4 First Ladies with Graduate Degrees

The title "First Lady" originated in the United States in 1849, when United States President Zachary Taylor called Dolley Madison "First Lady" at her state funeral. First Ladies of the United States hold the important position of supporting their Presidential husbands and being a public figure. Over the years, the role of the first lady has evolved to being a role of great power and importance. You don't need a college degree as a first lady, but here are four that have earned their advanced degree.

1. Pat Nixon

Pat Nixon has the distinction to be the first United States First Lady to earn a graduate degree. Following four years of study at the University of Southern California she graduated and became a teacher. Pat was hired as a teacher at Whittier Union High School, where she taught commercial classes in typing, bookkeeping, business principles, stenography and adult night classes in typing. She continued to teach for the first year of her marriage.

2. Laura Bush

Laura Bush is the wife of the 43rd President of the United States, George W. Bush. She was the First Lady of the United States from January 20, 2001 to January 20, 2009. Laura graduated from Southern Methodist University with a bachelor's degree in education and received her Master's degree in Library Science at the University of Texas at Austin, where she was employed as a librarian when she met her husband.

3. Hillary Clinton

Hillary Rodham Clinton was the First Lady of the United States from 1993 to 2001. In 1965, Rodham enrolled at Wellesley College, where she majored in political science. She later graduated from Yale Law School in 1973 and became a legal advisor at the Children's Defense Fund. She is currently 67th United States Secretary of State, serving in the administration of President Barack Obama. She was also a United States Senator for New York from 2001 to 2009.

4. Michelle Obama

Michelle Obama is the first African American First Lady of the United States. The current First Lady majored in sociology at Princeton University. She went on to Harvard Law School where she earned her Juris Doctor Degree. She later returned to Chicago and worked at the law firm Sidley Austin, where she met her future husband. She is the third consecutive First Lady to have earned a graduate degree.