Notable alumni
Those listed include graduates of the University, as well as attendees.
- David Applebaum, Israeli physician
- Frank P. Austin, celebrity interior designer
- Jeff Austin, musician, Yonder Mountain String Band
- Juan N. Babauta, graduate, governor of United States Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands
- Judith Baker, judoka
- Theda Bara, silent-film actress
- John Bardo, educator, president of Wichita State University, chancellor of Western Carolina University
- Shari Barkin, pediatrician
- John Barrett, graduate, CEO and president of Western & Southern Financial Group
- Rachel Barton Butler, playwright
- Kathleen Battle, graduate, Grammy Award-winning singer of New York Metropolitan Opera
- Shoshana Bean, musical theater graduate, Broadway actress
- David Bell, author
- Stanley Rossiter Benedict, inventor of Benedict's reagent
- Raoul Berger, professor at the UC Berkeley School of Law and Harvard Law School, early theorist of originalism
- Thomas Berger, A&S graduate, author of Little Big Man
- Matt Berninger, lead vocalist and founder of band The National
- Theodore Berry, graduate, mayor of Cincinnati 1972–76; member of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity
- Michael Bierut, DAAP graduate, partner at Pentagram New York
- John Shaw Billings, M.D. 1860, began process to organize world's medical literature, now PubMed
- Eula Bingham, occupational health scientist
- Lee Bowman, graduate, actor in films such as Love Affair , Cover Girl and Bataan
- Barnett R. Brickner, rabbi
- Frank Brogan, chancellor of State University System of Florida; former president of Florida Atlantic University
- Henry T. Brown, chemical engineer; first African American to earn a BS degree in chemical engineering at the University of Cincinnati
- Robert Burck, "naked cowboy" of Times Square in New York City; NYC mayoral candidate [1]
- Lindsey Burke, lawyer and politician
- Liz Callaway, singer and actress
- David Canary, A&S graduate, multiple Emmy-winning actor on All My Children since 1983
- Salmon P. Chase, 23rd Governor of Ohio, U.S. Treasury Secretary 1861–64, Chief Justice 1864-73
- Mike Clines, Kentucky politician
- Robin T. Cotton, ENT specialist and professor
- Dennis Courtney, aka Denis Beaulne, Broadway actor ( Peter Pan , Starlight Express , director, choreographer
- Chase Crawford, actor and producer
- E. Jocob Crull, Montana politician and colonel, rival of Jennette Rankin (first female member of U.S. Congress)
- Cherien Dabis, filmmaker, screenwriter, The L Word , Amreeka
- David Daniels, singer
- Charles G. Dawes, law graduate, 30th vice president of the United States, winner of Nobel Peace Prize
- Scott Devendorf, bass guitarist, founder of band The National
- Jonathan Dever, former member of Ohio House of Representatives
- Vinod Dham, graduate, "father" of Pentium computer chip (MS Eng, 77)
- John Price Durbin, Chaplain of the Senate, president of Dickinson College
- Jennifer Eberhardt, social psychologist, MacArthur Fellow
- Randy Edelman, music graduate, composer of movie scores, received BMI's Outstanding Career Achievement Award
- Margaret Elizabeth Egan, librarian and communication scholar
- Bess Marie Eversull, first woman to earn a PhD in mathematics from the University of Cincinnati
- Suzanne Farrell, prima ballerina, recipient of Kennedy Center Honors and Presidential Medal of Freedom
- Hattie V. Feger, professor of education at Clark Atlanta University, 1931–1944
- Abraham J. Feldman (1893–1977), rabbi
- Morris M. Feuerlicht, rabbi
