Discover the Best Books Written by Clayton M. Christensen

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Clayton Christensen was born on April 6, 1952, in Salt Lake City, Utah, the second of eight children born to Robert M. Christensen (1926–1976) and his wife, Verda Mae Christensen (née Fuller; 1922–2004).[7] He grew up in the Rose Park neighborhood of Salt Lake City and attended West High School, where he was student body president.[7] Christensen and his siblings were raised as members of the LDS Church. Christensen was an avid basketball player who stood 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) tall, and later became the starting center on the men's basketball team during his time at the University of Oxford.[8]

After graduating from high school in 1970, Christensen was accepted to Harvard University, Yale University, and Brigham Young University (BYU). He "decided to make the decision a matter of prayer" and felt a "clear impression" to attend BYU, which had awarded him a full scholarship.[9] Christensen majored in economics, and was classmates in his first-year economics course with future U.S. presidential candidate Mitt Romney and future Harvard Business School dean Kim B. Clark.[9] While at BYU, he took a two-year leave of absence from 1971 to 1973 to serve as a volunteer full-time missionary for the LDS Church. He was assigned to serve in South Korea and became a fluent speaker of Korean. Christensen returned to BYU after completing his missionary service, and in 1975 graduated with an Honors B.A. summa cum laude in economics.

After graduating from BYU, Christensen won a Rhodes Scholarship and spent two years studying applied econometrics at Oxford University's Queen's College, receiving an M.Phil. in 1977.[9] While at Oxford, Christensen was a member of the men's basketball team, winning back-to-back British University Sports Federation championships in 1975 and 1976 and the English Basketball Association's national championship for non-league teams in 1977.[citation needed] Christensen then returned to the United States to attend the Harvard Business School, receiving an MBA with high distinction in 1979.[10]