5 times Malia Obama proved she’s just as smart as her parents – from studying law at Harvard to joining Atlanta star Donald Glover’s new Amazon series as a writer

May 4 , 2021

Former US President Barack Obama’s eldest daughter Malia is one smart cookie – she’s currently reading law at Harvard and even helped her father with Spanish. Photo: AP

Malia Obama clearly inherited her parents’ academic brilliance, even continuing a family tradition by attending the same college – but the former first daughter has only just begun to show us what she’s capable of.

What’s living at the White House like for the president’s kids?

She got into Harvard

Malia Obama proudly wearing her Harvard T-shirt. She is set to graduate in 2021. Photo: @usdcas/Twitter

Harvard is still regarded as one of the most difficult American universities to get into, with an admission rate of less than 5 per cent. And while Barack and Michelle both attended the Ivy League institution, the pair reportedly told her she didn’t need to feel pressure to go to a big-name institution, too. Nevertheless, after gaining a place to study law, Malia decided to go anyway – but not before taking a gap year.

The Jolie-Pitts in 2021, from Shiloh’s teen transformation to Maddox in South Korea

She speaks much better Spanish than her dad

Malia helped her father Barack with Spanish during a trip to Cuba. Photo: AP

Former US President Barack Obama got a little help on the job the summer before Malia headed off to university. The then-first daughter stepped in to help out the American leader with his Spanish-speaking skills during a trip to Cuba – the first time a sitting president had visited the country in nearly 90 years.

Barack told ABC News: “You know, her Spanish is much better than mine … My vocabulary is the equivalent of a two-year-old’s … It turned out that, during the presidency, I didn’t have time to take Spanish lessons.”

Ivanka Trump’s most tone-deaf comments

She’s bagged a job in TV writing

Malia Obama is set to join the writing team of Atlanta and Lion King star Donald Glover after graduation – not a bad first gig. Photo: @blkboybulletin/ Twitter

After a series of internships – including one at the US embassy in Madrid and several on US television shows and films – 22-year-old Malia recently landed a job working with Donald Glover. The Atlanta actor recently signed a major Amazon deal for a series, and Malia will get to show off her creative side by writing for the musician/comedic actor’s team, showing just how well-rounded she is on the smart scale.

Who knew that Donald Trump owned these New York City landmarks?

She’s sharp and empathetic, too

Malia and Sasha Obama greeting Pope Francis at Andrews Air Force Base in 2015. Photo: AP

When Malia was moving into her Harvard dormitory she had a sweet response to her dad’s inability to help her assemble a simple lamp while her mother and sister were pros at helping her get set up. Malia didn’t say anything in the moment but took the opportunity to text her dad exactly what she thought without exactly saying it. “So I get home and she (Malia) knows I’m pathetic, so she texted me hearts,” Barack revealed as he told the story on My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman.

Oscars 2021: best and worst dressed

Malia’s a clever wing woman to her sister

Malia Obama shows support to sister Sasha as she talks to Ryan Reynolds at an event. Photo: Official White House

She’s now loved up with Rory Farquharson, but who could forget when Malia was there for her younger sibling Sasha as she finally met her crush Ryan Reynolds? She was photographed giving her sister the thumbs up as she chatted to the movie star during a White House dinner in 2016. With Michelle and Barack famously enjoying being embarrassing parents when Malia went to prom with a boy she “kinda liked”, it’s clear this big sister has learned how not to behave around crushes.

Want more stories like this? Sign up here. Follow STYLE on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter.

Barack Obama

Barack and Michelle Obama’s eldest kid is one smart cookie: she speaks fluent Spanish and has interned at the US embassy in Madrid and on US TV shows and films
Now loved up with Rory Farquharson, the 22-year-old has also shown sensitivity around her sister Sasha’s crushes – including Hollywood heartthrob Ryan Reynolds