At 18 , Brooke Shields was one of the most illustrious people on the planet , but she put her fabulously successful career on time lag to attend Princeton University because she wanted to prove she was more than just her look .
Since they’ve already spent years gaining experience in their chosen field, most child stars don’t go to college or university. However, some decide to pause their careers so that they can have the “normal” experience of earning a degree (though not all of them finish it).
Other people who got famous at a young age, and want to continue their education, keep working while also taking classes.
Here are 10 former child stars who took a break from fame to go to college:
1.Wanting to break free of the preconceived notions Hollywood had of her, 18-year-oldBrooke Shieldsput her modeling and acting career on hold to attend Princeton University. She got her bachelor’s degree in Romance languages andgraduatedwith honors.
2.AfterThe Wonder Yearsended, Danica McKellar took a break from acting to get her bachelor’s degree because shewantedto find her value outside of the role that made her famous. She studied mathematics at UCLA, where she graduated summa cum laude.
3.WhenBlossomended,Mayim Bialikembarked on a 12-year break from acting to study neuroscience at UCLA. Sheearnedboth her bachelor’s and her doctorate.
4.After wrappingThe Suite Life on Deck,Cole Sprousepaused his acting career and earned his bachelor’s fromNew YorkUniversity’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study, where hedesignedhis own major.
He studied the diligence of geographic selective information systems and satellite imagery ( which is fundamentally virtual cartography ) to archaeology .
5.Cole’s brother,Dylan Sprouse, also enrolled at NYU’s Gallatin School, where heearnedhis bachelor’s in video game design.
Both brothers graduated with honor .
6.After the last season ofiCarly, Miranda Cosgroveattendedthe University of Southern California, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology.
7.Joseph Gordon-Levitt temporarilyquitacting because he wanted to try something outside of entertainment. At Columbia University, hestudiedhistory, literature, and French.
However , hedropped outafter download the redaction package Final Cut Pro and teach himself to edit videos .
8.Having already won an Oscar at 11, Anna Paquin waspreparedto give up acting when she enrolled at Columbia at 18.
However , after a yr of study French and English literature , shedropped outto continue playact full time .
9.A few years after leavingHome Improvement, Jonathan Taylor Thomas left acting for academics. Starting in 2002, hespenttwo years studying history and philosophy at Harvard University and studied abroad at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.
A few years later , he enrolled in another Ivy , graduating from Columbia University ’s School of General Studies in 2010 .
He never fully returned to acting , asunder from several telecasting client roles .
10.And finally, in 2010,Boy Meets Worldactor Danielle Fishel largely stepped away from the spotlight toearnher bachelor’s in psychology from California State University, Fullerton.
She graduated before starring inGirl meet World .
And now, here are 15 child stars who kept working while going to school:
11.Stranger Thingsactor Noah Schnapp is currentlyenrolledat the University of Pennsylvania, where he’s studying business entrepreneurship and innovation at Wharton as a business major.
12.Dakota Fanningstudiedfilm and the portrayal of women in film at NYU, but she “wasn’t willing to sacrifice [her] career.” She balanced her schoolwork with projects likeBrimstone.
13.While filmingSister, Sister, Tamera Mowry was apart-timestudent at Pepperdine University. Graduating with honors, sheearnedher bachelor’s in psychology, with an emphasis on abnormal childhood development.
14.Tamera’s sister, Tia Mowry, was also apart-timePepperdine student while shootingSister, Sister. She, too,earneda bachelor’s degree in psychology.
15.After high school, Natalie Portman went on to earn her bachelor’s in psychology fromHarvard. She balanced her studies with movies likeStar Wars: Episode I — The Phantom MenaceandCold Mountain.
16.Jungkook, who was only 15 when hejoinedBTS, earned a degree in broadcasting and entertainment from Global Cyber University.
He alsoreceivedthe President ’s Award , which is the school ’s in high spirits honour .
17.WhenWizards of Waverly Placeended, Jennifer Stone decided to study psychology, but after being diagnosed with diabetes, sheswitchedto a nursing major instead. Sheearnedan associate degree from Glendale Community College and her bachelor’s from Azusa Pacific University, balancing her studies with movies likeSanta Girl.
18.Yara Shahidiearnedher bachelor’s in African American studies from Harvard. She divided her time between classes, her TV seriesGrown-ish, and movies likeThe Sun Is Also a Star.
19.While filmingModern Family, Ariel Winterenrolledat UCLA, but she ended up dropping out because she overestimated how much she could take on at the time and wasn’t able to get to a lot of her classes.
20.While earning a bachelor’s degree in English literature at Brown University, Emma Watsonfilmedthe last twoHarry Pottermovies,The Bling Ring, andThe Perks of Being a Wallflower.
21.AfterHannah Montanaended, Emily Osment continued acting andstudiedtheater at Occidental College, but she dropped out after two years.
She fit on to play main role onCleanersandYoung and Hungry .
22.The same year10 Things I Hate About Youcame out, Julia Stilesenrolledat Columbia. While earning her bachelor’s in English literature, she starred in movies likeSave the Last DanceandThe Omen.
23.Thinking her acting career would be over at 18, Jodie Fosterenrolledat Yale University. However, she kept making movies to pay for her bachelor’s degree in literature.
She planned to go to grad schoolhouse , but she changed her nous after winning an Oscar forThe Accused .
24.While working onThe Viewand thenRaven’s Home, Raven-Symonéstudiedfine arts at the Academy of Art University online. She earned both her associate and bachelor’s degrees.
25.And finally, sinceGood Luck Charliewrapped, Bridgit Mendler has been balancing her time between academics and entertainment. Sheearnedher bachelor’s in anthropology from the University of Southern California and her master’s from MIT while also starring in shows likeUndateableandMerry Happy Whatever.
presently , she’sworkingtoward two doctorial level : a Ph.D. from the MIT Media Lab and a JD from Harvard Law School .