- Mark "Markiplier" Fischbach, YouTube personality/media star
- Stephen Flaherty, music graduate, Tony-winning composer (Ragtime, Once on This Island)
- Frederick W. Franz, Jehovah's Witness, president of Watchtower Society
- Paul Gilger, architecture graduate, architect, conceived Jerry Herman musical revue Showtune , designed Industrial Light & Magic film studio for George Lucas
- Samuel H. Goldenson, rabbi
- Leon Goldman, pioneer in laser medicine
- Alexander D. Goode, one of Four Chaplains
- Michael Graves, architecture graduate, architect
- Moses J. Gries, rabbi
- Louis Grossmann, rabbi
- Michael Gruber, stage actor, singer, and dancer
- Adolf Guttmacher, rabbi
- Beth Gylys, poet and professor
- Victor H. Haas, first director of NIAID
- Albert Hague, music graduate, composer of score for How the Grinch Stole Christmas, won nine Tony Awards for Redhead in 1959
- Victor W. Hall, U.S. Navy rear admiral
- Hollis Hammonds, artist and academic
- Earl Hamner, graduate, writer, creator of The Waltons
- Walt Handelsman, A&S graduate, Pulitzer Prize-winning political cartoonist
- Dorian Harewood, drama graduate, film and television actor, voice artist
- Randy Harrison, drama graduate, actor, Queer as Folk
- Mary Hecht, BA 1952, American-born Canadian sculptor
- James G. Heller, rabbi and composer
- Maximilian Heller, rabbi
- Bob Herbold, former Microsoft COO
- Louise McCarren Herring, engineering graduate, pioneer of non-profit cooperative credit union movement
- Al Hirt, trumpeter and bandleader
- Ronald Howes, inventor of Easy-Bake Oven [2]
- Sarah Hutchings, composer
- Bruce Edwards Ivins, microbiologist; key suspect in 2001 anthrax terror attacks, leaving five people dead
- Ali Jarbawi, Palestinian politician and academic
- James Kaiser, electrical engineer who developed Kaiser window for digital signal processing, winner of IEEE Jack S. Kilby Signal Processing Medal
- Jerry Kathman, president and CEO of LPK
- Charles Keating, criminal (Keating Five scandal); virulent anti-pornography activist
- Robert Kistner, gynecologist
- Bradley M. Kuhn, M.S. 2001, software freedom activist
- James Michael Lafferty, division CEO in Procter and Gamble, Coca-Cola, and British American Tobacco; current CEO of Fine Hygienic Holding; Olympic track and field coach
- Sean Lahman, historian and sports writer
- Kenesaw Mountain Landis, federal judge and first Commissioner of Major League Baseball
- William Lawrence, Congressman, first vice president of American Red Cross
- Emil W. Leipziger, rabbi
- Christopher W. Lentz, U.S. Air Force brigadier general
- Liang Sili, academician of Chinese Academy of Sciences
- Abraham Lubin, hazzan
- Charlie Luken, law graduate, politician and former mayor of Cincinnati
- Alexander Lyons, rabbi
- Judah Leon Magnes, rabbi, chancellor/president of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem 1925–1948
- Beverly Malone, nurse and president of American Nurses Association
- Steven L. Mandel, anesthesiologist
- Jack Manning, actor, stage director, acting teacher [3]
- Marco Marsan, author
- Kevin McCollum, graduate, Tony-winning Broadway producer (Rent, Avenue Q, The Drowsy Chaperone)
- Guy McElroy (M.A. 1972), art historian and curator
- Martin A. Meyer, rabbi
- Gregory Mixon, (Ph.D. 1989), American historian
- Julian Morgenstern, rabbi, Hebrew Union College professor and president
- Lena Beatrice Morton, literary scholar
- Dylan Mulvaney, actress and social media personality
- Pamela Myers, musical theater graduate, Tony-nominated stage and screen actor
- Morris Newfield, rabbi
