20 Celebrity Degrees That Might Just Surprise You

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Ah, celebs. They tend to be a good looking bunch and talented to boot, but they’re none too bright, are they? Right? Wrong! They might seem like a shallow lot, but scratch beneath the surface of celebrity and it turns out that for every Jade Goody there’s a James Franco (trust us – the guy’s a genius). So if you’re looking for some degree inspiration, you could do worse than finding out what your favourite celeb studied at uni – it might just surprise you. And it just goes to show, you really shouldn’t judge a book by its cover…

1. Kourtney Kardashian – Theatre Arts

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The Kardashian clan may be famous for many things, but their academic achievement isn’t the first thing that springs to mind. Maybe it should be, though, since eldest sister Kourtney has a degree in Theatre Arts from the University of Arizona. Drama for the drama queen? Maybe not so surprising after all.

2. Mayim Bialik – Neuroscience

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This is a fact we never get tired of here at Whatuni – American actor Mayim Bialik, who plays neuroscientist Amy Farrer-Fowler on ‘The Big Bang Theory’ has a degree in…neuroscience! Now that’s what we call dedication to a role. Bialik actually qualified and worked as a neuroscientist before taking on the part of Amy on the hit comedy, getting her BSc and PhD at UCLA. So is that art imitating life or life imitating art? You probably have to be as smart as Mayim to figure it out.

3. Harry Hill – Neurosurgery

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We’re going from one brain specialist to another now, as it turns out madcap comedian Harry Hill, best known as the eponymous star of ‘Harry Hill’s TV Burp’, is actually a neurosurgeon! He gained his degree from the University of London and practiced as a doctor in the capital before trading in his white coat for his trademark black suit and horn rimmed glasses.

4. Bob Mortimer – Law

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What is it with comedians and being clever as well as funny? Bob Mortimer not only studied Law at both the University of Surrey and the University of Leicester, but he also remains a registered solicitor. He even represented Pulp frontman Jarvis Cocker when he was arrested at the 1995 BRIT Awards for invading the stage during a particularly overblown performance by Michael Jackson.

5. Nicky Wire – Politics

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Did you know that Nicky Wire has a Politics degree? The long-limbed loudmouth and Manic Street Preachers bassist studied at the University of Swansea, but he doesn’t like talking about it…

6. James Franco – English

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Alongside being a mega-talented actor, it turns out James Franco is also pretty much a genius. The ‘This is the End’ star has spent the last few years on a tour of America’s of top institutions, collecting degrees like some of us collect empty beer cans. He started off with a BA in English at UCLA, moved to Colombia University to do a master’s, and is currently pursuing a PhD at Yale. He also appeared in a whopping 16 films in 2013, with another 11 either in production or already released this year. Seriously, where does he find the time?!

7. Ashton Kutcher – Biochemical Engineering

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Ashton didn’t quite finish his degree, but it’s still pretty impressive. The actor and former model enrolled at the University of Iowa in 1996 to study Biochemical Engineering, hoping to find a cure for his twin brother’s life-threatening heart condition. He dropped out in his first year, but it was still an honourable intention.

8. Rowan Atkinson – Electrical Engineering

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That’s right – the man who made his name as the bumbling Mr Bean is also a bit of a brainbox. He studied Electrical Engineering at Newcastle University.

9. Dennis Bergkamp – Mechanical Engineering

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What is it with famous faces and engineering degrees? This time it’s Mechanical Engineering, which is what Dutch footballing legend Dennis Bergkamp managed to gain a degree in from the University of Bath at the same time as playing for both Arsenal and the Dutch international team.

10. Chris Martin – Latin and Ancient Greek Studies

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The Coldplay boys are all clever fellows – they met at UCL, where frontman Chris Martin graduated with a BA in the super useful Latin and Ancient Greek Studies.

11. Brian May – Mathematics and Physics

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Pictured above closing the 2012 London Olympics, Queen guitarist Brian May is a bona fide musical legend AND a bona fide boffin; he earned a BSc in Mathematics and Physics from Imperial College London before finding fame with one of the biggest groups of the 80s – returning to academia some 20 years later to finish off a PhD in Astrophysics.

12. James May – Music

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Here’s one we bet you weren’t expecting – manly Top Gear host and motor racing enthusiast James May is actually a classically trained pianist and a talented flautist (that’s a flute player to you and me). He studied music at the University of Lancaster.

13. Natalie Portman – Psychology

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Former child star Natalie Portman certainly didn’t need a degree to fall back on – after winning the role of Padmé Amidala in the Star Wars trilogy at the age of just 16, she was already well and truly minted by the time most of us are applying for our first student loan instalment. That didn’t hold the brainy star back though, and in 2000 she took a four year break from full-time acting to pursue a Psychology degree at Harvard, honouring her Star Wars filming commitments in her summer breaks. Portman contributed to two studies published in scientific journals during her time as a student, and even returned to university in the capacity of a guest lecturer in 2006, hosting a series of lectures on terrorism at Colombia University in New York. It turns out Portman was surprisingly well placed to appear in 2010’s psychological thriller Black Swan, then.

14. Eva Longoria – Kinesiology

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What do you mean you’ve never heard of Kinesiology? Jeez. Obviously it’s… okay, so we had to look it up too, and it turns out Kinesiology is the study of human movement. Fancy! If you want to know more about it you should probably ask Desperate Housewives star Longoria, as she’s something of an expert (she has both a bachelor’s degree and a master’s in the subject from Texas A&M University-Kingsville). She also returned to full-time education in 2010 to read Chicano Studies.

15. Russell Howard – Economics

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Bristolian comedian Russell Howard often appears as people’s ‘surprising crush’ but it turns out he’s a surprising celebrity degree holder too! He has a BSc in the lofty subject of Economics from the University of the West of England. So if comedy doesn’t work out, he can always apply to be Chancellor of the Exchequer instead.

16. Ricky Gervais – Philosophy

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Who’d have guessed Ricky Gervais had a sensitive side? The entertainer originally went to University College London to study Biology, but ended up graduating in Philosophy instead.

17. Gerard Butler – Law

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Would it surprise you to learn that the man above was once a solicitor? Hollywood hunk and well known bad boy Gerard Butler studied law at the University of Glasgow and even worked for a local law firm after graduating, but he was kicked out over his rock ‘n’ roll antics. Thankfully he soon found a more suitable arena for his talents.

18. Matthew McConaughey – Radio, Television and Film

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Versatile star Matthew McConaughey is uniquely qualified for his career as an actor – he studied for a BA in Radio, Television and Film at the University of Texas at Austin. If movies don’t end up working out, then, he’s got at least two other media specialities to fall back on.

19. Will Ferrell – Sports Information

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Buddy the Elf has a degree! Will Ferrell studied Sports Information at the University of South California and briefly considered a career in sports broadcasting before deciding to follow his true passion and move into acting.

20. Lisa Kudrow – Psychobiology

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We’ve saved the most surprising for last! Ditzy Phoebe from Friends couldn’t be any more different in real life, as actor Lisa Kudrow is seriously smart and studied Psychobiology at the prestigious Vassar College in New York. She worked alongside her father researching headaches for an impressive eight years before finding fame in Friends, and her work on cluster headaches is actually considered world-leading.