Most Nobel Prize Laureates by College
Success of a College Measured by Student Achievement
The mission of a college or university is to educate its students and prepare them to achieve success in their personal and professional endeavors. The mark of a university’s prowess is the success that its students enjoy and a college or university that produces students who achieve the pinnacle of success in their field is certainly worthy of distinction. The most prestigious distinction in many fields is considered the Nobel Prize.
Nobel Prize History
The Nobel Prizes are international awards given annually to people in recognition of their achievements in a field. The Prizes were established by Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, through his will in 1895. The prizes were first awarded in 1901. The first prizes were awarded in the fields of Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, Literature, and Peace. In 1968, Sveriges Riksbank (the Swedish National Bank) instituted a sixth prize for economics. Recipients of Nobel Prizes are known as laureates and they receive a gold medal, diploma and a sum of money depending on the Nobel Foundation’s income for that year. In 2011, the prize was worth $1.45 million.
Colleges with the Most Nobel Prize Laureates
This article will provide a list of colleges with the most total laureates (graduates, attendees, researchers, and academic staff) as well as a list of colleges with the most graduates receiving Nobel Prizes.
Most Total Laureates
1. Columbia University (96 laureates) – Founded in 1754 in Manhattan, New York City, Columbia University is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York and the fifth oldest in the United States. Not only is it responsible for the most Nobel laureates in the world, the university also administers the Pulitzer Prize, an award for achievements in journalism, literature and musical composition.
2. University of Cambridge (88 laureates) – The University of Cambridge was founded in 1209 in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the seventh oldest university in the world and the second oldest in the English-speaking world. The University of Cambridge started after scholars of Oxford University left after a dispute with townsfolk to start their own university.
3. University of Chicago (86 laureates) – This private research university was established in 1890 in Chicago, Illinois with a donation from oil tycoon John D. Rockefeller. The school is responsible for numerous movements that changed the course of knowledge in various fields. The University of Chicago played a significant role in the development of the Chicago School of economics, sociology, and the law and economics movement in legal analysis.
Most Graduates Receiving Nobel Prizes
1. University of Cambridge (65 laureates)
2. Harvard University (52 laureates) – Founded in 1636 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Harvard University is the oldest institution of higher learning in the country and the first corporation as well. Seventy-five laureates have been affiliated with the university in total. Harvard has the largest financial endowment in the world at $32 billion. It also produced eight United States’ Presidents.
3. Columbia University (38 laureates)
