Warren Buffett is widely regarded as one of the greatest investing minds of all time. The “Oracle of Omaha” earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Nebraska and a master’s degree in economics from Columbia University, where he studied under legendary investor Benjamin Graham.

But despite his own education, the Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRK.A) CEO has said he doesn’t care where someone went to school—or whether they attended college at all. “I never look at where a candidate has gone to school. Never!” he wrote in a February 2025 letter to shareholders.

Instead, Buffett believes successful business leadership stems from innate talent and real-world experience rather than prestigious diplomas.

What Buffett Says About Finding Good Business Talent

In his 2025 letter, Buffett said that while great managers can come from prestigious schools, there are many successful business leaders who didn’t attend elite institutions or even complete their formal education.

“I was lucky enough to get an education at three fine universities,” Buffett wrote. “And I avidly believe in lifelong learning. I’ve observed, however, that a very large portion of business talent is innate with nature swamping nurture.”

Buffett mentioned three examples of successful business minds who didn’t graduate from elite schools:

• Pete Liegl founded Forest River, a manufacturer of recreational vehicles that had $1.6 billion in annual sales when it was acquired by Berkshire Hathaway in 2005. Liegl received a bachelor’s degree from Northern Michigan University and an MBA from Western Michigan University. In his 2025 letter, Buffett praised Liegl as “a man unknown to most Berkshire shareholders but one who contributed many billions to their aggregate wealth.”
• Bill Gates dropped out of Harvard College to start Microsoft (MSFT) and became one of the world’s wealthiest people, though he hasn’t encouraged other students to do the same. “Although I dropped out of college and got lucky pursuing a career in software, getting a degree is a much surer path to success,” he wrote in 2015.
• Ben Rosner founded Associated Retail Stores, a retail chain that had 75 women’s apparel stores when it was acquired by Berkshire Hathaway in 1978. Buffett described Rosner as “a retailing genius,” despite having only a sixth-grade education.

Does a Diploma Still Matter?

While Buffett attended three universities, he has said that he considers a $100 public-speaking course to be “the most important degree I have.”

“It’s certainly had the biggest impact in terms of my subsequent success,” he said in an interview for Getting There: A Book of Mentors. He said he does not display his diplomas from the University of Nebraska or Columbia University in his office, but he keeps the public-speaking certificate on display.

“Some people are going to get a lot out of advanced education, and some people are going to get very little,” Buffett said in a 2019 interview with Yahoo Finance. “It depends on the person, much more than it depends on the school.”

Research shows that a college education does carry significant value for students, as people with higher educational attainment tend to earn more money. In 2022, the median earnings of those with a bachelor’s degree were 59% higher than the median earnings of those who had only completed high school. People with only a high school education also face higher rates of unemployment compared to people with either an associate’s or a bachelor’s degree.

It’s worth noting that the outcome of higher education can vary significantly depending on the type of school a student attends. Most colleges produce graduates who earn more than the typical high school graduate a decade after enrollment, according to a 2024 analysis by the HEA Group examining data from about 5 million former students. But at the majority of for-profit schools, most former students earned less than high school graduates 10 years after enrolling, the report found.

Meanwhile, public perception could be shifting to align more with Buffett’s view on the value of higher education. A 2023 Pew Research Center survey found that about half (49%) of those surveyed say a four-year college degree is less important for attaining a well-paying job than 20 years ago.

The Bottom Line

Buffett’s comments cut through the credentialism that dominates many hiring practices today. While education can provide valuable knowledge, Buffett emphasizes that natural talent, practical experience, and proven results ultimately matter more to him than where—or if—someone went to college.