Bom Kim, Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg are all Harvard dropouts (File Photos)
Korean-American businessman Bom Kim, 42, is joining the ranks of the world's richest with the listing of his Coupang Inc. According to a Bloomberg report, the South Korean company --dubbed "Korea's Amazon" -- began trading in New York on Thursday. It is now valued at more than $84 billion, giving Mr Kim a stake worth $8.6 billion.
Born in South Korea, Bom Kim spent most of his formative years in the US. According to Forbes, he is a graduate of the prestigious Harvard University. He later attended Harvard Business School but dropped out after only six months.
While Harvard is considered to be one of the best universities in the world and boasts of a galaxy of famous alumni, the Ivy League school has also produced some of the world's most well-known dropouts. Bom Kim is not the only famous personality to have dropped out of Harvard. Here is a look at six others:
Bill Gates
Bill Gates dropped out of Harvard after two years to start Microsoft - the business that would make him a millionaire at 26, and then the world's richest person - a title he held for several years. Mr Gates told Harvard students during an interactive session in 2018 that he wished he had been more sociable during his time at the university. "I wish I had gotten to know more people," he said, according to CNBC. "I was just so into being good at the classes and taking lots of classes."
Mark Zuckerberg
Mark Zuckerberg attended Harvard between 2002 and 2004, studying psychology and computer science. It was here that he created the software for Facemash - a controversial website that allowed students select the best-looking person from a choice of photos. It was also in Harvard that Mark Zuckerberg launched "Thefacebook" (which was later renamed Facebook), before dropping out to focus on the project.
Matt Damon
The Academy Award-winning American actor Matt Damon enrolled in Harvard as an English major but dropped out of the Ivy League institute just one semester before he could receive his degree. While at Harvard, Damon wrote an early treatment of the screenplay for Good Will Hunting, for which he later received an Oscar, according to Business Insider.
David Foster Wallace
American author David Foster Wallace is best known for his 1996 novel Infinite Jest, but not many know that is another person who dropped out of Harvard. After graduating from the University of Arizona, Mr Wallace went on to study philosophy at Harvard, but dropped out after half a semester.
Robert Frost
Poet Robert Frost attended Harvard University from 1897 to 1899, but did not earn a degree. He left the university voluntarily. "They could not make a student of me here, but they gave it their best," Mr Frost reportedly said of his time at Harvard.
James Park
James Park is the co-founder and CEO of Fitbit. He started the activity tracker company Fitbit with Eric Friedman in 2007. Before that, he was enrolled as a computer science student at Harvard, but he dropped out in his junior year.
These are not the only famous dropouts that Harvard has produced. Let us know using the comments section whose work inspires you the most.
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Richest man in the world, Bill Gates, dropped out of Harvard to focus on Microsoft full-time. Sure, he may have had the most intelligent computer software the world had ever seen up his sleeve, but still, he dropped out and still managed to be the world's biggest success.
Who went to Harvard and dropped out? ›
List of Harvard University non-graduate alumni
| Name | Life | Known for |
|---|
| Benjamin Franklin | 1706–1790 | scientist |
| Robert Frost | 1874–1963 | poet |
| Buckminster Fuller | 1895–1983 | designer, architect |
| William Gaddis | 1922–1998 | novelist |
74 more rowsBill Gates left Harvard in 1975 after two years of study to found Microsoft — a move that made him a millionaire by the age of 26. Gates, now 66, has been ranked by Forbes magazine as one of the world's four wealthiest billionaires every year since 1995, and has a net worth of more than $131 billion (£96 billion).
How many of the richest people dropped out of school? ›
Indeed, according to a study by U.K. job site Adview, one in eight of the Forbes 400, which are the 400 wealthiest billionaires in the U.S., are college dropouts. They came to this conclusion by looking at the 362 billionaires with publicly available education information; 44 were dropouts.
Who is the richest college dropout? ›
Was Elon Musk a dropout? ›
He moved to California in 1995 to attend Stanford University. However, Musk dropped out after two days and, with his brother Kimbal, co-founded online city guide software company Zip2.
Have any famous people gone to Harvard? ›
Eight Presidents of the United States have graduated from Harvard University: John Adams, John Quincy Adams, Rutherford B. Hayes, John F. Kennedy, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Theodore Roosevelt, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama.
Did any celebrities go to Harvard University? ›
Matt Damon - Harvard University
The Boston native started at Harvard in '88, taking time off here and there before eventually dropping out to pursue his acting career.
Who dropped out of high school and became rich? ›
McDonald's founder Ray Kroc and Walt Disney both left high school to pursue other interests that became globally-recognized brands. Likewise, Henry Ford and Coco Chanel never finished high school but created enduring brand names that outlasted their lifetimes.
Who is the richest person in the world that went to college? ›
Bill Gates: Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Degree or not, he's still one of the wealthiest people in the world.
Chris Renolds, who buys and sells vintage car parts, was accidentally credited with $92 quadrillion. Remember when an average American became the richest man in the world after accidentally being credited with $92 quadrillion?
Is there a billionaire that didn t go to college? ›
Former CEO of Dole Food Company, Inc. and real estate company, Castle & Cooke, David Murdock was technically a high school dropout. Even without going to college, this self-made billionaire made his mark in the business, food and real estate industries.
What school do the richest people go to? ›
Top 12 US universities by number of undergraduate alumni† on 2021 Forbes 400 list
| Rank | University | Amount |
|---|
| 1 | Harvard University | 15 |
| 2 | University of Pennsylvania | 14 |
| 3 | Stanford University | 12 |
| 3 | Yale University | 12 |
8 more rowsHere's what 88% of millionaires have in common
Ramsey Solutions conducted what it calls the largest study of millionaires ever, with 10,000 participants. It found that 88% of millionaires graduated from college, compared to 38% of the general population.
How many billionaires dropped out? ›
In 2019, 34 billionaire dropouts were reported all over the world. This number relates to 1.7 percent of people who were no longer part of global billionaire population.
What billionaire dropped out of Harvard? ›
Bill Gates left Harvard after two years to found Microsoft.
In 2010, The Harvard Crimson called Gates "Harvard's most successful dropout." He left the Ivy League school during his sophom*ore year in 1975.
What is the dropout rate for Harvard? ›
Public institutions retained 74.8% of first-time undergrads compared with 80.2% retention at private nonprofit institutions, data show. Although the average college dropout rate is 24.1% for first-time undergraduates, the Harvard dropout rate is 4%.
Can you name a famous Harvard University drop out? ›
Bill Gates
The future philanthropist left Harvard after the end of his sophom*ore year. He would return, but drop out for good after completing his junior year. Both times, Bill Gates exited school to focus on the company he co-founded in 1975: Microsoft.
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