One hundred and ninety-two officials currently hold one of the top four state executive positions of governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, or secretary of state.
Below is a summary of the educational backgrounds of these state executive officials in 2020. Of the group, there are:
• 185 officeholders with a bachelor’s degree (B.A., B.S., etc.)
• 56 officeholders with a master’s degree (M.A., M.S., M.B.A., etc.)
• 95 officeholders with a J.D.
• 7 officeholders with a Ph.D.
• 2 officeholders with an M.D.
• 7 officeholders with no higher education degree
Fourteen top state officials graduated from Harvard University with at least one degree, making it the most attended school, overall. Columbia University (8 officeholders), Yale University (7 officeholders), and the University of Virginia (6 officeholders) were the next-most attended universities.
Harvard University and Dartmouth College were the most-attended universities for bachelor’s degrees, with five alumni each. Harvard was also the most popular for master’s (4) and law degrees (6).
The table below shows a breakdown of degrees held by top state executive officials by degree type.
The following list provides a further breakdown of the different higher education degrees held by position:
For more details, analyses, and to see where your state executive officials went to school, click here.
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