Strauss had planned to study physics, of which he developed an amateur's knowledge from reading textbooks, at the University of Virginia. By the time he finally graduated from high school, his family's business had experienced a downturn during the Recession of 1913–1914 and they could not afford to send him. Instead Strauss worked as a traveling shoe salesman for his father's company. In his spare time, Strauss studied his Jewish heritage. He was quite successful in his sales efforts; over the next three years, he saved $20,000 (), enough money for college tuition.