Notable Alumni of University of Chicago

Bernie Sanders 1941–

United States Senator from Vermont

Bachelor of Arts · Political science · Class of 1964

Also attended: CUNY Brooklyn College

Spouse: Jane O'Meara Sanders (Union Institute and University, The University of Tennessee-Knoxville)

Child: Carina Driscoll (Middlebury College)

Hastings Banda 1890–1997

First president of Malawi

Also attended: Central State University, Wilberforce University, Meharry Medical College

James Comey 1960–

7th Director of the FBI

Juris Doctor

Also attended: College of William and Mary

William Lyon Mackenzie King 1874–1950

10th Prime Minister of Canada

Also attended: Harvard University

Paul Wolfowitz 1943–

10th World Bank President, former Deputy Defense Secretary

Also attended: Cornell University

Father: Jacob Wolfowitz (New York University)

Amy Klobuchar 1960–

US senator from Minnesota

Juris Doctor · Class of 1985

Also attended: Yale University

Spouse: John Bessler (Hamline University, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities)

Father: Jim Klobuchar (University of Minnesota-Twin Cities)

Liz Cheney 1966–

Former US Representative from Wyoming

Juris Doctor · Class of 1996

Also attended: Colorado College

Spouse: Philip Perry (Colorado College, Cornell University)

Father: Dick Cheney (Yale University, University of Wisconsin-Madison)

John Ashcroft 1942–

79th United States Attorney General

Juris Doctor · Class of 1967

Also attended: Yale University

Aldrich Ames 1941–2026

Former CIA officer convicted of spying for USSR

Attended until 1962

Also attended: George Washington University

Avril Haines 1969–

7th Director of National Intelligence

Bachelor of Arts · Physics · Class of 1992

Also attended: Georgetown University, Johns Hopkins University

Father: Thomas H. Haines (CUNY--City College)

Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada 1930–

Former President of Bolivia

Robert Todd Lincoln 1843–1926

Former Secretary of War, eldest son of Abraham Lincoln

Also attended: Northwestern University, Harvard University

John Paul Stevens 1920–2019

Former Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court

Bachelor of Arts · English studies · Class of 1941

Also attended: Northwestern University

Carol Moseley Braun 1947–

First African-American woman elected to the U.S. Senate

Attended until 1972

Also attended: University of Illinois at Chicago

Zalmay Khalilzad 1951–

Diplomat; former US special representative for Afghanistan

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York

Arne Duncan 1964–

9th US Secretary of Education

Also attended: Harvard University

Ro Khanna 1976–

U.S. Representative from California

Bachelor of Arts · Class of 1998

Also attended: Yale University

Jon Corzine 1947–

Former New Jersey governor and US senator

Master of Business Administration · Class of 1973

Also attended: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Jack Markell 1960–

Former Delaware governor and ambassador to Italy

Also attended: Brown University

Ahmed Chalabi 1944–2015

Iraqi politician, founder of Iraqi National Congress

Also attended: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Valerie Jarrett 1956–

Senior advisor to Obama; Obama Foundation CEO

Also attended: University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, Stanford University

Father: James E. Bowman (Howard University)

Mother: Barbara T. Bowman (University of Chicago, Sarah Lawrence College)

Todd Young 1972–

United States Senator from Indiana

Master of Business Administration · Class of 2000

Also attended: Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis, United States Naval Academy, Purdue University-Main Campus

Andrej Bajuk 1943–2011

Former Prime Minister of Slovenia and economist

Also attended: University of California-Berkeley

Eliot Ness 1903–1957

Prohibition agent who pursued Al Capone

Spouse: Evaline Ness (Ball State University)

Apolo Nsibambi 1940–2019

Former Prime Minister of Uganda

Master of Arts · Political science

Arnulfo Arias 1901–1988

Three-time President of Panama

Also attended: Harvard University

Spouse: Mireya Moscoso (Miami Dade College)

Pete Ricketts 1964–

U.S. Senator from Nebraska, former governor

Master of Business Administration, Bachelor of Arts · Biology · Class of 1991

Father: Joe Ricketts (Creighton University)

Sibling: Todd Ricketts (University of Illinois at Chicago, Loyola University Chicago)

Ramsey Clark 1927–2021

US Attorney General and peace activist

Also attended: The University of Texas at Austin

Father: Thomas Campbell Clark (The University of Texas at Austin)

Lori Lightfoot 1962–

56th mayor of Chicago

Juris Doctor

Also attended: University of Michigan-Ann Arbor

Tommy Douglas 1904–1986

Saskatchewan premier and New Democratic Party leader

David Axelrod 1955–

Chief strategist for Obama's presidential campaigns

Lien Chan 1936–

Former Taiwan vice leader and Kuomintang chairman

Master's degree, Doctorate · Class of 1965

Child: Sean Lien (Columbia University in the City of New York)

Patsy Mink 1927–2002

Hawaii congresswoman, first Asian-American woman in Congress

Juris Doctor · Class of 1951

Also attended: University of Hawaii at Manoa, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Wilson College

