This is a very small sampling of a few noteworthy individuals who have received and use their (Honorary) titles:
World Leaders
- William Jefferson Clinton, Doctor of Humane Letters, 1995
- Dwight Eisenhower, Doctor of Laws, 1946
- Herbert Hoover, Doctor of Laws, 1917
- John F. Kennedy, Doctor of Laws, 1956
- Honorable Mayor Rudolph (Rudy) Giuliani, Doctor of Humanities, 2001
- Theodore Roosevelt, Master of Arts, 1919
- Mother Teresa, Doctor of Laws, 1982
- Desmond Tutu, Doctor of Laws, 1979
- Nelson Mandela (14 Honorary Doctoral Degrees) 1996-2006
- Madeleine K. Albright, Doctor of Laws, 1995
- Winston Churchill, Doctor of Laws, 1943
- Colin Powell, Doctor of Laws, 1993
Business Professionals
- Bill Gates, Doctor of Laws, 2007
- Malcolm S. Forbes, Doctor of Laws, 1987
- "Ted" Turner, Doctor of Humane Letters, 1989
- Walt Disney, Master of Arts, 1938
- Steve Jobs, Doctor of Business, Doctor of Humanities – Open University Int. Online
Authors and Poets
- Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Doctor of Letters, 1978
- Arthur Schlessinger Jr., Doctor of Laws, 2000
- Tennessee Williams, Doctor of Letters, 1982
- Robert Frost, Doctor of Letters, 1936
- Carlos Fuentes, Doctor of Laws, 1983
- Carl Sandburg, Doctor of Letters, 1940
Scientific and Medical Community
- Stephen W. Hawking, Doctor of Science, 1990
- Albert Einstein, Doctor of Science, 1935
- Charles H Townes, Doctor of Science, 2001
- Nicolaas Bloembergen, Doctor of Science, 2000
- Oprah Winfrey, Doctor of Fine Arts, 2002
- Quincy Jones, Doctor of Fine Arts, 1997
- Yo-Yo Ma, Doctor of Music, 1991
- Martin Scorsese, Doctor of Fine Arts, 1991
- Itzhak Perlman, Doctor of Music, 1986
Also some people whom you may never have known about receiving their Honorary Doctoral Degrees
- Sir Paul McCartney, (2) Doctor of Music, Yale and Open University Int. Online
- Steven Spielberg, Doctor of Letters, 1997
- Robert De Niro, Doctor of Fine Arts, 1996
- Yoko Ono Lennon: Doctorate of Laws in 2001, Doctorate of Fine Arts 2002
- Aretha Franklin (4) Honorary Doctoral Degrees: 2006-2010
- Meryl Streep (4) Honorary Doctorates, 1983-2001
- Michelle Obama, Doctor of Laws, 2016
And many more...
- Jon Bon Jovi, Doctor of Humanities, 2001
- Kylie Minogue, Honorary Doctorate of Health Science, 2011
- J.K. Rowling (6) Honorary Doctoral Degrees, 2000-2006
- Bob Hope, Doctor of Humane Letters, 1984
- William (Bill) Cosby, Doctor of Humane Letters, 1999
- (Mr.) Fred Rogers, Doctor of Letters, 1991
- Leonard Bernstein, Doctor of Music, 1967
- Walter Cronkite, Doctor of Letters, 1970>
- Bob Dylan, Doctor of Music, 1970
- Katharine Hepburn, Doctor of Humane Letters, 1992
- Ella Fitzgerald, Doctor of Music, 1990