Which of These 15 TV Colleges Are Worth the Application? (PHOTOS)
College Bound
December doesn’t just signal the countdown to Christmas, it also marks the time of the year when high school students scramble to finish their college applications. We sorted some of our favorite (fictional) TV colleges (for better or worse) into four categories: Dream (top-notch long-shots), Match (a quality option), Safety (just in case) or Skip (as in, don't bother.) Here's where we'd be sending our FAFSA info...
Cyprus-Rhodes University (Greek)
As far as TV colleges go, CRU has everything a discerning viewer could ask for in a school. With its strong academic undergraduate and graduate programs—be it Engineering or Law—to its lively Greek system, among other campus clubs, it wouldn’t be hard for an incoming freshman to find people who share the same interests.CATEGORY: Dream
Most Talented Santana Lopez (Naya Rivera, Glee)
A lot of kids said that Rachel Berry was the best singer in school and they are so right. But Santana is a triple threat: She can sing, dance and kick our asses. And we we were really afraid she’d go Lima Heights-adjacent on us if we chose anyone else.
Hillman College (A Different World)
Hillman’s prestigious academic reputation, esteemed professors and socially conscious student body are certainly impressive. As for after graduation prospects, many of Hillman’s top alumni have gone on to become doctors, lawyers, art dealers and even video game creators.
CATEGORY: Dream
University of New York (Felicity)
College is a great time to follow your passions, especially if they lead you to a school in the heart of New York City’s picturesque Greenwich Village. After all, what better city to truly find yourself in than New York? And considering Felicity’s impressive academic record before she transferred colleges—high school valedictorian and Stanford-bound pre-med student—it’s fair to say that University of New York has a great slate of academic programs. And seeing that it’s very clearly based on NYU, this is one college that TV fans could almost attend.
CATEGORY: Match
Pennbrook University (Boy Meets World)
Who could pass up the chance to be taught by none other than the wellspring of wisdom himself, Mr. Feeny?CATEGORY: Match
Adams College (Sabrina the Teenage Witch)
The fact that Sabrina passed up the opportunity to attend Other Realm University and learn magic in order to attend Adams College speaks volumes for its liberal arts program and (more importantly) its location in the heart of Boston. What’s more, with Sabrina’s Aunt Zelda teaching physics at the university, it’s no doubt that the school has one of the best programs in the country. After all, who best to teach Newton’s laws than a witch who actually knew him? (And, yes, that is Olympic figure skater Michelle Kwan making a cameo appearance.)
CATEGORY: Match
California University (Beverly Hills 90210)
Presumably a slightly different “Cal U” than the one attended by Saved by the Bell‘s Zack Morris and Co., this heralded college served as an alma mater for many of West Beverley Hills High’s senior class—thanks to its large and diverse list of programs and its convenient location.
CATEGORY: Match
University of Northeastern California (Undeclared)
If you feel you’re a freak, a geek or something in between, UNEC is for you. While the school has solid academic course offerings, its real charms lie in the college experience it provides. Freshmen make friends inside and outside their comfort zones, and the school’s students can prove quite welcoming and tolerant—especially of fathers going through a midlife crisis and trying to hang with their sons.
CATEGORY: Match
Greendale Community College (Community)
People say college years are the best years of your life. And thanks to annual school-wide paintball battles and classes like “Can I Fry That?” and “Who’s the Boss?”, studying at Greendale would certainly be entertaining, if not entirely educational. Getting an affordable four-year degree couldn’t get any easier—just ask Ruffles the dog.CATEGORY: Safety
California University, or Cal U (Saved By the Bell: The College Years)
While some people pick a school based on its professors, that wasn’t really a factor when Zack and (what was left of) the gang decided to enroll at Cal U. But judging by how often students developed crushes on their professors—and in some cases, were educationally inspired by them—it's fair to say that Cal U had an engaging faculty.CATEGORY: Safety
Minnesota State University (Coach)
Some student athletes aren’t looking for good academics as much as they are searching for a great football program, in which case Minnesota State’s Coach Hayden Fox is just the man to whip them into shape and prepare them for a potential pro career. And for a student body looking to cheer on a college team, it doesn’t get any better than the Screaming Eagles.
CATEGORY: Safety
Wallace University (Scream Queens)
Spending an entire freshman class watching and dissecting horror movies might be the dream of some college-bound TV fans, but none of it is worth becoming an unwitting target of the campus serial killer, the Red Devil—or worse, Chanel No. 1.
CATEGORY: Skip
Middleton University (How to Get Away With Murder)
A good college education typically doesn't include lessons in getting away with murder, but that's the main lesson for five unlucky law students at Middleton. Annalise Keating’s class aside, the Philadelphia-based school seems to offer a strong academic program, with good post-graduation job prospects, though that can't make up for the high local homicide rate.Category: Skip
Hearst College (Veronica Mars)
Hearst has an excellent reputation, sunny location and a lively student body that includes many of our friends from nearby Neptune High. But all those pros don’t even come close to outweighing the school’s very big con: the serial rapist who terrorized the school’s female student population.
CATEGORY: Skip
UC Sunnydale (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)
While California is a desirable place to spend college years, having class over a Hellmouth is less than ideal. Not only is there a chance your freshman roommate could be an actual demon, but the campus frat houses also serve as vampire feeding grounds—something that’s probably not covered in the campus safety seminar.
CATEGORY: Skip
