J. K. Rowling's Education Background

Joanne Rowling, aka., J.K. Rowling, is the British author who is famous for writing the Harry Potter book series. Rowling is also famous for her “rags to riches” story: in less than five years, she went from living on benefits to being a multi-millionaire. Today, her net worth is estimated to be $1 billion, as reported by Forbes in March 2010. EDUinReview will now take a look at the education background of this magnificent author.
Rowling was born on July 31, 1965 in Yate, Gloucestershire, England. Her parents are Peter James Rowling and Anne Rowling. She has a younger sister, Dianne, who is 23 months younger than J.K.
Rowling attended St. Michael’s Primary School in Winterbourne. It is possible that Rowling found inspiration for the headmaster of Hogwarts in her own headmaster at St Michael’s, Alfred Dunn.
She attended Wyedean School and College for secondary school. Inspiration for another character came from this phase in Rowling’s life.
“Hermione [ A bookish, know-it-all Harry Potter character] is loosely based on me. She’s a caricature of me when I was eleven, which I’m not particularly proud of.”
She also based Ron Weasley’s character on her friend, Sean Harris. Harris also owned a turquoise Ford Anglia, a very important car in the Harry Potter series.
Rowling earned a BA in French and Classics at the University of Exeter in South West England. Rowling has said that her college experience was not exactly what she had expected because she expected “to be amongst lots of similar people – thinking radical thoughts.”
The idea for Harry Potter sprang into Rowling’s head in 1990 when she was on a train trip that had been delayed for four hours.
“I really don’t know where the idea [for Harry Potter] came from,” Rowling said in an interview with The Boston Globe. “It started with Harry, then all these characters and situations came flooding into my head.”
Since 1997, when the first book was published in the U.S. by Scholastic Inc., Rowling has been very busy. She has written the other six books and been influential in the filming of all seven movies. She served as executive producer for Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. She also served as producer of both of the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows films.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows will premiere in the United States on November 19, 2010.
See the Education Backgrounds of the Actors in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows:
Emma Watson’s Education Background
Daniel Radcliffe’s Education Background
Rupert Grint’s Education Background
Ralph Fiennes’ Education Background
Michael Gamdon’s Education Background
Tom Felton’s Education Background
Bonnie Wright’s Education Background
Jamie Campbell Bower’s Education Background