Our Ranking of Popular Online & Distance Learning Graduates

Leonardo DiCaprio dropped out of high school after his junior year and eventually earned his GED years later. He'd already begun acting in minor roles and commercials at the time, then moving on to more iconic films. While he likes to attend college, it never actually happened, and now he's said, according to People, that "life is my college."

Robert Downey Jr. is an actor and producer; he was born in Manhattan, New York City. He had success in his youth, followed by a period of substance abuse and legal issues. As a child, Downey was "surrounded by drugs." His father, a drug addict, allowed Downey to use marijuana at age six, an incident which his father later said he regretted He never graduated from high school but instead earned his GED in prison.

Eminem studied at Lincoln High School in Warren, Michigan, where he failed the 10th-grade multiple times and quit at 17 years old. Regardless of being a poor student, Eminem consistently had a profound partiality for language, reading comic books, and even the dictionary.

Beyoncé attended the high school for the Performing and Visual Arts of Houston, Texas. She continued to sharpen her musical skills before transferring to the Alief Elsik high school, the last school she attended. What happened next remains a bit foggy. Some report says that she got her diploma while in high school other sources say that she eventually got her GED. At a similar time that she's still in high school, Beyoncé and Destiny's Child started gaining popularity.

The Prime Minister of India started his career as a tea seller in Vadnagar, India. His political ascent was the result of working his through the BJP party ranks. This epic turn around in life is partly thanks to the degrees Modi obtained through distance education. First, a Political Science degree from Delhi University in 1978, followed by a Master's degree from Gujarat University in 1983 - all completed online! Modi is the current Prime Minister of India. He will face re-election in 2024.

We should remain students for a lifetime. You should be ready and yearn to learn from every moment of life. The basic elements of life need to be associated with learning. The learning process should be a part of your DNA.

Just like many other celebrities, Steven Spielberg was forced to drop out of university way back in 1968, to chase his dreams. His efforts did pay off, however. The famous director, scriptwriter, and screenwriter broke box-office records by producing blockbuster films, including Jaws, E.T., Jurassic Park, Schindler’s List. Through online studies, Steven Spielberg was able to acquire his BA (Film Production and Electronic Arts) degree in 2002 from California State University Long Beach.

Nicolas Cage is an actor and filmmaker born in Long Beach, California. He was raised in a Catholic family. Cage comes from a family of actors. He left secondary school early; however, this did not stop him from acquiring and focusing on his GED before following his famous family members' footsteps.

Britney Spears quit out of high school to pursue her musical career. She used to study at Kentwood high school in LA before she left school. It's unclear if she got her GED or not.

Aubrey Drake Graham is a rapper, songwriter, actor, and entrepreneur. He was born on October 24, 1986, in Toronto, Ontario. In his younger days, he attended a Jewish day school and became a bar mitzvah. He attended Forest Hill Collegiate Institute. He also studied at Vaughan Road Academy in the city's multicultural Oakwood–Vaughan neighborhood. Drake got bullied at school for his racial and religious background, and upon realizing that his busy class schedule was detrimental to his blossoming acting career, Drake dropped out of school. He later graduated in October 2012. He has passed his GED exam ten years after dropping out of school at age 15 to join other casts of "Degrassi: The Next Generation."

Seven (7) Grand Slam singles titles, 14 women’s doubles titles, and four (4) Olympic Gold medals. If that was not enough, Venus enrolled and completed her Bachelors of Science Degree in business administration from the University of Indiana East. This online program was designed in collaboration with the Women’s Tennis Association that enabled athletes to compete professionally and complete their studies. Venus understands that knowledge is critical to her success and immediately launched a successful interior design company, V Starr Interiors and her own fashion line, EleVen in collaboration with Steve & Barry’s. “One of the main reasons that I chose IU East was because I felt so at home. It was like family, like it was my school, and I was so excited. It’s been an incredible journey,” Williams said.

I’ve learned so much. It was always my dream to have a business degree and I ended up going to art school so many times, but in the back of my head, I felt like I needed the tools to be a better leader, to be a better planner, to be better at all of the things I wanted to do in my businesses because I’m so hands-on.