Benjamin Bolger
Benjamin Bradley Bolger (born 1975) is an American perpetual student who has earned 14 degrees and claims to be the second-most credentialed person in modern history after Michael W. Nicholson (who has 30 degrees). Like Nicholson, Bolger is from Michigan.

Biography

Benjamin Bolger was born to Donald, an engineer with General Motors, and Loretta, a teacher. At the age of two, his family was involved in a near-fatal car accident caused by a drunk driver; Bolger says this encouraged him to make the most out of his life. In first grade, he was diagnosed with dyslexia. Special education programs did not help him, and in fourth grade, his mother began home-schooling Bolger, while undergoing a divorce. At the age of 12, Bolger began taking classes at Muskegon Community College, graduating with an A.A. by the age of 17. He then transferred with those credits to the University of Michigan, majored in sociology, and graduated summa cum laude with a 4.0 grade point average in sociology. From there, he took an internship with the Clinton Administration with Press Secretary Mike McCurry. Bolger's mother has moved with him to each college and university he attended and reads his assignments to him aloud.

At the age of 19, he entered Yale Law School, but dropped out when he was unable to compensate for his dyslexia. After receiving additional training for his dyslexia, he enrolled at Oxford University, thus beginning his quest for degrees. After accumulating several master's degrees, he received his first doctorate at the age of 33 in Design from Harvard Graduate School of Design in 2008. He has also studied in graduate programs at the University of Pennsylvania, Georgetown University, the College of William and Mary, and Dartmouth College. His mother accompanied and supported him through much of his education to help with his work, from Ann Arbor to Oxford.

Degrees
1992 – Muskegon Community College (Associate of Arts)
1994 – University of Michigan (Bachelor of Arts in sociology)
1997 – University of Oxford (Master of Science in sociology)
1998 – University of Cambridge (Master of Philosophy in sociology and politics of modern society)
2000 – Stanford University (Master of Arts in education)
2001 – Teachers College, Columbia University (Master of Arts in politics of education)
2002 – Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation, Columbia University (Master of Science in real estate development)
2002 – Harvard University (Master of Design in urban planning and real estate)
2004 – Brown University, Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs (Master of Arts in developmental studies)
2004 – Dartmouth College (Master of Arts in liberal arts)
2007 – Brandeis University (Master of Arts in coexistence and conflict)
2007 – Skidmore College (Master of Arts in Humanities)
2008 – Harvard University (Doctor of Design in urban planning and real estate)
2014 – Ashland University (Master of Fine Arts in creative writing)

He has also completed some coursework at Yale Law School (in 1995, towards a JD) and at Boston College's Lynch School of Education (in 2004, towards an MA in higher education).

References

External links
Official web site

1975 births
Living people
Alumni of the University of Cambridge
Alumni of the University of Oxford
Ashland University alumni
Baruch College faculty
Boston College faculty
Brown University alumni
College of William & Mary faculty
Columbia Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation alumni
Dartmouth College alumni
Emerson College faculty
Harvard Graduate School of Design alumni
Harvard University faculty
Heller School for Social Policy and Management alumni
Northeastern University faculty
People from Flint, Michigan
Pratt Institute faculty
Skidmore College alumni
Stanford University alumni
Suffolk University faculty
Teachers College, Columbia University alumni
University of Michigan College of Literature, Science, and the Arts alumni
University of Phoenix faculty
University of Massachusetts Boston faculty