Robert Bork 1927–2012

Legal scholar, former solicitor general and appeals court judge

Adamantios Androutsopoulos 1919–2000

Interim Prime Minister of Greece, 1973–1974

Wálter Guevara 1912–1996

54th President of Bolivia

Andy Kim 1982–

U.S. senator from New Jersey and former diplomat

Bachelor of Arts · Political science · Class of 2004

Jorge Illueca 1918–2012

25th President of Panama

Also attended: Harvard University

Jo Freeman 1945–

Feminist, political scientist, writer and attorney

Also attended: University of California-Berkeley, New York University

Kateryna Yushchenko 1961–

Former First Lady of Ukraine

Also attended: Georgetown University

Harold L. Ickes 1874–1952

US Secretary of the Interior from 1933 to 1946

Child: Harold M. Ickes (Columbia University in the City of New York, Stanford University)

Natalie Jaresko 1965–

Former Minister of Finance of Ukraine

Also attended: DePaul University, Harvard University

Paul Nitze 1907–2004

Former Deputy Secretary of Defense and Navy Secretary

Also attended: Harvard University

Geoffrey Palmer 1942–

Former Prime Minister of New Zealand

Álvaro Magaña 1925–2001

Former President of El Salvador

Harris Wofford 1926–2019

US Senator from Pennsylvania and civil rights activist

Also attended: Yale University, Howard University

Joe Walsh 1961–

Former U.S. Representative and 2020 presidential candidate

Master of Public Policy · Class of 1991

Also attended: Grinnell College, University of Iowa

Eugene Scalia 1963–

28th United States Secretary of Labor

Also attended: University of Pennsylvania, University of Virginia-Main Campus

Father: Antonin Scalia (Georgetown University, Harvard University)

Mary Ann Glendon 1938–

Harvard law professor and former ambassador to the Holy See

Jim Talent 1956–

Former U.S. Senator from Missouri

Juris Doctor · Class of 1981

Also attended: Washington University in St Louis

Ajit Pai 1973–

Former chairman of the FCC

Juris Doctor · Class of 1997

Also attended: Harvard University

Charles H. Percy 1919–2011

Illinois senator and Bell & Howell president

Sander Levin 1931–

Former US congressman from Michigan

Bachelor of Arts · Class of 1952

Also attended: Harvard University, Columbia University in the City of New York

Child: Andy Levin (Harvard University, Williams College)

Sibling: Carl Levin (Harvard University, Oakland University)

Mike Quigley 1958–

U.S. representative for Illinois's 5th district

Master of Public Policy · Class of 1985

Also attended: Loyola University Chicago, Roosevelt University

Abraham Ribicoff 1910–1998

Connecticut governor, US senator and Kennedy cabinet secretary

Attended until 1933

Also attended: New York University

Amien Rais 1944–

Indonesian politician and 1998 reform movement leader

Also attended: George Washington University, University of Notre Dame

Jerome Frank 1889–1957

Legal realist, SEC chairman and federal appeals judge

Richard Cordray 1959–

First director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

Also attended: Michigan State University

Jovita Carranza 1949–

Former SBA administrator and US treasurer

Also attended: University of Miami, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor

Herman De Croo 1937–

Belgian politician, longest-serving member of parliament

Child: Alexander De Croo (Northwestern University)

Jörg Kukies 1968–

Former German finance minister

Also attended: Harvard University

Tony Earl 1936–2023

41st governor of Wisconsin

Also attended: Michigan State University

Ukshin Hoti 1943–1999

Kosovo Albanian philosopher and activist

Also attended: Harvard University, University of Washington-Seattle Campus

Andrew Marshall 1921–2019

Former director of Pentagon's Office of Net Assessment

Also attended: George Washington University, University of Detroit Mercy, Wayne State University

Lisa Monaco 1968–

39th United States Deputy Attorney General

Also attended: Harvard University

Herbert E. Hitchcock 1867–1958

US Senator from South Dakota

Also attended: Iowa State University

Edward H. Levi 1911–2000

US Attorney General, former University of Chicago president

Also attended: Yale University

Charles W. Bryan 1867–1945

Governor of Nebraska

Also attended: Illinois College

Sibling: William Jennings Bryan (Illinois College, Northwestern University)

Kweku George Ricketts-Hagan 1963–

Ghanaian politician, economist and banker

Master of Business Administration · Financial economics

Joaquín Lavín 1953–

Chilean politician and former education minister

Master of Arts · Economy

Frederick C. Bock 1918–2000

WWII bomber pilot in the Nagasaki atomic bombing

Sidney R. Yates 1909–2000

Democratic U.S. Representative from Illinois

Juris Doctor, Bachelor of Arts · Class of 1933

Steve Preston 1960–

Former US Secretary of Housing and Urban Development

Also attended: Northwestern University

Christina Liu 1955–

Taiwanese economist and former legislator

Mother: Shirley Kuo (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)

Mei Ju-ao 1904–1973

Jurist, China's representative at Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal

Also attended: Stanford University

Chiou I-jen 1950–

Former vice premier of Taiwan

Paulo Roberto Nunes Guedes 1949–

Brazilian economist and former Minister of Economy

Benjamin O. Davis, Jr. 1912–2002

US Air Force general, Tuskegee Airmen commander

Also attended: The United States Military Academy at West Point, Case Western Reserve University

Father: Benjamin Oliver Davis Sr. (Howard University)

Larry Ellison 1944–

Co-founder of Oracle Corporation

Attended until 1966

Also attended: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Spouse: Melanie Craft (Oberlin College)

Child: David Ellison (Pepperdine University, University of Southern California)

