American Teen Passes the Bar Exam in Great Britain
Gabrielle Turnquest, an 18-year-old teenager from Florida, recently made history when she became the youngest person ever to pass the bar exam in the United Kingdom. According to The Huffington Post, the average age that lawyers typically pass the exam, after completing The University of Law’s Bar Professional Training Course, is 27 years old. Upon learning that she had actually made history, Turnquest responded, “I am honored to be the youngest person to pass the bar exams, but really, I was not aware at the time what the average age was. I didn’t fully realize the impact of it.”
Although she is humble, her family has plenty to be proud of. Gabrielle’s sister, Kandi, passed the British bar at the age of 22 and Gabrielle herself graduated from Liberty University at the young age of 16, also setting a record there for the youngest graduate.
A Bright Future
Although she holds the honor of being the youngest barrister in the 600 years that the profession has existed, Turnquest does not plan to remain in the United Kingdom. The Telegraph reports that she has the option of being called to the bar of England or the bar of Wales, but Gabrielle has an aspiration to work in the Bahamas someday. After passing the UK bar exam, she is now qualified to take the Bahamas bar exam — the country her parents are from.
Hailing from Windermere, Florida, Gabrielle received a degree in psychology from Liberty University and ultimately wants to become a fashion law specialist. The Huffington Post states that the young woman, still in braces, plans on continuing her education in the United States at the Fashion Institute of Technology. In a press release, Turnquest stated, “Studying at the University of Law has broadened my horizons and introduced me to a global legal system that will help me in my future career in the international fashion industry.”
It is a future that certainly looks bright.
Another Notable Teen
Gabrielle Turnquest is not the only teenager making recent headlines with her academic accomplishments. The Great Lakes newspaper, The Daily Herald, shared a story of 14-year-old Thessalonika Arzu-Embry who is nearly ready to graduate with a bachelor’s in psychology from Chicago State University.
She began her college career a mere three years ago at College of Lake Country and credits her mother with her success. Arzu-Embry’s mother, a Navy veteran, home schooled Thessalonika and her brother, and currently drives her daughter an hour and a half each way to college.
Thessalonika showed great aptitude early on, receiving her equivalent high school diploma when she was 11 and then promptly passing the College of Lake Country entrance exam. She is slated to graduate from Chicago State at the end of August and hopes to attend a graduate clinical psychology program at either Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science or Stanford. After she completes her graduate career, she wants to work side by side with the people she cherishes the most — her brother and mother — and hopes to open her own clinic.
Thessalonika’s mother, Wonder Embry, is proud of her daughter’s accomplishments but considers her own part in her daughter’s success as merely doing her job as a parent, saying, “The parents are the most influential force in their own children's lives, and they have the power to influence them to do good and to go forward.”
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