor continues to study a wide array of subjects, including psychology, sociology, law, business, accounting, economics, Latin, German, computer science, film studies, politics, classical civilisation, geography, media studies, physics, chemistry, biology, English literature, French, statistics, and accounting.

Mahnoor, a member of Mensa, the largest and oldest high-IQ society in the world, wants to study at Oxford University.