Where top U.S. leaders earn their stripes

AS THE INDUSTRIES AND COMPANIES driving the American economy change, new generations of leaders are rotated in to take the helm.

- BY CHARLOTTE HU

To understand the formative experiences and paths of American leaders, TIME and Statista analyzed the résumés of a diverse group of 4,800 of the most influential figures shaping U.S. society today—from policymakers and corporate executives to leading scientists, educators, and cultural innovators. The dataset is updated yearly to include younger leaders in emerging fields. The result is 125 universities and 175 companies that made the most frequent CV appearances.

Many leaders still start their journeys at the elite schools that stay at the top of this list year after year, reflecting the enduring influence of certain established universities in shaping future leaders. Harvard, Stanford, and MIT continue to rank in the top five, and their alumni continue to head the new wave of top companies in the U.S., like Amazon, Nvidia, and AMD. Even as higher education faces criticism and political pressure, it’s hard to deny that getting into an elite school can often set students up for future success and create socioeconomic mobility, not only through education offerings, but also through setting up shortcuts to leadership-incubation firms after graduation.