Satya Nadella 1967–

Chairman and CEO of Microsoft

Master of Business Administration

Also attended: University of Wisconsin--Milwaukee

David Rockefeller 1915–2017

Former chairman of Chase Manhattan Corporation

Also attended: Harvard University, Columbia University in the City of New York

Father: John D. Rockefeller Jr. (Brown University)

Child: David Rockefeller, Jr. (Harvard University)

Katharine Graham 1917–2001

Former publisher of The Washington Post

Also attended: Vassar College

Spouse: Phil Graham (University of Florida, Harvard University)

Father: Eugene Meyer (University of California-Berkeley, Yale University)

Bill Browder 1964–

Hermitage Capital co-founder and political activist

Bachelor of Science

Also attended: University of Colorado Boulder, Stanford University

Father: Felix Browder (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Princeton University)

Child: Joshua Browder (Stanford University)

Bryan Johnson 1977–

Entrepreneur and founder of Kernel

Also attended: Brigham Young University-Provo

David Sacks 1972–

Entrepreneur and investor, co-founder of Craft Ventures

Attended until 1998

Also attended: Stanford University

Sherry Lansing 1944–

Former chairwoman and CEO of Paramount Pictures

Also attended: Northwestern University

Joi Ito 1966–

Japanese entrepreneur, venture capitalist, university president

Also attended: Tufts University

Sibling: Mizuko Ito (Harvard University, Stanford University)

Peter George Peterson 1926–2018

Former U.S. Secretary of Commerce and investment banker

Also attended: Northwestern University

Spouse: Joan Ganz Cooney (University of Arizona)

Child: Holly Peterson (Brown University)

David Rubenstein 1949–

Co-founder of the Carlyle Group

Also attended: Duke University

Spouse: Alice Rogoff (Connecticut College, Harvard University)

Nassef Sawiris 1961–

Egyptian billionaire businessman

Bachelor of Arts and Science · Economics

Howard Marks 1946–

Co-founder and co-chairman of Oaktree Capital

Also attended: University of Pennsylvania

Lorenzo Bini Smaghi 1956–

Economist and former European Central Bank board member

Phd in economics and business management · Class of 1988

Also attended: University of Southern California

Susan Wagner 1961–

Co-founder of BlackRock

Also attended: Wellesley College

Aditi Avasthi 1981–

Indian entrepreneur, founder of edtech startup Embibe

Carl Sagan 1934–1996

Astronomer, planetary scientist and science communicator

Doctorate, Master of Science · Astronomy, Astrophysics · Class of 1960

Spouse: Lynn Margulis (University of California-Berkeley, University of Chicago)

Child: Nick Sagan (University of California-Los Angeles)

Milton Friedman 1912–2006

Economist, 1976 Nobel laureate, Chicago school leader

Master of Arts · Economics · Class of 1933

Also attended: Rutgers University-New Brunswick, Columbia University in the City of New York

Spouse: Rose Friedman (University of Chicago, Reed College)

Child: David D. Friedman (University of Chicago, Harvard University)

James Watson 1928–2025

Molecular biologist and Nobel laureate

Bachelor of Science · Zoology · Class of 1947

Also attended: Indiana University-Bloomington

Edwin Hubble 1889–1953

Astronomer who helped establish extragalactic astronomy

Robert Andrews Millikan 1868–1953

Physicist and 1923 Nobel Prize winner

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York, Oberlin College

Child: Clark Blanchard Millikan (California Institute of Technology, Yale University)

Child: Glenn Allan Millikan (Harvard University)

Paul Samuelson 1915–2009

Economist, first American Nobel economics laureate

Bachelor of Arts · Economics · Class of 1935

Also attended: Harvard University

Ernest Lawrence 1901–1958

Physicist, cyclotron inventor, Nobel laureate

Also attended: Yale University, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, St. Olaf College

Sibling: John H. Lawrence (Harvard University, University of South Dakota)

Arthur Holly Compton 1892–1962

Physicist, 1927 Nobel Prize in Physics laureate

Also attended: University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Princeton University, Bluffton University

Sibling: Karl Taylor Compton (Princeton University, College of Wooster)

Chen-ning Yang 1922–2025

Theoretical physicist; co-developer of Yang–Mills theory

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1948

Joseph Stiglitz 1943–

Economist and Nobel laureate, Columbia University professor

Also attended: Amherst College, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Luis Walter Alvarez 1911–1988

Physicist, 1968 Nobel Prize in Physics

Father: Walter C. Alvarez (Stanford University)

Child: Walter Alvarez (Carleton College, Princeton University)

Clinton Davisson 1881–1958

Physicist, 1937 Nobel Prize in Physics laureate

Also attended: Princeton University

Emily Greene Balch 1867–1961

Economist, sociologist and pacifist at Wellesley College

Also attended: Wellesley College, Bryn Mawr College

Samuel P. Huntington 1927–2008

Political scientist and Harvard professor

Also attended: Yale University, Harvard University

Tsung-Dao Lee 1926–2024

Chinese-American physicist and Columbia University professor

Child: Stephen Lee (Yale University, University of Chicago)

Sibling: Robert C. T. Lee (Cornell University)

Frank Wilczek 1951–

Theoretical physicist, 2004 Nobel laureate in Physics

Also attended: Princeton University

Spouse: Betsy Devine (Princeton University)

Andrea M. Ghez 1965–

Astrophysicist, 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics laureate

