Where did Will Ferrell go to college?

Actor and comedian Will Ferrell gained popularity as a cast member of the sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live, and since then, he’s had a successful career in showbusiness, appearing in several films including Elf, Anchorman, and Step Brothers just to name a few. Before he found his calling in the comedy world, however, Ferrell was just a guy earning a degree in one of the country’s most prestigious schools.  

Born and raised in Irvine, California, Ferrell was a quiet child who enjoyed sports, particularly football. His mother, Betty Kay Overman, described him as an easygoing kid who was able to entertain himself. “Will would line up his Matchbox cars, by himself, and be totally happy,” she said.

Ferrell said he was never a class clown, but he did things, unintentionally, that made people laugh. In an interview with The Orange County Register, he attributed being funny to growing up in a safe, suburban neighborhood where “there was no drama.” To escape boredom, Ferrell said he and his friends entertained themselves by coming up with ways to make each other laugh. “The humor broke boredom,” he recalled. Despite that, it was never his dream to pursue a career out of being a comedian. Instead, he wanted a stable job.

Will Ferrell studied to be a sportscaster

Ferrell graduated high school in 1986, but wasn’t sure which path to take and had no concrete plans for his future. He figured a degree in sports information was his best bet since he liked sports, and he attended the University of Southern California. He partook in Greek life as a member of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity and graduated in 1990. Afterward, he realized a career in sports broadcasting wasn’t for him, and after watching a performance by comedy improv group The Groundlings, he found his calling.

In 2017, Ferrell went back to his alma mater to give a commencement speech to the graduating class. Before he addressed the crowd, he received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree that he jokingly said meant that he could now perform minimally invasive surgery. In his speech, Ferrell recalled a time when he pulled a prank by interrupting one of the professor’s classes dressed as a janitor, complete with a cleaning bucket and a mop, and saying he had to clean up vomit.

He thought the professor would reprimand him, but surprisingly, he told him what he did was funny and to keep doing it. Ferrell said hearing those words of praise allowed him to express being silly and weird. He also told the story on Conan and said the professor was “instrumental in allowing me to be me.” He concluded his speech in true Will Ferrell fashion by singing his version of Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You.”