The 13 Best College-Centric TV Shows

Dreamworks / ©DreamWorks/courtesy Everett / Everett Collection

While this now cult show only lasted one season, it managed to win the hearts of viewers everywhere with its comedic style and lovable cast. Steve Karp can't wait to start his freshman year at the fictional University of North Eastern California. His excitement is not long-lasting, though, as his father decides he wants to tag along. Jay Baruchel stars as the main character, with an exciting cast that includes Seth Rogen, Charlie Hunnam, and more. 

Freeform / Via Giphy

An off-shoot of Black-ish, Grown-ish stands on its own two feet as an engaging, fun-loving show. The series follows Zoey Johnson as she attends a liberal arts college, and navigates new relationships, new classes, and new issues. The series is really great at weaving in modern-day issues and does a great job at tackling difficult subject matter while also remaining fun-loving and easily digestible. Yara Shahidi plays Zoey, of course, with Francia Raisa, Trevor Jackson, and Emily Arlook coming on as new characters. 

Abc Family / ©ABC Family / courtesy Everett Collection

The show ran for a total of four seasons on ABC Family (now known as Freeform) and depicted the lives of an ensemble cast as they navigate the various trivial pressures of Greek life. We have Casey Cartwright, a member of a high-tier sorority, and her younger brother Rusty, a freshman at the fictional Cypress-Rhodes University. Then there's Evan Chambers, Casey's boyfriend, and new Zeta Beta Zeta sorority recruit Rebecca Logan, and, of course, Cappie. The rabble-rousing show focused heavily on the social and love lives of the main characters and oft featured extravagant parties and all-in-good fun hazing.  

NBC / Via Alamy

The Cosby Show spinoff followed sophomore Denise Huckstable, played by Lisa Bonet, as she attended the (fictional) historically Black Hillman College. While Bonet's character left the show after the first season, the rest of the series focused on Whitley Gilbert-Wayne (played by Jasmine Guy) and Dwayne Cleofis Wayne (played by Kadeem Hardison). The show ran for six seasons in total and was inspired by student life at historically Black colleges, tackling issues such as race, class, and the Equal Rights Amendment. It was also the first show to openly address the epidemiology of AIDS/HIV. 

The WB / Via Giphy

Ah, what she'll do for love... When shy and sheltered Felicity Portman decides to reroute her college plans, she ends up following her longtime crush, Ben Covington, to New York City. There, she starts to discover herself and her interests, learning to live on her own terms for the first time. Keri Russell plays an iconic role, though, and is highly regarded as one of the best TV show characters in the last 20 years.

Mtv / ©MTV/Courtesy Everett Collection

When a good-girl sorority member, Jules Thomas (Eliza Bennett), takes on a vigilante persona to combat on-campus abuse and sexual assault, she develops an unlikely friendship with computer nerd Ophelia Meyer (Taylor Dearden) after she discovers Jules' side-gig. The comedy-drama series focuses on issues such as victim advocacy, report issues, and failures within the justice system. The short-running show only lasted one season on MTV but can be streamed today on YouTube TV.

Netflix / Via Giphy

Based on a film of the same name, the critically acclaimed TV show ran for four seasons and is a must-see show for anyone and everyone. With satirical elements at play, the comedy-drama-centric show follows a group of Black students at the fictional Ivy League Windsor University. Characters include Samantha White (Logan Browning), Troy Fairbanks (Brandon P. Bell), and Lionel Higgins (DeRon Horton) as they navigate cultural bias, social injustice, and sketchy politics at play.   

The CW / Via Alamy

The short-lived CW show followed the lives of college cheerleaders at the fictional Lancer University. When pre-law student Marti Perkins (Aly Michalka) loses her scholarship, she's left with no choice but to join the cheer squad, in an attempt to get a new scholarship. She's paired to room with cheer captain  Savannah Monroe (Ashley Tisdale) and must learn to navigate the demands of the sport along with balancing her financial situation, her unruly mother, and her love life. Based on Cheer: Inside the Secret World of College Cheerleaders by journalist Kate Torgovnick, the series never got to see a second season, which was met by fan disappointment. We'll never know what was to become of the Hellcats. 

FOX / Via Giphy

Creator Ryan Murphy knows how to do satire, and Scream Queens proves it. A string of murders puts the students of the fictional Wallace University on edge, especially those in Kappa Kappa Tau, a high-tier sorority on campus. Mean girl Chanel Oberlin (Emma Roberts) runs the sorority with her followers Chanel #2 (Ariana Grande) and Chanel #3 (Abagail Breslin with her antics, while a mysterious figure dressed as the Red Devil, aka the school mascot, terrorizes, well, everyone. The slasher satire only ran for two seasons, with the third season recently confirmed by Murphy as of 2020.

Yahoo / ©Yahoo/Courtesy Everett Collection

The much-loved show follows Jeff Winger (Joel McHale) as a fast-paced lawyer forced to return to community college. His attempts to entice a fellow student leads to him fabricating a study group that turns into more than he expected. The comedic sitcom lasted for an entire six seasons and also stars Alison Brie, Donald Glover, Danny Pudi, Ken Jeong, and Gillian Jacobs.

SYFY / Via Giphy

Quentin Coldwater has been entranced by magic since forever and after finding out magic does, in fact, exist, decides to attend the Brakebills College for Magical Pedagogy as a graduate student. As disaster strikes at the secret upstate New York school, he starts to realize the world of magic isn't always safe. Based on the 2009 novel by Lev Grossman, the fantastical fantasy series ran for five whole seasons and included elements of magical realism. 

Channel Four / ©Channel Four/Courtesy Everett Collection

The British comedy-drama series follows the lives of six students at the fictional Manchester Medlock University. Due to their late applications, they all live in off-campus housing instead of the dorms, and as their lives become intertwined, they each tackle individual problems such as insecurity, failed romances, and financial issues. Based loosely on the University of Manchester, the series stars Zawe Ashton, Jack Whitehall, Kimberley Nixon, Joe Thomas, and more.

ABC / Via Giphy

Annalise Keating (the incredible Viola Davis!) is a high-powered criminal defense attorney and a professor of defense law at a prestigious Philadelphia university. She always selects a group of students to assist with cases. Students Wes Gibbins (Alfred Enoch), Connor Walsh (Jack Falahee), Michaela Pratt (Aja Naomi King), Asher Millstone (Matt McGorry), and Laurel Castillo (Karla Souza) are chosen and find themselves embroiled in a murder plot. The Shonda Rhimes show garnered a big following for many reasons, but feel like the characters never actually went to college? I know they did, but the show covered so many other plotlines, and I feel like them studying for a test or going to lectures barely ever happened.