[9] In 1873, Wilson became a communicant member of the Columbia First Presbyterian Church; he remained a member throughout his life.[10]
Wilson attended Davidson College in North Carolina for the 1873–74 school year but transferred as a freshman to the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University).[11] He studied political philosophy and history, joined the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity, and was active in the Whig literary and debating society.[12] He was also elected secretary of the school's football association, president of the school's baseball association, and managing editor of the student newspaper.[13] In the hotly contested presidential election of 1876, Wilson declared his support for the Democratic Party and its nominee, Samuel J. Tilden.[14] After graduating from Princeton in 1879,[15] Wilson attended the University of Virginia School of Law, where he was involved in the Virginia Glee Club and served as president of the Jefferson Literary and Debating Society.[16] After poor health forced his withdrawal from the University of Virginia, he continued to study law on his own while living with his parents in Wilmington, North Carolina.