For a lot of country music hopefuls, college isn't always the smartest option. So plenty of them opted out of the standard-issue, four-year degree and headed straight to Nashville. But some of them actually gave it the old college try. And some of them finished. Some with honors. (We're looking at you, Carrie Underwood.) Either way, they all turned out just fine and landed in Tennessee right when the music needed them most.

Since we are on the verge of back-to-school season, we did some homework to find out who went where.

1. Luke Bryan

Georgia Southern University

Graduated in 1999 with a bachelor's degree in marketing

Sigma Chi

2. Maren Morris

University of North Texas in Denton

Left before graduation

3. Luke Combs

Appalachian State University

Left before graduation

4. Carrie Underwood

Northeastern State University in Oklahoma

Graduated magna cum laude in 2006 with a bachelor's degree in journalism

5. Brad Paisley

West Liberty State College and Belmont University

Graduated in 1995 with a bachelor's degree in business

6. Ashley McBryde

Arkansas State University

Left before graduation

7. Sam Hunt

Middle Tennessee State University and University of Alabama

Graduated in 2007 with a bachelor's degree in economics

8. Dixie Chicks' Martie Maguire

Southwestern University in Texas

Left before graduation

9. Cole Swindell

Georgia Southern University

Graduated in 2007 with a bachelor's degree in marketing

Sigma Chi

10. Eric Church

Appalachian State University

Graduated in 2000 with a bachelor's degree in business

11. Faith Hill

Hinds Junior College in Mississippi

Left before graduation

12. Tim McGraw

Northeast Louisiana University on a baseball scholarship

Left before graduation

Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity

13. George Strait

Texas State University

Graduated in 1979 with a bachelor's degree in agriculture

14. Dixie Chicks' Natalie Maines

West Texas A&M, South Plains College and Berklee College of Music

Left before graduation

15. Lee Brice

Clemson University

Left before graduation

16. Karen Fairchild

Samford University in Alabama

Graduated with a bachelor's degree

17: Kimberly Schlapman

Samford University in Alabama and University of Tennessee Knoxville

Graduated in 1992 with a bachelor's degree in child and family studies

18. Dierks Bentley

Vanderbilt University

Graduated in 1997 with a bachelor's degree

19. Darius Rucker

University of South Carolina

Left before graduation

20. Scotty McCreery

North Carolina State University

Left before graduation

21. Garth Brooks

Oklahoma State University

Graduated in 1984 with a bachelor's degree in advertising

22. Reba McEntire

Southeastern Oklahoma State University

Graduated with a degree in education

23. Chris Stapleton

Vanderbilt University

Left before graduation

24. Trisha Yearwood

Young Harris College, University of Georgia and Belmont University

Graduated with a bachelor's degree in business

25. Dan + Shay's Dan Smyers

Carnegie Mellon University

Graduated in 2010 with a bachelor's degree in finance

26. Dan + Shay's Shay Mooney

Valley Forge Christian College

Left before graduation

27. Jake Owen

Florida State University

Left before graduation

28. Jon Pardi

Butte College in California

Left before graduation

29. Charles Kelley

University of Georgia

Graduated in 2004 with a bachelor's degree in finance

Lambda Chi Alpha

30. Dave Haywood

University of Georgia

Graduated in 2004 with a bachelor's degree

(Remember in 2018 when Haywood and Kelley went back to UGA, in full cap and gown, to give the commencement address?)

31. Hillary Scott

Middle Tennessee State University

Left before graduation

32. Kenny Chesney

East Tennessee State University

Graduated in 1990 with a bachelor's degree in advertising

33. Sugarland's Jennifer Nettles

Agnes Scott College in Georgia

Graduated in 1997 with a bachelor's degree in sociology and anthropology

34. Chase Rice

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

He even made a video about his love for playing football there.

35. Cam

University of California, Davis

Graduated in 2006 with a double major in psychology and Italian

36. Dustin Lynch

Lipscomb University

Graduated in 2007 with a bachelor's degree in biology

37. Brett Eldredge

Elmhurst College outside of Chicago

Left before graduation

38. Jordan Davis

Louisiana State University

Graduated in 2011 with a bachelor's degree in environmental science and resource conservation

39. Matt Stell

Drury University in Missouri

Graduated in 2006 with a bachelor's degree

40. Old Dominion's Matt Ramsey

Virginia Commonwealth University

Graduated with an illustration degree

41. Phil Vassar

James Madison University

Graduated in 1985 with a bachelor's degree