Also attended: California Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Owen Chamberlain 1920–2006

Physicist, Nobel laureate for discovering the antiproton

Also attended: Dartmouth College

Herbert Simon 1916–2001

Scholar known for bounded rationality and satisficing

Jerome Isaac Friedman 1930–

Physicist and professor at MIT

Also attended: Stanford University

Gary S. Becker 1930–2014

Economist, 1992 Nobel Memorial Prize winner

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1955

Also attended: Princeton University

John B. Watson 1878–1958

Psychologist who popularized behaviorism

Also attended: Furman University

James Cronin 1931–2016

Particle physicist, 1980 Nobel Prize in Physics

Also attended: Southern Methodist University

Daniel C. Tsui 1939–

Physicist, Princeton professor emeritus

Doctor of Philosophy · Physics · Class of 1967

Also attended: Augustana College, Boston University

George E. Smith 1930–2025

Nobel-winning physicist and co-inventor of the CCD

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1959

Also attended: University of Pennsylvania

Leonid Hurwicz 1917–2008

Polish-American economist and mathematician

Also attended: Harvard University

James M. Buchanan 1919–2013

Economist, Nobel laureate, public choice theorist

Also attended: Middle Tennessee State University, The University of Tennessee-Knoxville

Jack Steinberger 1921–2020

Physicist; 1988 Nobel Prize in Physics laureate

Also attended: Illinois Institute of Technology

Child: Julia K. Steinberger (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Brown University)

Claudia Goldin 1946–

Harvard economist and Nobel prize winner

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1972

Also attended: Harvard University, Cornell University

Spouse: Lawrence F. Katz (University of California-Berkeley, Massachusetts Institute of Technology)

Robert S. Mulliken 1896–1986

Physical chemist, pioneer of molecular orbital theory

Also attended: Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

John B. Goodenough 1922–2023

Materials scientist and Nobel laureate in chemistry

Doctor of Philosophy

Also attended: Yale University

Father: Erwin Ramsdell Goodenough (Harvard University, Hamilton College)

Sibling: Ward Goodenough (Cornell University)

Richard Smalley 1943–2005

Chemist, 1996 Nobel laureate, buckyball co-discoverer

Also attended: Hope College, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, Princeton University

Erving Goffman 1922–1982

Canadian-born sociologist and social psychologist

Doctor of Philosophy · Sociology · Class of 1953

Child: Alice Goffman (Princeton University, University of Pennsylvania)

F. Sherwood Rowland 1927–2012

Nobel laureate chemist, professor at UC Irvine

Doctor of Philosophy · Chemistry · Class of 1952

Also attended: Ohio Wesleyan University

Lynn Margulis 1938–2011

Evolutionary biologist and proponent of symbiosis theory

Also attended: University of California-Berkeley, Harvard University, University of Massachusetts-Amherst

Spouse: Carl Sagan (University of Chicago)

George Stigler 1911–1991

Economist, 1982 Nobel laureate, Chicago school

Also attended: Northwestern University, University of Washington-Seattle Campus

Child: Stephen Stigler (University of California-Berkeley)

Herbert C. Brown 1912–2004

Chemist, 1979 Nobel Prize in Chemistry winner

Also attended: City Colleges of Chicago-Malcolm X College, City Colleges of Chicago-Wilbur Wright College

Robert Lucas 1937–2023

Economist at the University of Chicago

Bachelor of Arts, Doctor of Philosophy · Study of history, Economics · Class of 1964

Spouse: Nancy Stokey (Harvard University, University of Pennsylvania)

Irwin Rose 1926–2015

Biologist, 2004 Nobel Prize in Chemistry winner

Also attended: New York University

Bruce Beutler 1957–

Immunologist, 2011 Nobel laureate in Medicine

Also attended: University of California-San Diego

Roger Sperry 1913–1994

Neuroscientist, 1981 Nobel Prize winner

Also attended: Oberlin College

Richard Rorty 1931–2007

Philosopher, professor at Princeton and Stanford

Also attended: Yale University

Father: James Rorty (Tufts University)

Martin Gardner 1914–2010

Popular mathematics and science writer

Bachelor of Arts · Philosophy · Class of 1936

David Graeber 1961–2020

Anthropologist and anarchist activist

Also attended: SUNY at Purchase College

Myron Scholes 1941–

Nobel-winning economist, co-originator of Black–Scholes model

Edward Lawrie Tatum 1909–1975

Geneticist, 1958 Nobel Prize co-winner

Also attended: University of Wisconsin-Madison

Harry Markowitz 1927–2023

Economist, 1990 Nobel Memorial Prize winner

Doctor of Philosophy

Paul M. Romer 1955–

Economist, co-winner of the 2018 Nobel Prize in Economics

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1983

Father: Roy Romer (University of Colorado Boulder, Colorado State University-Fort Collins)

Eugene Fama 1939–

Nobel laureate economist and University of Chicago professor

Also attended: Tufts University

Philip Kotler 1931–

Marketing author, consultant, and professor

Also attended: DePaul University, Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Thomas Sowell 1930–

Economist and social theorist

Also attended: Howard University, Harvard University, Columbia University in the City of New York

David Suzuki 1936–

Canadian science broadcaster and environmental activist

Also attended: Amherst College

Lawrence Kohlberg 1927–1987

Psychologist known for stages of moral development

Leonard Bloomfield 1887–1949

Linguist who led American structural linguistics

Also attended: Harvard University, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Tom Gehrels 1925–2011

