Princeton University might just be the single most recognized college name around the world. Growing up, for me at least, Princeton was known as being the best of the best that takes the world’s brightest students and turns them into some of the smartest people in the world. This is reflected in the alumni that leave the school and go on to create some life changing products or services. With that, let’s take a look at the five richest alumni from Princeton University.
5. Steve Forbes – $430 Million
Steve Forbes pretty much just went to school and then jumped immediately into the family business upon graduating from Princeton. He eventually earned multiple top positions at the company, being the president, chief executive, as well as the editor-in-chief. Back in college he created his own magazine which is now the most successful student run magazine across the entire world.
4. Meg Whitman – $1.9 Billion
Whitman found her self-made success upon landing the CEO position with Ebay, where she launched the company forward into the massive success it is today. She is a natural businesswoman who took over the CEO role of computer company HP back in 2011 with hopes of restoring the company as one of the better known tech companies around. She has even started her own company that focuses on creating more energy efficient servers that end up being significantly less than the current ones.
3. Eric Schmidt – $9.1 Billion
Schmidt is the former CEO of Google, but since leaving is pulling in a ton of money through the stock he was issued that grew for four years. The man has been smart with his money, and started selling and giving away portions of his 4.5 million Google shares to fund other projects and companies. He is big into philanthropic work and spends a lot of his money and time on advancing ocean exploration. Schmidt has a highly knowledgeable grasp on the tech industry and seems to be a magnet for some of the top ideas.
2. Carl Icahn – $24.5 Billion
Carl Icahn is a super investor who seems to have a knack with predicting the market and what stock will rise again. He owns stock in many of the largest companies out there and will be taken seriously for his stock advice by the CEOs of said companies. He is probably the richest man to navigate Wall Street and can cause change in the market when he wants and his investment fund even returned on 31% last year.
1. Jeff Bezos – $30 Billion
Jeff Bezos is the CEO and creator of Amazon.com, which is all he will ever need in life. The man is constantly getting richer as the stock of Amazon continues to rise. Last year, he sold 1 million shares for $260 million, which is less than 1% of the company. This small portion of Amazon stock covered the cost of Bezos purchasing the Washington Post for $250 million the month before. Amazon is now a staple website of the internet and has changed how we order products online, and Bezos is to thank for that.
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