Skip Navigation

Presidential Badgers

Here are the graduation years of alumni with presidential names — and parents who either were fond of those presidents or had a sense of humor.

Flags flying on the UW campus.

It’s a big deal when a U.S. president — sitting or otherwise — is on campus. But did you know that 13 U.S. presidents attended UW–Madison, for a total of 59 degrees? Well, sort of

Here are the graduation years of alumni with presidential names — and parents who either were fond of those presidents or had a sense of humor:

  1. John Adams has 24 degrees from the UW — 12 bachelor’s, seven master’s, one MBA, one MD, one JD, and two PhDs — from the Classes of 1934, 1935, 1947, 1951, 1954, 1957, 1960, 1961, 1968, 1969, 1971, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1981, 1987, 1990, 2002, and 2003.
  2. James Madison, Class of 1956
  3. Andrew Jackson, Class of 2005
  4. William Harrison, Classes of 1953 and 1974
  5. John Tyler, Classes of 1958 and 1969
  6. Andrew Johnson earned 14 degrees from the UW as part of the Classes of 1947, 1965, 1985, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2011, and 2012.
  7. Rutherford Hayes, Class of 1952
  8. William Taft, Class of 2000
  9. Herbert Hoover, Class of 1978
  10. James Buchanan, Classes of 1943, 2004, and 2013
  11. Harry Truman, Class of 1933
  12. John Kennedy, Classes of 1930, 1948, 1962, 1971, 1992, and 1993
  13. Gerald Ford, Class of 1975

Featured News and Stories

Do you remember these Flamingle stories from 2024?