Dutch-American astronomer and University of Arizona professor

Howard H. Aiken 1900–1973

Computing pioneer and designer of Harvard Mark I

Attended until 1935

Also attended: Harvard University, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Moungi Bawendi 1961–

Chemist and MIT professor

Also attended: Harvard University

John Michael Jumper 1985–

AlphaFold developer, 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry laureate

Doctor of Philosophy

Also attended: Vanderbilt University

Stanley Miller 1930–2007

Chemist behind the Miller–Urey experiment

Also attended: University of California-Berkeley

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi 1934–2021

Hungarian-American psychologist who named the concept of flow

Paul Cohen 1934–2007

Mathematician and Fields Medal winner

Doctor · Class of 1958

Also attended: CUNY Brooklyn College

John G. Thompson 1932–

American mathematician, Fields and Abel Prize winner

Attended until 1959

Also attended: Yale University

Richard Hamming 1915–1998

Mathematician known for the Hamming code

Bachelor of Science · Mathematics · Class of 1937

Also attended: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Arpad Elo 1903–1992

Physicist who created the Elo rating system

Attended until 1926

Morris Swadesh 1909–1967

Linguist specializing in comparative and historical linguistics

Also attended: Yale University

Spouse: Mary Haas (Yale University, University of Chicago)

Clair Cameron Patterson 1922–1995

Geochemist and geologist

Also attended: Grinnell College, University of Iowa

Mildred Dresselhaus 1930–2017

MIT physicist known as Queen of Carbon Science

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1958

Also attended: Harvard University, Cornell University, CUNY Hunter College

Nancy Roman 1925–2018

Astronomer, NASA's first chief of astronomy

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1949

Also attended: Swarthmore College

Frances Oldham Kelsey 1914–2015

FDA reviewer who refused to authorize thalidomide

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1938

Maurice Hilleman 1919–2005

Microbiologist who developed over 40 vaccines

Also attended: Montana State University

David D. Friedman 1945–

Economist and anarcho-capitalism theorist

Also attended: Harvard University

Father: Milton Friedman (University of Chicago, Rutgers University-New Brunswick)

Mother: Rose Friedman (University of Chicago, Reed College)

Michael Dean Woodford 1955–

Columbia University macroeconomist

Also attended: Yale University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Otto Struve 1897–1963

Russian-American astronomer of Baltic German origin

Harold Lasswell 1902–1978

Political scientist and communications theorist

Also attended: Yale University

Isadore Singer 1924–2021

Mathematician, MIT institute professor

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1950

Also attended: University of Michigan-Ann Arbor

Robert Gallo 1937–

Biomedical researcher who helped establish HIV as cause of AIDS

Also attended: Boston College, Thomas Jefferson University, Providence College

J. Allen Hynek 1910–1986

Astronomer and UFO researcher

Maud Menten 1879–1960

Canadian physician and chemist in enzyme kinetics

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1916

Raymond Smullyan 1919–2017

Mathematician, logician, magician and pianist

Attended until 1954

Also attended: University of the Pacific, Princeton University, Reed College

Katharine Burr Blodgett 1898–1979

Physicist who invented non-reflecting glass

Also attended: Bryn Mawr College

Benjamin Bloom 1913–1999

Educational psychologist known for mastery learning

Also attended: The Pennsylvania State University

Oswald Veblen 1880–1960

Mathematician, geometer and topologist

Attended until 1903

Also attended: University of Iowa, Harvard University

George David Birkhoff 1884–1944

Mathematician

Also attended: Harvard University

Child: Garrett Birkhoff (Harvard University)

Clarence Zener 1905–1993

Physicist for whom the Zener diode is named

Bachelor of Science · Mathematics · Class of 1926

Also attended: Harvard University

Richard Sennett 1943–

Sociologist, professor at London School of Economics

Also attended: Harvard University

Spouse: Saskia Sassen (University of Notre Dame)

Robert W. Floyd 1936–2001

Computer scientist, designer of Floyd–Warshall algorithm

İlber Ortaylı 1947–2026

Turkish historian, former director of Topkapı Palace Museum

Master of Arts

Jaroslav Pelikan 1923–2006

Yale historian of Christianity and medieval thought

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1946

Also attended: Concordia University Ann Arbor, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, Concordia Seminary

John M. Grunsfeld 1958–

Former NASA astronaut and physicist

Also attended: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Harry Stack Sullivan 1892–1949

Neo-Freudian psychiatrist and psychoanalyst

Also attended: Cornell University

Fredrik Barth 1928–2016

Norwegian social anthropologist

Andre Gunder Frank 1929–2005

Economic historian and dependency theory proponent

Also attended: Swarthmore College

Garrett Hardin 1915–2003

Ecologist known for the tragedy of the commons

Also attended: University of California-Santa Barbara, Stanford University

Gordon Tullock 1922–2014

Economist known for public choice theory

James Flynn 1934–2020

Moral philosopher and intelligence researcher

Doctor of Philosophy

Ronald Inglehart 1934–2021

Political scientist, director of World Values Survey

Phillip E. Johnson 1940–2019

Berkeley law professor, intelligent design leader

Also attended: Harvard University

Lee Cronbach 1916–2001

Educational psychologist, author of the "Alpha" paper

Doctor of Philosophy · Educational psychology · Class of 1940

Also attended: California State University--Fresno, University of California-Berkeley

