Peter Park passed the California bar exam at the age of 17, breaking a record previously set by an 18-year-old.

He started high school at the age of 13 in 2019 and simultaneously enrolled in a four-year juris doctor programme at Northwestern California University School of Law under a state bar rule that allows students to apply to law school through the completion of certain exams.

He graduated from high school in 2021 by taking a proficiency exam and subsequently focused on law school, graduating this year.

He sat the bar exam in July and received his results in early November – a few weeks before turning 18.

Mr Park said: “It was not easy, but it was worth it. It required discipline and strategy to pass the bar, and I made it in the end. I am extremely blessed to have discovered this path, and my hope is that more people will realise that alternative paths exist to becoming an attorney.

“I aspire to become a prosecutor because I am driven by a moral obligation to uphold liberty, equality, and justice in society. I admire how prosecutors keep our community safe and bring closure to victims.”