Which universities claim Donald Trump as an alumnus and what degrees do their records show?
Executive summary
Multiple reliable profiles and university summaries state Donald Trump began college at Fordham University (1964–1966) and then transferred to the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, where he graduated in 1968 with a bachelor’s degree in economics/business (Wharton). Fordham is consistently described as the institution he attended before transferring [1] [2]. University records and reporting note Penn confirms degree and graduation date but does not release full academic transcripts; classmates and Penn reporting dispute claims that he graduated at the top of his class [3] [1].
1. The two institutions that consistently claim him — Fordham and Wharton (University of Pennsylvania)
Contemporary biographies and education roundups uniformly list Fordham University as Trump’s first college (1964–1966) and the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, as the institution from which he earned his undergraduate degree after transferring in 1966 and graduating in 1968 [1] [2]. Profiles such as BestColleges and multiple biographical sketches repeat the same timeline: Fordham enrollment, then transfer to Wharton where he received a bachelor’s degree [2] [1].
2. What the University of Pennsylvania’s public records show
Penn’s public position, as reported by The Daily Pennsylvanian, is that the university can confirm date of graduation, degree and major but will not release detailed academic records for alumni; pages from the 1968 commencement list Trump as a Wharton graduate and show he graduated without honors [3]. Reporting by Penn and classmates has disputed Trump’s longstanding claim that he graduated at or near the top of his class; university listings and Dean’s List rosters suggest he was not among the top-ranked students [3].
3. What Fordham University’s records and coverage show
Reporting and biographical sources say Trump attended Fordham for two years before transferring to Wharton; multiple outlets repeat Fordham as his initial college [1] [2]. Available summaries emphasize Fordham as the starting point of his undergraduate studies but do not claim Fordham conferred his degree — the scholarship/degree attribution goes to Wharton/Penn [1] [2].
4. Degrees and the precise credential reported
The commonly reported credential is a Bachelor of Science (or Bachelor’s) in economics/business from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, conferred in 1968 after his transfer from Fordham [2] [1]. Sources describe Wharton as the granting school; they do not report an MBA or other graduate degree for Trump [2] [1]. Some outlets characterize Wharton as “the Wharton School of Finance and Commerce” in older phrasing but the factual claim in modern reporting is that he earned an undergraduate degree there [4] [2].
5. Disputed claims and limits of public documentation
There is disagreement over Trump’s academic standing at Wharton: Trump has at times suggested very high academic placement, but Penn records and classmates dispute that he graduated at the top of his class [3]. The university’s policy of only confirming degree, major and date means many specific claims about grades, rank or honors cannot be verified from public university records [3]. Available sources do not mention separate degrees from other universities beyond Fordham attendance and the Wharton bachelor’s [1] [2].
6. Other institutions sometimes invoked — and what sources say
Some reporting and reference pages mention Trump University, a private company he founded later in life, but that is not a degree-granting university and is distinct from his collegiate credentials; multiple pieces cover Trump University as a business venture and a subject of litigation [5]. The provided sources do not assert Trump earned degrees from any additional accredited colleges beyond Wharton as his degree-conferring institution; available sources do not mention other degree claims [5] [1].
7. How journalists and schools frame confirmation versus detail
Journalistic practice reflected in the sources: universities (especially Penn) will confirm the core credential — degree, school and year — but generally will not release transcripts or class rank; therefore public debate about honors or relative class standing relies on yearbooks, commencement lists, classmate recollections and reporting rather than official grade disclosures [3]. The Daily Pennsylvanian notes commencement pages list him as a 1968 Wharton graduate and not on the Dean’s List, which is used by critics to challenge some of Trump’s claims about academic distinction [3].
Limitations: this analysis relies solely on the provided sources; it does not draw on material beyond the search results given. If you want, I can pull direct statements from Fordham or Penn public registrars (if available) or compile contemporaneous commencement listings and yearbook scans cited by reporters to document the exact wording used in university records.