Besides the many accolades for her film work, Meryl Streep is well respected in the university community. Having honed her craft at Vassar, Dartmouth and Yale, Streep has been acknowledged by university committee deems with special (albeit mostly symbolic) positions. Here’s a list of Meryl Streep’s honorary doctorates.

Indiana University: Honorary Doctoral Degree (April 16, 2014)
Meryl Streep received an honorary doctoral degree during an April 2014 visit to Indiana University’s Bloomington campus. IU paid tribute to “her remarkable contributions to cinema and to the fabric of American culture while also recognizing our own rich academic traditions in film and theater” with a packed two-day event that included several film screenings and conversation panels.

Barnard College: Barnard Medal of Distinction (May 17, 2010)
In 2010, Meryl Streep delivered the keynote commencement address at Barnard College in New York City and received the college’s Medal of Distinction. “Outside of acting, she has used her brilliant voice to support the arts, international human rights and the environment, as well as health issues of great importance to women and families including cancer, child health and AIDS,” Barnard President Debora L. Spar said in a message to students.

Harvard University: Doctor of Arts (May 27, 2010)
Harvard University bestowed Meryl Streep with a Honorary Doctoral Degree in 2014. Its press release said: “Considered one of the country’s greatest living actresses, Streep […] is the most nominated performer for either award. Streep also is an environmental health activist. In 1989 she helped to found Mothers and Others, a consumer group advocating sustainable agriculture and increased pesticide regulations.

Princeton University: Doctor of Fine Arts (June 02, 2009)
Another Doctor of Fine Arts was presented to Meryl Strep by Princeton University in 2009. “In an age of celebrity, she represents craftsmanship; in an age dominated by directors, she represents the centrality of the actor; in an age of special effects, she represents the power of the written word and artful movement; in an age of virtual reality, she reminds us of the story’s power to shed light on what is real.”

Middlebury College: Doctor of Arts (May 23, 2004)
Middlebury College bestowed Meryl Streep with a Doctor of Arts during their 2004 commencement. The keynote speech was delivered by her friend, the late Christopher Reeve. Coincidentally, the event was a family affair. The same day, one of her nephews graduated from Middlebury College.

University of New Hampshire: Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters (May 24, 2003)
At UNH and colleges across the country, Meryl Streep noted, graduating women now outnumber men by nearly two to one. Women have successfully claimed their place in the classroom, Streep concluded; yet “the glass ceiling is still in effect in the business world, the professions and politics. Imagine if the Senate were apportioned in the same way as your graduating class!”

Brown University – Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts (May 1986)
There is no public inforation on Meryl Streep receiving a Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts from Brown University, except the fact that she did. Streep’s connection to Brown is rooted in her family – her father, Harry Streep, was awarded a full Scholarship to Brown University but was forced to leave after a year during the Depression.

Lafayette College: Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts (June 02, 1985)
Meryl Streep received an Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts and started her keynote speech by singing “Que Sera, Sera” and proceeded to tell not to bother trying to map out our lives, as they would naturally unfold, and our lives would play out in due time.” Streep also the delighted crowd, that while shooting the hair-washing-scene with Robert Redford in “Out Of Africa”, she was secretly thinking about what to say at the Lafayette commencement.

Yale University: Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts (May 23, 1983)
A day after collecting honors from Vassar, Meryl Streep took the podium at Yale University’s commencement to receive a Doctor of Fine Arts, for “forceful presence and flexible artistry” that “radiate intelligence and understanding of the human condition.”

Vassar College: Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts (May 22, 1983)
Weeks after receiving her second Academy Award, Vassar College awarded Streep with a Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts. She also delivered the commencement speech.” Streep spoke to the graduating class as “peers,” encouraging them not to lapse into complacency, but instead to “integrate what you believe into every single area of your life. Take your heart to work and ask the most and best of everybody else too.”

Dartmouth College: Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts (June 1981)
In 1981, Dartmouth College awarded Streep with a Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts. In the Summer of 1970, Meryl Streep spent a term at Dartmouth through the 12-college exchange while a student at Vassar College. Her interest in costume design led to studying costume design, play writing with legendary drama professor Errol Hill, and dance.