Top 10 High School or College K-Dramas
With rivalries, romance, coming-of-age plots, and even crime or supernatural elements, these high school/college dramas are always fun to watch! If you are going back to school or even want to feel nostalgic about campus days, try some K-Dramas out of this list!
Dream High (2011)
Although the drama is a bit old, it is one of the most popular ones. It has a star studded cast which includes actor Kim Soo-hyun and K-Pop stars like IU, Miss A’s Bae Suzy, 2PM’s Ok Taec-yeon and Jan Woo-young, and T-ara’s Ham Eun-jung. The story is about six students who dream of becoming superstars in the music industry. Watch them learn and grow while they navigate through their teenage life.
Love Alarm (2019)
Even better than Tinder, a futuristic app called ‘Love Alarm’ can notify you when someone within 10m radius has romantic feelings for you. Although this technology sounds exciting, it will cause many heartbreaks. The story will lead you to an intense love triangle. Who will Jo-jo (Kim So-hyun) choose? The most popular transfer student (Song Kang) or the quiet, shy and sweet one (Jung Ga-ram).
Live On (2020)
When the most popular girl (Jung Da-bin) of school realises that someone is trying to reveal her dark secrets, she seeks help from a boy (Hwang Min-hyun) who is the President of Broadcasting Club. She joins the broadcasting club to find the anonymous person, but eventually finds herself close to students who she never thought of being friends with. Although the drama has only 8 episodes, it is very fresh and enjoyable for viewers!
Moment of 18 (2019)
The drama captures the fresh experiences and emotions of immature 18 years olds. An introverted boy (Ong Seong-wu) is forced to transfer to a new high school for a wrongdoing which he didn’t even commit. And there is an extroverted, top-scorer girl (Kim Hyang Gi) who faces pressure from her mom to enter Seoul University. She gets curious about the introverted boy’s past and opens up to him. Eventually they fall for each other, but there is a love triangle too! Watch them deal with their parents’ unrealistic expectations when they figure out their passions and goals.
Extracurricular (2020)
It’s not your typical traditional high school teen drama, but it explores dark, strong and intense social issues that an adolescent may face. In this drama, four students face unexpected dangers when they start committing crimes to earn money. Watch them deal with serious issues like bullying, social-class, mental health, teen-angst in this 10 episode drama.
Sassy Go Go/Cheer Up (2015)
In a prestigious boarding school, a dance club and group of smart students are suddenly forced to work together. Both male and female leads are on different sides, and the groups should manage to work together in spite of differences. The drama will showcase the growth stories of students who are forced to have achievements and scores above everything else.
Orange Marmalade (2015)
It is a classic teen drama with vampire fantasy on the side. The story revolves around a teenage vampire girl (Seol Hyun) who transfers to a new school. And there is a popular boy (Yeo Jin-Goo) who falls in love with her, but is unaware of the fact that she’s a vampire!
Hi! School: Love On (2014)
This fantasy drama is about an angel (Kim Sae-ron) who accidentally becomes a human after saving a male student from danger. Being trapped in the human world, she learns how to be a human. She becomes a student in school and comes across Shin Woo-hyun (Nam Woo Hyun) and Hwang Sung-yeol (Lee Sung Yeol). And yes, there’s a love triangle!
Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joo (2016)
This college, rom-com, sports drama is inspired by the life of Olympic gold-medallist Jang Mi-ran. Apparently Bok-joo (Lee Sung-kyung), a weightlifter student falls in love for the first time in her life with Joon-Hyung’s brother who is a doctor. Meanwhile Bok-joo finds Joon-Hyung (Nam Joo-hyuk) so annoying. Although he is mischievous with her, he ends up falling in love with her. Amidst this, Bok-Joo begins to think if weightlifting is really a passion for her.
My ID is Gangnam Beauty (2018)
After being bullied for her looks, a girl (Im Soo-hyang) decides to go under the knife to get pretty. She starts fresh in university after getting plastic surgery. But she gets teased and bullied again and gets the name ‘Gangnam Beauty’. Amidst this, Kyung-Suk (Cha Eun-woo) stands up for her and helps her gain confidence. He makes her realise that true beauty is not on the outside, but lies inside. This campus romance is definitely a must watch!