Malcolm Knowles 1913–1997

Adult educator known for the theory of andragogy

Also attended: Harvard University

Sophonisba Breckinridge 1866–1948

Social reformer, social scientist and lawyer

Also attended: Wellesley College

Father: William Campbell Preston Breckinridge (Centre College, University of Louisville)

Jeannette Piccard 1895–1981

High-altitude balloonist and Episcopal priest

Also attended: University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Bryn Mawr College

Child: Don Piccard (University of Minnesota-Twin Cities)

Agustín Carstens 1958–

Mexican economist and former Bank of Mexico governor

Arnold Harberger 1924–

Economist and university professor

Master of Arts, Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1950

Also attended: Johns Hopkins University

Luis Garicano 1967–

Spanish economist and former MEP

David Fromkin 1932–2017

Historian, author of A Peace to End All Peace

Deborah S. Jin 1968–2016

Physicist, pioneer in polar molecule quantum chemistry

Doctorate · Class of 1995

Also attended: Princeton University

Justin Yifu Lin 1952–

Economist, former World Bank chief economist

Spouse: Chen Yunying (George Washington University)

Zhenan Bao 1970–

Chemical engineer and Stanford University professor

Doctor of Philosophy · Chemistry · Class of 1995

Huston Smith 1919–2016

Religious studies scholar, author of The World's Religions

Also attended: Central Methodist University-College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

Ian Barbour 1923–2013

Scholar of science and religion

Also attended: Yale University, Duke University, Swarthmore College

Zhang Yuzhe 1902–1986

Astronomer, director of Purple Mountain Observatory

Lin Lanying 1918–2003

Materials scientist, mother of China's semiconductor materials

Also attended: Dickinson College, University of Pennsylvania

Lubert Stryer 1938–2024

Stanford professor of cell biology and biochemist

Also attended: Harvard University

Xiaoliang Sunney Xie 1962–

Biophysical chemist, director of Changping Laboratory

Also attended: University of California-San Diego

Gregory Chow 1930–

Economist who invented the Chow test

Also attended: Cornell University

Cui Zhiyuan 1963–

Tsinghua professor and leading Chinese New Left figure

Zhou Peiyuan 1902–1993

Theoretical physicist, former president of Peking University

Also attended: California Institute of Technology

Wei-Liang Chow 1911–1995

Mathematician known for algebraic geometry

Attended until 1932

Also attended: Asbury University

Arjun Appadurai 1949–

Indian-American anthropologist and globalization theorist

Also attended: Brandeis University

Carter Godwin Woodson 1875–1950

Historian, founder of ASALH

Also attended: Berea College, Harvard University, West Virginia State University

Ernest Everett Just 1883–1941

Biologist who studied the cell surface

Also attended: Dartmouth College, South Carolina State University

Child: Margaret Just Butcher (Boston University)

Steven Landsburg 1954–

Professor of economics at the University of Rochester

Also attended: University of Rochester

Sudhir Venkatesh 1966–

Sociologist, professor at Columbia University

Doctor of Philosophy

Also attended: University of California-San Diego

William Alfred Fowler 1911–1995

Astrophysicist, 1983 Nobel Prize in Physics

Also attended: Arizona State University-Tempe, California Institute of Technology, Ohio State University-Main Campus

Walter E. Massey 1938–

Physicist; president emeritus of Morehouse College

Also attended: Morehouse College, Washington University in St Louis

Vaughn Rasberry

Associate professor of English at Stanford University

Also attended: Howard University

Spouse: Tatyana Ali (Harvard University)

Kurt Vonnegut 1922–2007

Satirical novelist and author

Also attended: Cornell University, Carnegie Mellon University, The University of Tennessee-Knoxville

Child: Mark Vonnegut (Harvard University, Swarthmore College)

Sibling: Bernard Vonnegut (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)

Saul Bellow 1915–2005

Writer and 1976 Nobel Prize in Literature laureate

Also attended: Northwestern University, Northwest University, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Spouse: Alexandra Bellow (Yale University)

Roger Ebert 1942–2013

Film critic for the Chicago Sun-Times

Also attended: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Spouse: Chaz Ebert (University of Wisconsin-Platteville)

Susan Sontag 1933–2004

Writer, critic and activist

Bachelor of Arts

Also attended: University of California-Berkeley, Harvard University

Spouse: Philip Rieff (University of Chicago)

Child: David Rieff (Amherst College, Princeton University)

Philip Roth 1933–2018

Novelist and short-story writer

Master of Arts · English-language literature · Class of 1955

Also attended: Bucknell University

Ed Asner 1929–2021

Actor known for playing Lou Grant

Philip Glass 1937–

Composer and pianist

Mathematics, Philosophy

Also attended: Johns Hopkins University, The Juilliard School

Spouse: JoAnne Akalaitis (University of Chicago, Stanford University)

Mike Nichols 1931–2014

Film and theatre director and comedian

Spouse: Diane Sawyer (University of Louisville, Wellesley College)

Celeste Holm 1917–2012

Actress and Academy Award winner

Spouse: Wesley Addy (University of California-Los Angeles)

Child: Ted Nelson (Harvard University, Swarthmore College)

