Jimmy Buffett initially attended Auburn University but failed out after about a year due to difficulty balancing music, social life, and academics. He then continued his college education at Pearl River Community College in Poplarville, Mississippi. After that, he transferred to the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, where he earned a bachelor's degree in history in 1969. During his time at Southern Miss, he also joined the Kappa Sigma fraternity and worked as an electrician and welder in a shipyard