After rising to fame, some celebrities decided to go back to college to pursue their other interests and possible career paths.
From Irish stars such as Love Island’s Greg O’Shea and fitness model Jess Redden, to Hollywood stars such as Kim Kardashian to Emma Watson, many celebs went back to education.
We’ve rounded up some stars that returned to college, and revealed what they studied.
Take a look:
Emma Watson
After rising to fame at a young age for her role as Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter franchise, Emma Watson attended Brown University – a private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island.
The actress graduated with a bachelor’s degree in English literature in 2014 and in the same year, she was appointed a UN Women Goodwill ambassador and helped launch the HeForShe campaign – which advocates for gender equality.
Speaking to Access Hollywood in 2007 about school, the 30-year-old said: “School life keeps me in touch with my friends. It keeps me in touch with reality. It makes me feel normal.”
“Let’s be honest: I have enough money never to have to work again, but I would never want that. Learning keeps me motivated.”
Kim Kardashian
Kim Kardashian is following in the footsteps of her late father Robert, a well established lawyer that rose to fame during the OJ Simpson trial.
The 40-year-old has been interning with a top law firm in California since 2019, and is hoping to take her bar exams in 2022.
Over the past year, Kim and her legal team have helped free multiple inmates through the First Step Act, a bill which aims to reduce mandatory minimum prison sentences and reintegrate inmates into society.
The bill was passed after Kim famously met with US President Donald Trump in May 2018, to discuss pardoning 63-year-old Alice Marie Johnson, who was serving a life sentence for a first-time nonviolent drug offence.
Kim’s meeting with Trump was successful, and Alice was released from prison just a few days later, after being granted clemency.
Cole and Dylan Sprouse
In 2015, twin brothers and actors Cole and Dylan graduated from New York University’s Gallatin School of Individualised Study.
Cole graduated with a degree in geographical information systems and satellite imaging, while Dylan graduated with a degree in video games design.
Cole spoke with Teen Vogue in 2015 about their decision to go to New York for college, saying: “Their arts program was great and they’re a prestigious institution, but really because you’re in a city… You didn’t feel trapped within a campus or in a bubble.”
The twin brothers decided to play a joke on their graduation ceremony, the brother’s switched places and accepted each-others diplomas!
“If you look up my graduating photo you’ll see. We just decided, you know, there’s no reason not to. No one’s going to notice.”
Eva Longoria
While filming the final season of popular show Desperate Housewives back in 2013, Eva Longoria completed a master’s degree in Chicano studies and political science studies at California State University Northridge.
The actress revealed she was inspired to go back to school to learn more about her Mexican roots.
The 45-year-old tweeted on her graduation day, saying: “You’re never too old or too busy to continue your education!”
James Franco
James Franco has attended multiple colleges, picking up multiple degrees while also winning awards for his acting.
The Academy Award winner briefly attended the University of California, Los Angeles in 1996 where he studied English and drama, but he dropped out to pursue his acting career.
In 2006, the actor enrolled at UCLA as an English major with a creative writing concentration, graduating two years later.
The 42-year-old simultaneously attended Columbia University for writing, Brooklyn College for fiction writing, New York University’s School of the Arts for film-making and North Carolina’s Warren Wilson College for poetry.
As of 2010, James was studying in the English PhD program at Yale University, and also attended the Rhode Island School of Design.
Greg O’Shea
Rugby star Greg O’Shea rose to fame after winning Love Island in 2019 with Amber Gill.
The rugby player recently completed his FE-1 law exams, after a long few months of studying.
“They were the hardest exams I’ve ever done honestly I have never been challenged more in all my life genuinely,” he said at the time.
“Anyone who has done these exams know how hard they are and I kept training and kept working my way through it, [it was] very very tough.”
Greg passed all his exams and could now qualify to be a solicitor.
Jess Redden
Influencer Jess Redden returned to college to study pharmacy.
The Dundrum native already holds a degree in psychology, and was inspired to study pharmacy after she overcame kidney failure.
Speaking to The Sun back in 2016, the fitness model said: “That reinforced the importance of health for me. People think that pharmacists, the traditional role is just dispensing medicines. But they do so much more.”
“I think being part of a team that manufactures a drug that can save millions of people’s lives is just like I’d love that.”