George Steiner 1929–2020

Literary critic, essayist and educator

Also attended: Harvard University

Child: David Steiner (Harvard University)

Misha Collins 1974–

Actor best known as Castiel in Supernatural

Social theory

Nicholas Ray 1911–1979

Film director, screenwriter and actor

Carl Van Vechten 1880–1964

Writer, photographer and Harlem Renaissance patron

Stephen Leacock 1869–1944

Canadian humourist, writer and political economist

Fritz Leiber 1910–1992

Writer of fantasy, horror and science fiction

Child: Justin Leiber (University of Chicago)

Shel Silverstein 1930–1999

Poet, cartoonist, songwriter and children's writer

Also attended: School of the Art Institute of Chicago

Ted Levine 1957–

Actor, Buffalo Bill in The Silence of the Lambs

Also attended: Marlboro College

Anna Chlumsky 1980–

Actress known for My Girl

Sessue Hayakawa 1889–1973

Japanese silent-era Hollywood film star

Lewis Hine 1874–1940

Sociologist and photographer of child labor

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York, New York University

Robert M. Pirsig 1928–2017

Author of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

Also attended: University of Minnesota-Twin Cities

Father: Maynard Pirsig (University of Minnesota-Twin Cities)

Studs Terkel 1912–2008

Writer and broadcaster, Pulitzer winner for The Good War

Seymour Hersh 1937–

Investigative journalist who exposed the My Lai massacre

Elaine May 1932–

Screenwriter, director, actress and comedian

Spouse: Sheldon Harnick (Northwestern University)

Stefan Heym 1913–2001

German writer and Ritchie Boy

Sandra Cisneros 1954–

Writer and poet, author of The House on Mango Street

Also attended: Loyola University Chicago, University of Iowa

Michael Stevens 1986–

Creator and host of YouTube channel Vsauce

English-language literature, Neuropsychology

John Scalzi 1969–

Science fiction author of Old Man's War

Madeline Miller 1978–

Novelist, author of The Song of Achilles and Circe

Also attended: Yale University, Brown University

Anna Louise Strong 1885–1970

Journalist who reported on Soviet and Chinese communism

Also attended: Oberlin College, Bryn Mawr College

Harry Morgan 1915–2011

Actor, played Colonel Potter in M*A*S*H

Katherine Dunham 1909–2006

Dancer, choreographer, anthropologist and activist

Doctor of Philosophy, Bachelor of Arts · Anthropology, Social anthropology · Class of 1936

Also attended: Joliet Junior College

Cyril M. Kornbluth 1923–1958

Science fiction author

Also attended: CUNY--City College

Philip Kaufman 1936–

Film director and screenwriter

Also attended: Harvard University

Salli Richardson 1967–

Actress, television director and producer

Jenny Holzer 1950–

Neo-conceptual artist

Also attended: Ohio University-Main Campus, Rhode Island School of Design

Paul Butterfield 1942–1987

Blues harmonica player and bandleader

Milton Sills 1882–1930

Early twentieth-century stage and film actor

Spouse: Doris Kenyon (Columbia University in the City of New York)

Brock Peters 1922–2005

Actor in To Kill a Mockingbird

Also attended: CUNY--City College

David Rasche 1944–

Actor, star of Sledge Hammer!

Marilu Henner 1952–

Actress, singer, dancer, television host and author

Spouse: Robert Lieberman (University at Buffalo)

Don Shirley 1927–2013

Jazz pianist and composer

Also attended: Catholic University of America

Frances Dee 1909–2004

American film actress

Spouse: Joel McCrea (Pomona College)

Mike Resnick 1942–2020

Science fiction writer, editor and Hugo winner

Attended until 1961

Nate Silver 1978–

Statistician, founder of FiveThirtyEight

Elvin Bishop 1942–

Blues and rock singer and guitarist

Daniel Clowes 1961–

Cartoonist, graphic novelist and screenwriter

Also attended: Pratt Institute-Main

Victor Wong 1927–2001

Chinese American actor in Big Trouble in Little China

Also attended: University of California-Berkeley

Lauren Oliver 1982–

Author of young adult novels

Also attended: New York University

Florence Price 1887–1953

Classical composer, pianist, organist and music teacher

Also attended: The New England Conservatory of Music

John Grierson 1898–1972

Scottish filmmaker, father of British documentary film

Philip Yancey 1949–

Best-selling Christian author

Also attended: Wheaton College (IL), Columbia International University

Kurt Elling 1967–

Jazz singer and songwriter

Also attended: Gustavus Adolphus College

Sara Paretsky 1947–

Detective fiction author, creator of V. I. Warshawski

Also attended: University of Kansas, Kansas State University

Ulu Grosbard 1929–2012

Belgian-born theater and film director

Also attended: Yale University

Melvin Frank 1913–1988

Screenwriter, film producer and director

Child: Elizabeth Frank (University of California-Berkeley)

Kimberly Peirce 1967–

Film director of Boys Don't Cry

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York

Keith Szarabajka 1952–

Actor in The Dark Knight and Argo

Also attended: Trinity University

Jonathan Kaplan 1947–2025

Film director of The Accused

Also attended: New York University

Andrea James 1967–

Transgender rights activist and film producer

Master of Arts · English · Class of 1990

Also attended: Wabash College

Ana Castillo 1953–

Chicana novelist, poet and essayist

Also attended: Northeastern Illinois University

Arkady Martine 1985–

Hugo Award-winning science fiction author

Spouse: Vivian Shaw (University of Baltimore, St. Mary's College of Maryland)

