Taylor Swift has had a fascinating career. She burst onto the scene as a teen-favorite country pop star known for her sugary love songs and relatability. Mainstream audiences adored her from the very start of her career, but few would have predicted that Swift would one day become one of the biggest pop stars in the world.
Due to her long-lasting popularity, it can be easy to forget that Taylor Swift is still in her early thirties.
This begs questions such as:
- How did school fit into the life of someone who was named among Rolling Stones’ 100 greatest songwriters of all time as a 25-year-old?
- Is her musical talent entirely self-cultivated, or is it the result of arduous formal training at a prestigious music conservatory?
In this article, I will explore where Taylor Swift’s educational background to find the answers to these questions and more.
In this article, you’ll learn:
Did Taylor Swift go to high school?
Yes, Taylor Swift went to high school at Aaron Academy, a private Christian school. There, she received her high school diploma in 2008 at 18 years old. However, before settling at Aaron Academy, she also went to Hendersonville and Wyomissing Area high schools, but they did not suit her strict touring schedules.
In addition to frequent switches between schools, Swift also had to manage her career simultaneously. From the age of nine, Swift started performing at local theater productions and also took regular trips to NYC for professional vocal coaching.
Eventually, it was country music that captivated young Taylor Swift. She fell in love with the sound of artists like Shania Twain and Faith Hill, and she and her family decided that they needed to move to Nashville, the heart of the country music scene.
Being so heavily invested in music impacted Swift’s schooling. Aaron Academy, the school where Swift finally got her degree, was chosen due to the school allowing homeschooling. In her own words, she finished her education “doing homeschool work on the floors of airport terminals.“
Luckily, her academic performance never suffered due to her budding career, frequent traveling, and lack of in-person attendance – Swift graduated high school with a GPA score of 4.0.
After graduating from high school, Taylor Swift found herself at a crossroads:
- On one hand, she had the opportunity to pursue her music career full-time as she was already a considerable force in the country scene by the time of her graduation.
- On the other hand, she could have polished her artistry further by pursuing, for example, a songwriting degree at an established music school like the Berklee College of Music.
So, what did Taylor Swift do after high school? Let’s find out.
Did Taylor Swift go to college?
No, Taylor Swift did not go to college after graduating from high school in 2008. Her high school graduation coincided with the release of her breakthrough album “Fearless” and her first headlining tour, the “Fearless Tour”, so Taylor ended up skipping college and pursuing her musical career instead.
In 2022, however, Taylor Swift received an honorary doctorate of fine arts from New York University. Awarding honorary degrees to celebrities has caused a fair amount of controversy in the past, but Taylor Swift seemed to fully embrace the irony in her receiving a doctorate. In her acceptance speech, she made a funny and surprisingly honest remark that “she is not qualified to tell graduates what to do.”
All in all, it has been interesting to see Taylor Swift’s artistic growth – she has quietly gone from being yet another teen pop sensation to one of the most respected songwriters and artists in modern country and folk circles.
Her career is also unique in that there is nothing random about it. Ever since Swift was a child, her parents have invested a lot of money, time, and effort into developing her talent. This has included countless meetings with producers, endless hours of vocal work, and intense traveling across the United States.
Foregoing college education was yet another calculated decision – Taylor Swift’s team, her parents, and Swift herself decided to make the most out of her first tastes of worldwide success and go all-in on developing the brand of Taylor Swift. And, in 2022, it can safely be said that the decision paid off – Swift is now a superstar worth $570m.