It turns out that former Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-NE), who is now awaiting confirmation as Secretary of Defense, attended five colleges and was a "D" student..."Well, I had a--speaking of discipline--a difficult time staying in colleges. I was never kicked out of one, I never flunked out of one. I went to five different colleges. But I was in and out, a bit bored," Hagel said.
He had to take English composition three times, and struggled with other subjects as well. "Science, chemistry, some of the math courses I took were D's," Hagel admitted in a 2001 interview about his life and career with C-SPAN. He added, with a note of self-deprecating humor, that he decided the military would be a better alternative when he considered a draft board deferral.
"I said to them, well, I don't think it's in the best interest for any legitimate educational institution for me to go back and try that again right now," Hagel recalled. "And it's probably not in my best interest. So why don't I just volunteer for the draft."
