# Rock Stars who graduated from college? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 6, 2005, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733 "2005-11-06T03:39:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![cornflakes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@cornflakes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cornflakes)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733/41 "2005-11-07T04:56:14Z")
> [@ArchitectChore](#): > > I’m surprised no one has already mentioned Boston’s guitarist Tom Scholz who has obtained bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical engineering from MIT. He also worked for Polaroid and has 34 patented inventions to his name. [Umm…](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=6766301&postcount=6) Scholz was the first musician I thought of when I saw this thread. The idea that a successful businessman could become a rock star without “paying his dues” was a fairly novel one back in the '70s. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733/42 "2005-11-07T06:22:54Z")
**Colin Meloy** of _The Decemberists_ has a degree in creative writing. And it shows. ---
**Author:** ![Ins\_Outs\_What-have-yous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8797f3/32.png) [@Ins\_Outs\_What-have-yous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ins_Outs_What-have-yous)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 7:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733/43 "2005-11-07T07:29:14Z")
> [@cornflakes](#): > > [Umm…](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=6766301&postcount=6) > > Scholz was the first musician I thought of when I saw this thread. The idea that a successful businessman could become a rock star without “paying his dues” was a fairly novel one back in the '70s. oh sh\*t, I missed that. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![cornflakes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@cornflakes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cornflakes)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 9:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733/44 "2005-11-07T09:03:36Z")
No big deal. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733/45 "2005-11-07T12:05:35Z")
According to his Wikipedia [bio](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Draiman), David Draiman of Disturbed triple-majored in Business Administration, Political Science, and Philosophy at Loyola University, and had plans to go to law school before going into the band. ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733/46 "2005-11-07T12:50:30Z")
\> TWEET! \< ::: Moderator blows whistle ::: **WordMan** , calling another member a twit is not permitted in this forum. We should be able to discuss differences of opinion, whether over art or spelling, without name-calling. Cool it, OK? ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733/47 "2005-11-07T13:46:19Z")
> [@C K Dexter Haven](#): > > \> TWEET! \< ::: Moderator blows whistle ::: **WordMan** , calling another member a twit is not permitted in this forum. We should be able to discuss differences of opinion, whether over art or spelling, without name-calling. > > Cool it, OK? [head hanging] Yes, sir - I understand. Sorry about that. I let the beers I had been drinking do the typing. It won’t happen again - well, the beers will, but not the carping about minor spelling issues. [/head hanging] ---
**Author:** ![bobkitty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c67d28/32.png) [@bobkitty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobkitty)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733/48 "2005-11-07T15:40:21Z")
Jakob Dylan, lead singer of the Wallflowers (and Bob’s son) graduated from Hampshire College. He was a… well, bit of a jerk, really. ---
**Author:** ![DfrntBreign](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f6c823/32.png) [@DfrntBreign](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DfrntBreign)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733/49 "2005-11-07T23:21:44Z")
Don’t know if it’s true, but I’ve heard for years that Neil Peart, drummer for Rush, has a PhD in music. I assume that means he went to college. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![ErinPuff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dbc845/32.png) [@ErinPuff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ErinPuff)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733/50 "2005-11-07T23:38:57Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > Don’t be a twit. Do you feel better? :rolleyes: If you haven’t realized it by now, **Chairman Pow** was correcting his own typo. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2005, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733/51 "2005-11-08T01:22:12Z")
> [@DfrntBreign](#): > > Don’t know if it’s true, but I’ve heard for years that Neil Peart, drummer for Rush, has a PhD in music. I assume that means he went to college. 😃 Popular myth, I’m afraid. I seem to recall that he barely got through high school in Canada. The PhD thing continues because he’s well-read, well-spoken, and they took to calling him ‘professor’ among the band. ---
**Author:** ![carlb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carlb/32/5930_2.png) [@carlb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carlb)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2005, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733/52 "2005-11-08T03:17:07Z")
I may be using the term, “star,” somewhat loosely, but [John Tichy](http://www.rpi.edu/dept/mane/deptweb/faculty/member/tichy.html), sometime lead guitarist for [Commader Cody and his Lost Planet Airmen](http://www.commandercody.com/), holds a doctorate in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Michigan, and is chair of the department of Mechanical, Aeronautical, and Nuclear Engineering at my alma mater, RPI. Actually, he was an excellent teacher. His area of expertise is in tribology, but I had him for a basic heat transfer course. Some professors at his level would have thought such a course beneath them, but he was very engaged in the class. ---
**Author:** ![sleeepy2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@sleeepy2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sleeepy2)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2005, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733/53 "2005-11-08T04:46:07Z")
> [@Little Nemo](#): > > Rivers Cuomo, of Weezer, is still working on his education - he is three credits short of getting his degree in English literature from Harvard. I think Rivers Cuomo deserves special mention because he had a monster smash album, a disappointing follow up album, then went to Harvard as a bona-fide Rock Star, living in the dorms. His band then released a few more albums ( 2000’s “Green Album” was another smash hit), and has since gone back to Harvard (to the dorms and dining halls). Recently he has put his Masters degree on hold, 'cause his band is on tour. That’s a bit different than a few guys with a few credits between them making it big. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2005, 8:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733/54 "2005-11-08T08:58:32Z")
Mark Knopfler has a degree in English from Leeds University. He was a journalist and a lecturer (presumably in English). ---
**Author:** ![Subterraneanus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Subterraneanus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Subterraneanus)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2005, 9:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733/55 "2005-11-08T09:20:39Z")
> [@Jonathan Chance](#): > > The PhD thing continues because he’s well-read, well-spoken, and they took to calling him ‘professor’ among the band. My theory is that the Ph.D.-thing continues because pretentious dreck never fails to impress a certain kind of middle school student. ---
**Author:** ![sleeepy2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@sleeepy2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sleeepy2)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2005, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733/56 "2005-11-08T14:18:11Z")
Tom Scholz of Boston was an electrical engineer. He invented the “Boston sound”. He patented the [Tom Scholz Rockman](http://www.superpage.com/riffs/desc_rockman.html) and a bunch of other effects. I’d bet this has earned him more money than the eleventy-gillion Boston albums sold. ---
**Author:** ![Wallenstein](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b5a626/32.png) [@Wallenstein](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wallenstein)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2005, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733/57 "2005-11-08T14:25:44Z")
Chris Morris of Coldplay went to University College London (UCL), where he got a first in Ancient World Studies. In fact, that’s where the band met but not sure if they all completed their degrees. ---
**Author:** ![Sean\_Factotum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/50afbb/32.png) [@Sean\_Factotum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sean_Factotum)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2005, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733/58 "2005-11-08T16:29:31Z")
I have heard that the lead singer for Midnight Oil (Peter Garrett, right?) was a lawyer specializing in aboriginal issues. Not being familiar with the Australian educational system, I have to assume the man is degreed (if the lawyer thing is true.) And doesn’t Tom Scholtz of the band Boston have a technical degree or soething? ---
**Author:** ![Plynck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Plynck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Plynck)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2005, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733/59 "2005-11-08T16:44:10Z")
Los Pixies met at UMass. Hence the song title. “UMass”, I mean. “Wave of Mutilation” may have been inspired by the dining commons food, though… ---
**Author:** ![Missy2U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@Missy2U](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Missy2U)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2005, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733/60 "2005-11-08T17:19:58Z")
> [@DfrntBreign](#): > > Don’t know if it’s true, but I’ve heard for years that Neil Peart, drummer for Rush, has a PhD in music. I assume that means he went to college. 😃 Nope. He dropped out of high school. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-stars-who-graduated-from-college/329733.md?page=4)