• Video
  • Shop
  • Culture
  • Family
  • Wellness
  • Food
  • Living
  • Style
  • Travel
  • News
  • Book Club
  • GMA3: WYNTK
  • Newsletter
  • Privacy Policy
  • Your US State Privacy Rights
  • Children's Online Privacy Policy
  • Interest-Based Ads
  • Terms of Use
  • Do Not Sell My Info
  • Contact Us
  • © 2025 ABC News
  • Living
  • Good News

17-year-old set to graduate with 3 college degrees along with HS diploma

0:52
Arizona teen is graduating high school with three college degrees
Courtesy of Tristan Andrade
ByYi-Jin Yu
June 10, 2023, 9:52 AM

An Arizona teen is getting ready to graduate this spring with not only his high school diploma but also three college degrees.

Tristan Andrade started taking online college courses when he was in the sixth grade. By eight grade, he joined the concurrent enrollment program offered by Estrella Mountain Community College, which let him take college classes both online and in person while he finished his home-school high school curriculum.

"It would save me years of time and money and really helped me pursue my interests faster," the 17-year-old told "Good Morning America."

Tristan Andrade is set to graduate on May 12 with a high school diploma and three associate's degrees.
Courtesy of Tristan Andrade

Editor’s Picks

High school senior graduates early at mom's hospital bedside

  • Apr 10, 2023

High school senior's reaction to college acceptance goes viral: 'An amazing feeling'

  • Feb 23, 2023

9-year-old graduates from high school, now attending college

  • Feb 06, 2023

Rey Rivera, the president of Estrella Mountain Community College, told "GMA" although there are approximately 1,500 students who participate in the community college's early college programs, including concurrent enrollment, Tristan's story is a "very unique" one.

"We're extremely proud of Tristan," Rivera said.

"I've heard of cases where students have certainly completed an associate's degree while in high school. It's just the number -- having three associate's -- that's not really common," he added.

Related Articles

MORE: High school senior accepted into 180 colleges, awarded $9 million in scholarships

Tristan will graduate next Friday with associate's degrees in artificial intelligence, computer science and mathematics.

"AI is definitely my favorite because it's my passion and it's the field that I hope to go into," he said.

Tristan has been homeschooled and enrolled in Estrella Mountain Community College's concurrent enrollment program to take college-level courses.
Courtesy of Tristan Andrade

Tristan has a lot to celebrate already but said he has much more he wants to accomplish.

"It feels amazing. I've been working up to this moment my whole life and it just means a lot to me because it marks the beginning of a new chapter of my journey," the teen said.

Related Articles

MORE: Teen accepted to more than 50 colleges, receives over $1.3 million in scholarships

This fall, Tristan is headed to Arizona State University, where he hopes to major in artificial intelligence and computer science and get his bachelor's and master's degrees in an accelerated 4 + 1 program.

Tristan will receive associate's degrees in artificial intelligence, computer science and mathematics.
Courtesy of Tristan Andrade

For other young students looking to follow in his footsteps, Tristan said he "strongly" recommends taking high school and college courses concurrently to get a head start and save on time and money.

"The biggest piece of advice I can give to others doing this is to really make as many connections as possible and to really learn from others as much as you can," Tristan said. "I learned so much valuable experience from my classmates, years of real world experience that I just don't have."

Editor's note: This was originally published on May 5, 2023.

Related Topics

  • Good News
  • Education

Editor’s Picks

High school senior graduates early at mom's hospital bedside

  • Apr 10, 2023

High school senior's reaction to college acceptance goes viral: 'An amazing feeling'

  • Feb 23, 2023

9-year-old graduates from high school, now attending college

  • Feb 06, 2023

Up Next in Living—

Summer solstice 2025: What to know as 1st day of summer arrives

June 20, 2025

High school graduate paints portraits of classmates as graduation gift

June 17, 2025

June's full strawberry moon: See photos and what it means for your zodiac

June 11, 2025

High school athlete somersaults to track and field championship win

June 10, 2025

Shop GMA Favorites

ABC will receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

Sponsored Content by Taboola

The latest lifestyle and entertainment news and inspiration for how to live your best life - all from Good Morning America.
  • Contests
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Do Not Sell My Info
  • Children’s Online Privacy Policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Your US State Privacy Rights
  • Interest-Based Ads
  • About Nielsen Measurement
  • Press
  • Feedback
  • Shop FAQs
  • ABC News
  • ABC
  • All Videos
  • All Topics
  • Sitemap

© 2025 ABC News
  • Privacy Policy— 
  • Your US State Privacy Rights— 
  • Children's Online Privacy Policy— 
  • Interest-Based Ads— 
  • Terms of Use— 
  • Do Not Sell My Info— 
  • Contact Us— 

© 2025 ABC News