Manaaim Somani: Western’s Young Sheldon
Step aside, Young Sheldon, Doogie Howser and Lisa Simpson — Western has its own young genius on campus.
Manaaim Somani, a first-year politics, philosophy and economics student, is up to par with these fictional geniuses. Not only is he Western University’s youngest student, starting his undergraduate studies at just 16 years old, but he’s making his mark well beyond the classroom.
While a typical 16-year-old’s life might revolve around high school, extracurriculars and possibly a part-time job, Manaaim’s journey has taken an untraditional path.
“I’ve found that a lot of times when people have hard lines where they’re like, this is the age range that we’re targeting for this program … they’re not as strict as you think,” he says.
Manaaim is currently the director of operations for Young Politicians of Canada, a non-partisan organization empowering young people in democracy and politics. He is also an analyst for the student-run Emerald Advisors Club and the director of outreach for the Western University Environmental Business Club.
Born in Pakistan, Manaaim spent his early childhood in Kyrgyzstan, where he began his education at an accelerated American school. But when his family moved to Gatineau, Quebec, in 2017, he faced challenges adapting to the province’s French-only education system.
“We had to do full French, and with me moving [from the accelerated program], it would be a very difficult challenge to skip a grade,” he says. “A full French system is completely different.”
In Quebec, the Charter of the French Language mandates that children attend French-language schools unless they meet specific criteria for English-language education, like having at least one parent who received the majority of their own schooling in English in Canada.
Manaaim Somani, Nov. 5, 2024.
Coming from the accelerated program, Manaaim expected to skip grades, a task made even more challenging by the language barrier. With limited choices, Manaaim began his schooling in the neighbouring city of Ottawa — an hour-and-a-half commute away.
“It was annoying because we didn’t have a driver’s license at the time,” he says. “My mom had to come with me because I was pretty young. You can’t really take the bus alone at nine.”
While his peers entered Grade 4, Manaaim was placed in Grade 5 and, after further testing, accelerated to Grade 6. Skipping two grades, Manaaim finished middle school right as COVID-19 restrictions hit.
But the isolation of lockdown wasn’t the only change he saw that year — his father’s work had moved them to Prince George, British Columbia.
Manaaim credits his father, now vice president of finance and administration at the University of Northern British Columbia, as his “biggest career inspiration.” His father spent most of his career in academia, working at many different schools and finding success.
“That’s why I see him as an inspiration. Because it tells me that making excuses isn’t going to get you very far,” says Manaaim.
Like his peers, Manaaim began looking at universities in Grade 11. Unlike his peers, he was 14 years old. Manaaim mainly applied to Canadian schools with prominent business programs, like Queen’s Smith School of Business and Western’s Ivey Business School.
Manaaim said his Ivey Advanced Entry Opportunity status made Western his top choice.
While initially enrolled in the bachelor in management and organizational studies program, Manaaim’s passion for politics prompted him to switch to PPE.
“I’ve been working with the Young Politicians of Canada for about a year now. I love the work that they do,” he says when explaining what prompted him to switch programs. “So through that, I was like, I want politics. I want economics and philosophy [and it] was there.”
Much like his journey here, Manaaim’s first year has been fast-paced and multiple leadership roles have shaped his campus experience. Through it all, he keeps his father’s advice close.
“My dad always says, when you ask a kid what they want to be when they grow up, you should also be asking a kid what problem they want to solve when they grow up,” says Manaaim. “Especially now, when we’re in a whole era of change, everything needs to change. There’s so much that has to be done.”