- Sandra Novack, author
- Michele Pawk, musical theater graduate, Tony-winning Broadway actress (Hollywood Arms, Cabaret)
- Archimedes Plutonium, (B.A. as Ludwig Hansen, 1972), notable Usenet personality
- Paul Polman, CEO of Unilever
- Jennie Porter, first black person to receive a Ph.D. from the University of Cincinnati and became the first black female public school principal in Cincinnati
- James B. Preston, neurophysiologist
- Augustus Price, nuclear scientist, first African American radar man in the U.S. Navy
- Faith Prince, musical theater graduate, Tony-winning Broadway actress (Guys and Dolls)
- Jacob S. Raisin, rabbi
- Max Raisin, rabbi
- Lee Roy Reams, musical theater graduate, Tony-nominated actor, dancer
- Michael E. Reynolds, champion of the "earthship" sustainable construction movement
- Abraham B. Rhine (1877–1941), rabbi
- Dennis L. Riley (born 1945), politician in New Jersey General Assembly, represented 4th Legislative District 1980–90 [4]
- Diana Maria Riva, drama graduate, screen actor
- Anne Mason Roberts (1910–1971), HUD official in the 1960s
- Michael Robinson, activist for civil right and human rights
- Mitch Rowland, Grammy award-winning songwriter and lead guitarist in Harry Styles' band
- Jerry Rubin, activist
- Nipsey Russell, actor, comedian, game show panelist, Tin Man in film version of The Wiz
- Rajiv Satyal, comedian, host and speaker; named the university's radio-station-turned-media group "BearCast"
- Linda Schele, art and education major, expert on Mayan inscriptions and hieroglyphics
- Jean Schmidt, Congresswoman from Ohio, 2005–13
- Robert P. Schumaker, creator of AZFinText, a news-aware high-frequency stock prediction system
- Teddi Siddall, drama graduate, screen actor
- Abram Simon, rabbi
- Yvette Simpson, law graduate, 2011–2017 Cincinnati City Councilwoman
- George Speri Sperti, inventor
- Joseph B. Strauss, engineering graduate, designed Golden Gate Bridge
- Thomas Szasz, psychiatrist and author of The Myth of Mental Illness
- Bob Taft, law graduate, 1999–2007 governor of Ohio
- William Howard Taft, law graduate, 27th president of the United States, Supreme Court Chief Justice
- Mary Lee Tate, painter, teacher [5]
- Christian Tetzlaff, professional violinist
- Paul Tibbets, pilot of B-29 plane that dropped atom bomb over Hiroshima
- Dwight Tillery, politician, former mayor of Cincinnati
- Tom Tsuchiya, sculptor, most notable for the bronze plaques for the National Baseball Hall of Fame
- Tom Uttech, painter
- Anne Valente, novelist and short-story writer
- Rodney Van Johnson, education graduate, actor (soap opera Passions)
- Sigismund von Braun, German diplomat, older brother of Wernher von Braun
- Chris Wanstrath, co-founder and former CEO of GitHub
- David J. Williams, Director of Architecture, musician
- Clarence A. Winder, civic leader, mayor of Pasadena, California in 1950s [6]
- Louis Wolsey, rabbi
- George Zepin, rabbi
- Martin Zielonka, rabbi
Athletics
- Jim Ard, basketball player for 1976 NBA champion Boston Celtics, sixth overall selection of 1970 NBA draft
- Skeeter Barnes, Major League Baseball player for Cincinnati Reds, Montreal Expos, St. Louis Cardinals and Detroit Tigers [7]
- Connor Barwin, NFL defensive end for Los Angeles Rams, selected 2nd round (46th overall) in 2009 NFL draft [8]
- Bob Bell, NFL defensive end for Detroit Lions and St. Louis Cardinals
- Corie Blount, basketball player, Chicago Bulls, first round pick in 1993 NBA draft
- Ron Bonham, basketball player, 1962 NCAA champion with Cincinnati Bearcats, 2-time NBA champion with Boston Celtics
