Hetzel, a native of Wisconsin, earned his A.B. and LL.B. degrees at the University of Wisconsin. He then spent 12 years with Oregon State College, first as a teacher of English and political science, later as director of its extension division. In 1916 he became president of the University of New Hampshire, and is credited with converting it from an A and M college into a state university. He left New Hampshire to become Penn State's tenth President in December 1926 at the age of 44.