Stranger Things Star Noah Schnapp Graduates from University of Pennsylvania
Noah Schnapp is a college graduate.
On Monday, May 18, the Stranger Things alum, 21, shared photos on Instagram from his graduation ceremony after earning his bachelor’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.
In the post, Schnapp included a photo of himself in cap and gown with his twin sister, Chloe, and their parents, Karine and Mitchell Schnapp. He also shared an image of himself standing near the commencement stage, along with video of his name being announced as he crossed the stage to receive his diploma.
He captioned the post, “What, like it’s hard???”—a nod to one of Elle Woods’ most iconic lines from Legally Blonde.
In a December 2022 interview with Vogue, Schnapp said he attended in-person classes at the Ivy League school until Stranger Things production required him on set, after which he planned to continue virtually.
One of the few original Stranger Things cast members to graduate from college, Schnapp has spoken openly about balancing school with his acting career.
In a December 2025 interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the actor, who first appeared as Will Byers in the show’s debut season in 2016, said education has always been a priority for him. “Growing up, education was always so important,” he said, adding that his parents wanted to make sure he was getting proper instruction, even while working on set.
“It was never really a question whether I would go to college or not, just more of what I would study,” he said. “I knew I wanted to be an actor, but I wasn’t rushing it. I wanted to have my childhood and get all those experiences first before rushing into everything and losing the sense of normal life.”
Schnapp added that choosing college meant setting some projects aside in order to focus on school. But he said the experience also gave him space to explore interests beyond acting.
“All I’ve really known is acting,” he said. “It’s helped me explore and learn about other facets, taking screenwriting and directing classes and being like, ‘OK, maybe I actually want to write a movie for myself, or maybe I want to direct something
