What degree did Katie Ledecky earn at Stanford?

Not only is Katie Ledecky the owner of seven Olympic gold medals and 15 World Aquatics Championship gold medals, she is also a recent Stanford University graduate.

Ledecky spent the last five years before the Tokyo Olympics at Stanford University, where she worked with US national team coach Greg Meehan.

Ledecky swam for Stanford University for two years before becoming a professional. During that time, she broke 15 NCAA records and won eight NCSS titles, helping the Cardinals win two team championships in the process. She finally gave up her amateur status in March 2018.

With no tournaments scheduled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Katie used that extra free time to good use. She enrolled in a number of classes and completed her psychology major and political science minor at Stanford University virtually. She said:

"It was great to keep my mind occupied and to complete my degree earlier than expected. It was a really nice silver lining for 2020."

Before the pandemic hit the world, she enrolled in a class on 'Global Change and Emerging Infectious Disease'. In addition, she also enrolled in other classes like 'Sleep and Dreams' and 'How Beliefs Create Reality'. The decorated swimmer explained her experience thus:

“I feel like almost every class I’ve taken here has sparked something."

Time and again, she has proved herself to be an all-rounder. Despite not adding to her class credits, she worked at Stanford's Mind and Body Lab, where she helped doctoral students with their research often related to nutrition, health, and exercise.

The seven-time Olympic champion also spent her free time in grade school classrooms and children's hospitals, which helped her meet different people that had nothing to do with swimming.

Interestingly, she, along with her coach, conducted swimming training sessions for Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg, at his Palo Alto home.

"Just a really great time to be taking all those classes and still training at Stanford."

Katie Ledecky completed her graduation in 2021

In November 2021, Katie Ledecky graduated from Stanford with an undergraduate degree in Psychology. However, the graduation ceremony was held in June while she was at the US Olympic trails more than 1000 miles away in Omaha, Nebraska.

To celebrate her achievement, the prolific swimmer wore a cap and gown over her swimsuit at the Olympic trials for a picture.

She joined her swimming and diving teammates, Brooke Forde and Katie Dabrot, to celebrate the achievement together.

Katie Ledecky moves to the University of Florida

Having completed her college degree in 2021, she decided to move to the University of Florida to be close to her family and train under a new coach. Hailing from Washington DC, Katie Ledecky now trains under Anthony Nesty, a 1988 Olympic gold medalist.

Ledecky has won seven Olympic gold medals so far, the highest by any US female athlete in any sport. She is the first female athlete to pocket seven Olympic medals till now.

Moving forward, she will be one of America's strongest medal contender at the 2024 Paris Olympics. That event will give her the opportunity to add to her rich collection of medals.