Most presidents of the United States received a college education, even most of the earliest. Of the first seven presidents, five were college graduates. College degrees have set the presidents apart from the general population, and presidents have held degrees even though it was quite rare and unnecessary for practicing most occupations, including law. Of the 45 individuals to have been the president, 25 of them graduated from a private undergraduate college, nine graduated from a public undergraduate college, and 12 held no degree. Every president since 1953 has had a bachelor's degree, reflecting the increasing importance of higher education in the United States.
George Washington (The death of Washington's father ended his formal schooling. The College of William & Mary issued surveying licenses in Virginia, and Washington received his license from the College in 1749 — surveyors did not attend classes at the school. Washington believed strongly in formal education, and his will left money and/or stocks to support three educational institutions, including George Washington University and Washington and Lee University)[1]
^Known during McKinley's attendance as Mount Union College.
^Known during Johnson's attendance as Southwest Texas State Teachers College.
^Known as the University of North Carolina until 1963. Since 1972, the "University of North Carolina" name has applied to the state's public university system.
Some presidents attended more than one institution. George Washington never attended college, though The College of William & Mary did issue him a surveyor's certificate.[5] One president attended a foreign college at the undergraduate level: John Quincy Adams at Leiden University (John F. Kennedy intended to study at the London School of Economics, but failed to attend as he fell ill before classes began.) Bill Clinton won a Rhodes Scholarship, enrolling at the University of Oxford in Fall 1968, where he read for a B.Phil in politics. He left Oxford without earning a degree in order to enroll at Yale Law School.
A total of 20 presidents attended some form of graduate school (including professional schools). Among them, eleven presidents received a graduate degree during their lifetimes; two more received graduate degrees posthumously.
Note: Hayes, Taft, Nixon and Ford were awarded LL.B. degrees.[8][9][10][11] When most U.S. law schools began to award the J.D. as the professional degree in law during the 1960s, previous graduates had the choice of converting their LL.B. degrees to a J.D.[12][13] Duke University Law School made the change in 1968,[14] and Yale Law School in 1971.[15]
^Freehling, William (October 4, 2016). "William Henry Harrison: Impact and Legacy". Charlottesville, Virginia: Miller Center of Public Affairs, University of Virginia.
^Owens, Robert M. (2007). Mr. Jefferson's Hammer: William Henry Harrison and the Origins of American Indian Policy. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN978-0-8061-3842-8.
^Johnston, J. Stoddard (1913). "Sketch of Theodore O'Hara". The Register of the Kentucky Historical Society. Frankfort, KY: State Journal Company. p. 67.
^Joseph Nathan Kane, Facts About the Presidents (New York: Simon & Schuster [Pocket Books], 1968 [5th printing]), 194.
^Leitch, Alexander (1978). "Biography, Grover Cleveland". A Princeton Companion. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. Retrieved July 29, 2018.
^Reynolds, G.T. (1902). "Madison College". In Haskins, Charles Homer; Hull, William Isaac (eds.). A History of Higher Education in Pennsylvania. Government Printing Office. pp. 155–7. Madison College Pennsylvania.
^University of Nashville Board of Trustees (1892). The University of Nashville, 1785 to 1892. Nashville, TN: Marshall & Bruce. p. 5. Note: In 1791, Jackson was appointed to the board of trustees of Davidson Academy. Jackson continued on the board when the school was reorganized as Cumberland College in 1806. In 1826, Cumberland College was reincorporated as the University of Nashville, and Jackson remained a member of the board of trustees until his death.
