The College Dropouts
Hall of Fame

You don't have to go to college to be a success. Even if you go for awhile, you don't have to graduate to be a success. Here are just a few of the people who have become famous and/or successful without graduating from college and/or high school.

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William Safire, columnist for the New York Times. Dropped out of Syracuse University to take a job as a researcher for a column.

Edmond Safra, billionaire banker, philanthropist. High school dropout.

Carl Sandburg, poet, historian, Pulitzer Prize winner. Had little formal education but later attended Lombard College and graduated.

Colonel Harlan Sanders, multimillionaire founder of Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC). Elementary school dropout but later earned a law degree via correspondence course.

Sankaralingam, social and political reformer, founder Land for Tiller's Freedom. A member of the high caste in India, he quit college to join Gandhi's movement for India's freedom.

David Sarnoff, radio and TV producer. High school dropout.

William Saroyan, Oscar-winning screenwriter, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright. High school dropout.

Vidal Sassoon, multimillionaire founder of Vidal Sassoon hairstyling salons and hair-care products. High school dropout.

Al Schneider, founder of Schneider National freight company. Had an eighth-grade education.

Richard Schulze, billionaire founder of Best Buy.
After high school, he sold electronics for his father's distribution company and later opened a car-stereo
shop. Did not attend college.

Tom Selleck, actor. Left USC three classes short of a degree to become a contract player for 20th Century Fox. “I started out at about $35 a week, so it was a pretty big risk to leave college to do that. But it's like my dad always said: Risk is the price you pay for opportunity.”

Doug Selsam, inventor of The Sky Serpent wind generator and heavy metal guitarist. Attended the University of California at Irvine, but never graduated.

Drew Sementa, founder, Premier Payment Systems. Left the University of Central Florida after his junior year to join a dot-com.

William Shakespeare, playwright, poet. Only a few years of formal schooling.

Shakira, singer and songwriter who has sold more than 50 million albums. Attended a modeling school for awhile. Never attended college, but founded Pies Descalzos to provide educational opportunities to thousands of Colombia's poorest children and Barefoot, a nonprofit organization to provide schooling opportunities for millions of children around the world.

George Bernard Shaw, playwright, author. High school dropout.

Martin Sheen (Ramon Gerard Estevez), actor. Never attended college until he went for a few months in 2006.

J. Earl Shoaff, the Millionaire Maker, never graduated from high school.

Walter Shorenstein, billionaire real estate investor, Shorenstein Properties. Dropped out of the University of Pennsylvania. Began buying commercial property after serving in the military during World War II.

Russell Simmons, multi-millionaire co-founder of Def Jam records, founder Russell Simmons Music Group, creator of Phat Farm fashions, bestselling author. Left City College of New York to begin promoting local rap music acts (which he eventually signed to his music label) and producing records.

John Simplot, billionaire potato king. Dropped out of 8th grade and left home at the age of 14. He sorted potatoes and raised hogs before saving enough money to buy his first potato field. Became a millionaire by the age of 30.

Jessica Simpson, singer and actress. Never attended college.

Isaac Merrit Singer, sewing machine inventor, multimillionaire founder of Singer Industries. Dropped out of elementary school.

Frank Sinatra, singer, Oscar-winning actor. Never finished high school.

Alfred E. Smith, governor of New York and presidential candidate. Left school at the age of 14 to help his family after his father died. He would later joke that he received his FFM degree from the Fulton Fish Market in New York City.

O. Bruton Smith, billionaire. “I didn't attend college, but still had a good time. I think I probably had more fun than any human deserves a right to have.”

Patti Smith, poet, visual artist, songwriter. Dropped out of teacher's college to start life as an artist in New York City.

Walter L. Smith, president of Florida A&M University. Dropped out of high school but later earned an equivalency diploma at the age of 23.

Will Smith, Grammy-winning rapper, actor. Did not attend college. As the Fresh Prince, he and DJ Jazzy Jeff released their first album before he finished high school. They received the first Grammy for a hip-hop act. Due to the success of that first album, Smith decided to forgo college for show business.

Daniel Snyder, billionaire owner of Snyder Communications and Red Zone Capital, owner of the Washington Redskins. Dropped out of the University of Maryland.

Kevin Sorbo, actor, director, producer, and model. Left Moorhead State University early to pursue a career in acting.

Steven Spielberg, billionaire movie director and producer, co-founder of DreamWorks. Rejected by the best film schools, he enrolled in and then dropped out of Cal State Long Beach. Received a degree in 2002.

Ringo Starr, drummer for the Beatles. He did not attend college.

Gwen Stefani, singer and songwriter, No Doubt. Struggled in school. Never attended college. "School was just really hard for me. I didn't want to fail. I wanted to be smart! But I was really dreaming. ... It makes me sad when I think about it. I still have nightmares about tests."

Hiram Stevens, engineer, inventor. Dropped out of high school.

Kristen Stewart, actress. Dropped out of school in the seventh grade to study independently. “That was a necessity. When I would go away to work, my teachers would only give me a portion of my schoolwork, and I would come home and they'd fail me. I was very happy to leave.”

Patrick Stewart, actor, producer, director, writer. Dropped out of high school.

Ben Stiller, actor, director, and producer. Went to the UCLA film school for nine months and then headed for Broadway. As he noted, “I was the guy who dropped out and moved back in with his parents.”

Emma Stone, actress. At the age of 15, she gave her parents a PowerPoint presentation about ditching high school to pursue a career as an actress. Her mother accompanied her to Hollywood so she could become an actress.

Edward D. Stone, architect. Dropped out of the University of Arkansas.

Sharon Stone, Golden Globe-winning and Emmy-winning actress, producer, and model. Dropped out of Edinboro State University.

W. Clement Stone, multimillionaire insurance businessman, founder of Success magazine, and author of a number of books on positive mental attitudes. At the age of six, he sold newspapers on the south side of Chicago. By the age of 13, he owned his own newsstand. He continued to work odd jobs until his mother bought a small insurance agency, where he helped her by selling insurance. At the age of 21, with $100 in his pocket, he established the Combined Registry Company insurance business which he built into a multi-million dollar business. He dropped out of elementary school but later attended high school night courses and some college.

Mark Sykes, art dealer, gambler, bookie, gentleman, and rogue. Attended Oxford University for 18 months (primarily running highly profitable card games); then dropped out to gamble professionally.

Dropouts with last names starting with T

Drop out of school before your mind rots from our mediocre educational system. — Frank Zappa, musician, liner notes from the Freak Out album