Studying the Classics provides excellent foundational knowledge for a number of different fields. Several well known figures have had their start in the Roman and Greek worlds:
- Chris Martin, lead singer of Coldplay, graduated with First Honours in Latin and Greek from the University of London
- Sir Anthony James Leggett, 2003 recipient of the Nobel Prize for Physics, majored in Classics at Balliol College, Oxford
- Tom Hiddleston, actor (Loki in The Avengers), graduated with First Honors in Classics from the University of Cambridge
- John Layfield, WWE announcer, graduated with a degree in Ancient History from Abliene Christian University
- Porter Goss, former head of the CIA, graduated with a degree in Ancient Greek from Yale University
- Charles Geschke, co-founder of Adobe, majored in Classics at Xavier University
- Sigmund Freud, developer of psychoanalysis, majored in Greek, Latin, and Hebrew at Leopoldstädter Kommunal-Realgymnasium
- Gough Whitlam, former Prime Minister of Australia, majored in Classics at the University of Sydney
- J.R.R Tolkien, author of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, studied Classics at Oxford
- Rita Mae Brown, author and feminist, studied Classics at NYU
- Karl Marx, philosopher and political thinker, studied Clasiscs and earned a Ph.D. for a dissertation on ancient Greek philosophy
- James Baker, former U.S. Secretary of State, majored in Classics at Princeton University
- C.S. Lewis, author of The Chronicles of Narnia, studied Classics at Oxford University