- Vaughn Booker, NFL defensive end for Kansas City Chiefs, Green Bay Packers and Cincinnati Bengals
- Jowon Briggs, NFL defensive tackle for Cleveland Browns
- Ed Brinkman, All-Star baseball player, Washington Senators and Detroit Tigers [9]
- Tony Campana, MLB player for Chicago Cubs [10]
- Jim Capuzzi, NFL defensive back and quarterback, played for Green Bay Packers [11]
- Brent Celek, NFL tight end for Philadelphia Eagles, selected 5th round (162nd overall) in 2007 NFL draft, [12] Super Bowl LII Champion
- Antonio Chatman, NFL wide receiver, played for Cincinnati Bengals and Green Bay Packers [13]
- Trent Cole, NFL defensive end for Philadelphia Eagles 2005–14, selected 5th round (146th overall) in 2005 NFL draft
- Zach Collaros, CFL quarterback, 3-time Grey Cup champion (2012, 2019, 2021)
- Cris Collinsworth, law graduate, Emmy-winning sports commentator, NFL wide receiver
- Bryan Cook, NFL safety for Kansas City Chiefs, 2-time Super Bowl Champion (LVII, LVIII)
- Greg Cook, graduate, NFL quarterback for Cincinnati Bengals [14]
- Pat Cummings, NBA player, New York Knicks, Milwaukee Bucks, Dallas Mavericks
- Ralph Davis, basketball player, 17th pick of 1960 NBA draft
- Zach Day, MLB pitcher [15]
- David DeJulius (born 1999), basketball player for Maccabi Tel Aviv of the Israeli Basketball Premier League
- Connie Dierking, basketball player, fifth overall selection of 1958 NBA draft
- Annette Echikunwoke, hammer thrower, 2024 Olympic silver medalist
- Jacob Eisner (born 1947), Israeli basketball player
- Jason Fabini, NFL offensive tackle, New York Jets
- Nate Fish, baseball player and coach
- Danny Fortson, basketball player, 10th overall pick of 1997 NBA draft
- Rich Franklin, professional mixed martial artist, former UFC middleweight champion, [16] V.P. of Asian MMA organization ONE Championship
- Andre Frazier, NFL linebacker, played for Cincinnati Bengals and Pittsburgh Steelers, 2-time Super Bowl Champion (XL, XLIII)
- Sauce Gardner, NFL cornerback, New York Jets, selected 1st round (4th overall) in 2022 NFL draft
- Yancy Gates (born 1989), basketball player for Ironi Nahariya of Israeli Premier League [17]
- Antonio Gibson, USFL NFL safety, Philadelphia Stars and New Orleans Saints
- Vanessa Gilles, soccer player, 2020 Olympic gold medalist
- Mardy Gilyard, CFL wide receiver
- Marcellus Greene, NFL and Canadian Football League player
- Tyjuan Hagler, football linebacker for NFL's Indianapolis Colts [18]
- Ian Happ, MLB player for Chicago Cubs
- Josh Harrison, MLB player for Pittsburgh Pirates
- Jim Herman, professional golfer, plays on the PGA tour, 3 professional wins
- Paul Hogue, basketball player, 2-time NCAA champion with Cincinnati Bearcats, 2nd overall pick of 1962 NBA draft
- Candice Holley, basketball player
- Jim Holstein, pro basketball player, college head coach
- Kevin Huber, NFL punter, played for Cincinnati Bengals
- Miller Huggins, Hall of Fame baseball player and manager; managed champion New York Yankees teams of 1920s
- George Jamison, NFL linebacker, played for Detroit Lions
- DerMarr Johnson, basketball player
- Lewis Johnson, graduate, track & field broadcaster
- Ed Jucker, basketball player, coach of Cincinnati Bearcats' 2-time national champions
- Rich Karlis, NFL placekicker, played for Denver Broncos
- Brendon Kay, football player
- Tinker Keck, XFL football player
- Jason Kelce, NFL center for Philadelphia Eagles, Super Bowl LII Champion
- Travis Kelce, NFL tight end for Kansas City Chiefs, 3-time Super Bowl Champion (LIV, LVII, LVIII)
