Inside The Trump Family’s Strange College History

Inside The Trump Family’s Strange College History

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Donald Trump’s children have had various influences and upbringings throughout their lives. Much of that is due to the fact that the ex-POTUS has had five kids with three women over the course of 40 years. But despite having many children who were brought up differently, all of them went to Georgetown University or the University of Pennsylvania—that is, if they didn’t go to both. However, Barron Trump, the family’s youngest child, may decide to go another route.

After graduating high school in May 2024, Barron’s plans for the future are uncertain, as is what college he decides to attend. Last year, Donald revealed that Barron might stick with the Trump tradition by heading off to the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, admitting that while his youngest hadn’t fully decided, discussions were occurring. A month before that, rumors swirled that he might opt for New York University instead.

At a Mar-a-Lago event, Donald had nothing but kind words to say about his son. He confirmed that due to stellar grades, he would be heading to a prestigious institution no matter what, but that colleges were “different [than] they were two months ago.”

Donald Trump didn’t start at Wharton

Although Trump graduated with an economics degree from Wharton at the University of Pennsylvania in 1968, that’s not where he started. The entrepreneur loves to remind people that he went to an Ivy League school and got into the notoriously difficult Wharton, but in fact, he spent his first two years after graduating high school at Fordham College. As a junior, he transferred to Wharton.

 

Trump also didn’t get into Penn on his own. At the time of his admission, his oldest brother, Fred Trump Jr., had a close relationship with James Nolan, someone with influence at the Penn admissions office. Nolan claims not to remember the interview but said it was “decent enough to support his candidacy.”

Although Donald claims to have graduated at the top of his class, the evidence behind that is murky. In 1984, the New York Times reported: “Although the school refused to comment, the commencement program from 1968 does not list him as graduating with honors of any kind.” Nonetheless, it remains undeniable that Donald initiated the enduring tradition of Trump’s attendance at Penn.

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