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Walker Says Lack Of College Degree Won’t Hamper Possible Presidential Run

Governor Considering Run For White House

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Gov. Scott Walker said he thinks most voters would look past his lack of a college degree should he run for U.S. president in 2016.

When Walker left Marquette University in 1990 after studying political science, philosophy and economics, he was 34 credits short of the minimum needed to graduate. Walker’s lack of degree was basically a non-issue in his past campaigns for Wisconsin governor.

That could change in a national campaign given that the last three presidents received degrees from Harvard, Yale and Oxford universities. Walker said it might be an issue for someone new to politics, but not for him.

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“I think from this point going forward, people are going to judge me — whether it’s a governor or any other position — more based on what I’ve been able to accomplish. I mean to me, I think I’ve got a graduate degree in getting things done,” Walker said.

The governor said it’s possible that the 60 percent of Americans who don’t have college degrees would identify with his decision to enter the workforce instead of finish school. That’s a figure cited recently in an article by the International Business Times, which suggested Walker’s lack of a degree could actually help him.

Walker has said he wants to finish his degree through the University of Wisconsin’s new FlexOption program for working adults, but it’s yet to be expanded to the kind of course offerings he’d need to graduate.

It’s been more than 60 years since Americans elected a president without a college degree. The last was Democrat Harry S. Truman.