David Brooks 1961–

New York Times opinion columnist

Bud Fisher 1884–1954

Cartoonist who created Mutt and Jeff

Steve Coleman 1956–

Saxophonist, composer and MacArthur Fellow

Doctor of Philosophy

John Gunther 1901–1970

Journalist and author of the Inside books

June Travis 1914–2008

Film actress

Also attended: University of California-Los Angeles

William Axt 1888–1959

Film score composer and conductor

Martin Flavin 1883–1967

Playwright and novelist, Pulitzer Prize winner

Nick Manning 1967–

Adult film actor and director

Sydney J. Harris 1917–1986

Chicago journalist and syndicated columnist

Jessica Abel 1969–

Cartoonist, author and educator

Also attended: Carleton College

Jon Hurwitz 1977–

Screenwriter, Cobra Kai co-creator

Also attended: University of Pennsylvania, University of the Arts

Dan Seymour 1915–1993

Character actor who often played villains in Warner Bros. films

Robin Hunicke 1973–

Video game designer and co-founder of Funomena

Also attended: Northwestern University

Zohra Lampert 1937–

Actress on stage, film and television

David Auburn 1969–

Playwright; Proof won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama

Also attended: The Juilliard School

Janet Flanner 1892–1978

Paris correspondent of The New Yorker

Tucker Max 1975–

Author, blogger and public speaker

Also attended: Duke University

Richard Suckle 1969–

Film producer of American Hustle

Also attended: New York University

Richard Leigh 1943–2007

Novelist and short story writer

Also attended: Tufts University, Stony Brook University

George Loane Tucker 1872–1921

Silent film director, actor and screenwriter

Amy Wright 1950–

Actress in The Deer Hunter

Also attended: Beloit College

Spouse: Rip Torn (Texas A & M University-College Station, The University of Texas at Austin)

Ray Anderson 1952–

Jazz trombonist and composer

Ray Nelson 1931–2022

Science fiction author and cartoonist

John Bellairs 1938–1991

American author of fantasy and children's mystery novels

Also attended: University of Notre Dame

Martha Dodd 1908–1990

Journalist and novelist, daughter of ambassador William Dodd

Father: William Dodd (Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University)

Bret Stephens 1973–

New York Times opinion columnist

Spouse: Pamela Paul (Brown University)

Rebecca Jarvis 1981–

ABC News chief business correspondent

Mu Dan 1918–1977

Chinese poet and translator

Bill Odenkirk 1965–

Comedy writer and television producer

Sibling: Bob Odenkirk (College of DuPage, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale)

Candice Breitz 1972–

South African video and photography artist

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York

Sarah Koenig 1969–

Journalist and host of the podcast Serial

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York

Zhao Luorui 1912–1998

Chinese poet and translator

Doctorate · Class of 1948

Father: T. C. Chao (Vanderbilt University)

Ling Ma 1983–

Chinese American novelist and University of Chicago professor

Also attended: Cornell University

Caitlin Doughty 1984–

Mortician, author and creator of Ask a Mortician

Also attended: Cypress College

Harvey Levin 1950–

Founder of TMZ and television producer

Juris Doctor

Also attended: University of California-Santa Barbara

Hamilton Morris 1987–

Journalist and filmmaker, host of Hamilton's Pharmacopeia

Also attended: Wesleyan University, The New School

Father: Errol Morris (University of California-Berkeley, San Francisco Art Institute)

Alexi McCammond 1993–

American political journalist

Bachelor of Arts · Class of 2015

Morgan Saylor 1994–

Actress known for Homeland

James Steven Ginsburg 1965–

Record producer and founder of Cedille Records

Father: Martin D. Ginsburg (Harvard University, Cornell University)

Mother: Ruth Bader Ginsburg (Harvard University, Columbia University in the City of New York)

Samuel Reshevsky 1911–1992

Chess grandmaster and former prodigy

Adam Silver 1962–

Fifth and current NBA commissioner

Also attended: Duke University

David Hall 1875–1972

Track athlete and university basketball coach

George Lott 1906–1991

Tennis player and coach, great doubles player

Ira Davenport 1887–1941

1912 Olympic 800m bronze medalist

Patrick Baumann 1967–2018

Swiss basketball executive, FIBA secretary general

Willie Davis 1934–2020

NFL defensive end who played for Grambling

Also attended: Grambling State University

William Bentsen 1930–2020

Olympic champion sailor

Also attended: Yale University, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Denison University

Mustafa Cerić 1952–

Former Grand Mufti of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Michael Czerny 1946–

Canadian Jesuit and Catholic cardinal

Richard Spencer 1978–

White supremacist and prominent alt-right figure

Master of Arts · Humanities · Class of 2003

Also attended: Colgate University, Duke University, University of Virginia-Main Campus

Dallin H. Oaks 1932–

18th president of the LDS Church

Also attended: Brigham Young University-Provo

Child: Jenny Oaks Baker (The Juilliard School, Curtis Institute of Music)

Isaac Ginsburgh 1944–

Israeli rabbi of the Chabad movement

Also attended: Yeshiva University

Katrina Leung 1954–

Former FBI informant and Ministry of State Security agent

Also attended: Cornell University