- Sean Kilpatrick (born 1990), NBA player for Chicago Bulls, and for Hapoel Jerusalem of the Israeli Basketball Super League
- Sandy Koufax, Hall of Fame baseball pitcher, 4-time World Series champion [19]
- Steve Logan, basketball player
- Kenyon Martin, basketball player for New York Knicks, top pick in 2000 NBA draft
- Jason Maxiell, former NBA power forward, played for Detroit Pistons
- Urban Meyer, former head football coach for the Florida Gators and Ohio State Buckeyes; winner of the 2007, and 2009 BCS Championship with Florida and the 2014 CFP Championship with Ohio State
- Joe Morrison, NFL running back and wide receiver for New York Giants
- Haruki Nakamura, NFL safety for Baltimore Ravens, Carolina Panthers
- Elbie Nickel, NFL tight end, played for Pittsburgh Steelers
- Ray Nolting, NFL running back, played for Chicago Bears
- Jim O'Brien, NFL placekicker for Baltimore Colts, Super Bowl V champion
- Tom O'Malley, NFL quarterback, played for Green Bay Packers
- Brig Owens, NFL defensive back, played for Washington Redskins
- Ruben Patterson, NBA player, Portland Trail Blazers, Milwaukee Bucks
- David Payne, 110m hurdler, 2008 Olympic silver medalist
- Isaiah Pead, NFL running back, played for St. Louis Rams, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Miami Dolphins
- Tony Pike, NFL quarterback, played for Carolina Panthers [20]
- Desmond Ridder, NFL quarterback for Arizona Cardinals
- Oscar Robertson, Hall of Fame basketball player, NBA champion and MVP
- Tom Rossley, former football head coach at SMU, offensive coordinator for Green Bay Packers
- Kelly Salchow, former Olympic rower (2004 and 2008 Olympic Games), women's quadruple sculls
- Kenny Satterfield, professional basketball player, 2001–12
- Kerry Schall, competed on reality show The Ultimate Fighter 2 , professional MMA fighter [21]
- Tyler Scott, NFL wide receiver for Chicago Bears
- Lance Stephenson, basketball player for Los Angeles Lakers
- Andrew Stewart, football player
- Clint Stickdorn, football player
- Bill Talbert, tennis player, 5-time U.S. Open champion, International Tennis Hall of Fame
- Tom Thacker, basketball player, NCAA and NBA champion, top pick of 1963 NBA draft
- Jordan Thompson, Olympic gold medalist volleyball player and member of the United States national team
- Tony Trabert, tennis player, Wimbledon and U.S. Open champion, International Tennis Hall of Fame
- Jack Twyman, basketball player, College Basketball Hall of Fame, 6-time NBA All-Star
- Brandon Underwood, NFL safety, Super Bowl XLV champion
- Nick Van Exel, basketball player, 1998 NBA All-Star
- LaDaris Vann, football player
- Roland West, basketball player
- James White, NBA guard/forward for New York Knicks, NBA champion [22]
- Bob Wiesenhahn, basketball player, 1961 NCAA champion with Cincinnati Bearcats, 11th overall pick of 1961 NBA draft
- John Williamson (born 1986), basketball player for Maccabi Kiryat Gat B.C. of the Israeli Basketball Premier League [23]
- Eric Wilson, football player
- Mary Wineberg, 2008 Olympic gold medalist, 4 × 400 m relay
- George Winn, NFL running back
- Derek Wolfe, NFL defensive end, Baltimore Ravens, Denver Broncos
- D. J. Woods, Canadian Football League wide receiver, Ottawa Redblacks
- Mike Woods, All-American and NFL player
- Tony Yates, basketball player for two-time national champion Cincinnati Bearcats, head coach 1983-89
- Kevin Youkilis, 3-time All-Star, Gold Glove winner, 2-time World Series champion, MLB player 2004–13
- Curtis Young, NFL defensive end, Green Bay Packers
