The former president admitted it was tough dropping his oldest daughter off at college.
Sending your kids off to school isn't easy, even when you're the former president of the United States.
Barack Obama talked about dropping his oldest daughter, Malia, off at Harvard during a speech at an event for the Beau Biden Foundation for the Protection of Children in Delaware on Monday.
"For those of us who have daughters, it just happens fast," the 44th president said in a video published by WDEL 101.7FM. "I dropped off Malia at college, and I was saying to Joe and Jill [Biden] that it was a little bit like open-heart surgery."
Obama said he kept it together on campus, but heading home, he admitted the tears started to flow.
"I was proud that I did not cry in front of her," he said, "but on the way back, the Secret Service was looking straight ahead, pretending they weren't hearing me as I sniffled and blew my nose. It was rough."
Malia will be a freshman at Harvard, after taking a gap year that included interning for Harvey Weinstein and working as a P.A. on sets with Lena Dunham and Halle Berry.
On Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen, Berry called Malia a hard worker. "“She was fantastic, she was amazing,” she said of the 19-year-old. “She was down to do whatever a P.A. is asked to do, and I had wild respect for her for that.”
Dunham also had high praise for the teen. During an interview on Howard Stern's SiriusXM radio show, the 30-year-old said, "She is so smart, I once asked her, 'What's your favorite movie?' She was like, 'Do you want me to list it by favorite director, writer or cinematographer? I was like, 'You're smarter than me, let's just be done with this topic.'"
Sounds like she'll do just fine at her parents' alma mater.
For more on the Obama family, watch the video below!