The 15 Richest People Who Didn't Graduate From College

Whether its intelligence, creativity, drive, or just plain luck, these 15 people are billionaires with no bachelor's degree. This can give some ideas for some of you may be ; )

#15 Leonardo Del Vecchio

Net worth: $10.5 billion

Source of wealth: Luxottica (eyewear)

Education: no higher education

Honored: Although he never went to college, Leonardo has received four honorary degrees from various Italian universities.

#14 Roman Abramovich

AP Images
Net worth: $11.2 billion

Source of wealth: steel and investments

Education: college drop out

Humble beginnings: Abramovich once sold plastic toys out of his small apartment in Russia.

#13 Savitri Jindal

Net worth: $12.2 billion

Source of wealth: inherited late husband's steel company

Education: no higher education

Unexpected billions: Savitri didn't even know how much money her husband made before taking over his company after his unexpected death.

#12 Paul Allen

Net worth: $12.7 billion

Source of wealth: Microsoft and investments

Education: Washington State University drop out

Strategic thinker: Allen convinced Bill Gates to drop out of college in 1976 to form Microsoft.

#11 Michael Dell

Net worth: $14 billion

Source of wealth: Dell

Education: University of Texas--Austin drop out

Thoughts on college: "As you start your journey, the first thing you should do is throw away that store-bought map and begin to draw your own."

#10 Michele Ferrero

Net worth: $17 billion

Source of wealth: Ferrero Rocher (chocolates)

Education: no higher education

#9 Lee Shau Kee

Net worth: $18.5 billion

Source of wealth: real estate

Education: no higher education

College supporter: Lee Shau Kee has provided scholarships for many colleges and universities around the world through his Lee Shau Kee Foundation. He has also been given many honorary degrees.

#8 Liliane Bettencourt

AP Images
Net worth: $20 billion

Source of wealth: L'Oreal

Education: no higher education

In her blood: Why bother with college when you inherited the largest cosmetics company in the world?

#7 Li Ka-shing

Net worth: $21 billion

Source of wealth: real estate and various business endeavors

Education: High school drop out

Born entrepreneur: Li Ka-Shing dropped out of high school at age 15 and sold plastic flowers to help support his family.

#6 Ingvar Kamprad

Net worth: $23 billion

Source of wealth: IKEA

Education: no higher education

Born entrepreneur: Kamprad bought matches cheaply in bulk in Stockholm and sold them individually for a profit when he was just a child.

#5 Karl Albrecht

AP Images
Net worth: $23.5 billion

Source of wealth: ALDI

Education: no higher education

Learned more from WWII: Karl Albrecht served in WWII for Germany's army and used lessons from war and postwar Germany to build a successful company with his brother.

#4 Christy Walton

Net worth: $24 billion

Source of wealth: Wal Mart

Education: no higher education

College supporter: Walton donates money to The Walton Family Charitable Support Foundation which among other causes helps deserving students from Mexico and South American countries receive educations from United States colleges.

#3 Amancio Ortega

Net worth: $25 billion

Source of wealth: Zara/Inditex

Education: no higher education

Model for business schools: Ortega's business model for Inditex has been taught in many business schools.

#2 Larry Ellison

Net worth: $28 billion

Source of wealth: Oracle

Education: University of Chicago drop out

Recognized by colleges: Ellison was named Entrepreneur of the Year by the Harvard University School of Business in 1990.

#1 Bill Gates

Net worth: $54 billion

Source of wealth: Microsoft

Education: Harvard University drop out

Thoughts on college: "I applaud the graduates today for taking a much more direct route to your degrees. For my part, I’m just happy that the Crimson has called me “Harvard’s most successful dropout.” I guess that makes me valedictorian of my own special class … I did the best of everyone who failed."