We recently completed a survey of the educational background of the Chief Executive Officers (“CEO’s”) of the companies listed in the S/P 500 Index. The Index cumulative market cap represents about 80% of the equity market’s total capitalization (Yardeni Research, Inc, Report dated November 8, 2019).
Our findings clearly show that an elite ‘Ivy League’ undergraduate degree is not a requirement for large company management success. We defined the ‘elite’ group as the eight Ivy League (Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Dartmouth, Cornell, Penn, Brown and Columbia) plus MIT, Duke and Stanford. The results are summarized in a detailed Survey based on public company filings. Based on our definition, only 54 of the 500 (just 10.6%) current CEO officials carry an ‘elite’ degree. That group is led by Harvard and Princeton with nine each. Of the other colleges, Michigan and Texas A&M lead with eight positions each. Northwestern, Michigan State, and the Wisconsin system have five selections each. While many of the current group of CEO officials went on to earn graduate degrees at the elite institutions, the message is obvious—the path to the CEO corner office is not paved with Ivy League diplomas.
Copies of the Survey, with data on all 500 companies, can be obtained by request. Please contact Tom Burnett, Director of Research who can be reached as follows: tom.burnett@wsaccess.com