The Top 10 Best Movie High Schools

5. Crockett High School- Booksmart

Speaking of an eclectic bunch of students, Crockett High is filled with colorful characters. The most notable of which are the insufferably pretentious Amy and Molly who want nothing to do with their peers, who they see as slackers. Turns out, they really aren’t though. They’ve all got rich and interesting lives with bright futures ahead of them. More than that, they definitely know how to party! Amy and Molly spend their last night in high school running around from party to party in an attempt to make up for lost time when they realize that all the “slackers” got into great schools too. It’s a pretty crazy night that culminates in a graduation ceremony in which the valedictorian springs a fellow student from jail and drives onto the field in a classic Pontiac Firebird. That definitely trumps my graduation ceremony, and I kinda wish I had gone there instead.

4. Bronson Alcott High School- Clueless 

Unfortunately, in the United States, the rich get to go to better schools that allow them more opportunities and a better future. The downside is that if you go to one of these schools, you’re usually surrounded by stuck up rich kids. The thing is that Bronson Alcott High School isn’t filled with just retched, spoiled little brats. Some of the teens there are genuinely good people or at least seem like they’d be fun to know. Take stoners, Tai and Travis, for example. They seem like genuinely chill people. There’s also the implication that by attending Bronson Alcott High would mean that I’d be coming from a rich family too, and who’d say no to that in this economy? Bronson Alcott High is elite without being pretentious, has passionate teachers, entertaining students, and gives you a chance to rub elbows with kids of the rich and famous. What you do with that privilege is up to you, but I’d like to think I’d use it for good.

3. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry- The Wizarding World Franchise

I wasn’t going to risk upsetting all those Wizarding fanatics out there by not including Hogwarts among these other movie high schools. How many times have I heard people joke about waiting for their letter from Hogwarts when they were a kid? A lot, but I’m also kind of onboard to going to a school meant to teach young wizards and witches how to use magic. At the same time, it’s one of the most dangerous high schools I’ve ever seen on the big screen. Trolls are getting in there all the time, kids are getting mangled at sporting events, and the personification of pure evil keeps trying to kill that one kid with the glasses. I guess that sort of thing builds character because Hogwarts doesn’t seem like it’s going to change its policies any time soon. It’s hard to tell if learning magic is worth the potential for serious injury or even death, but I’d have definitely considered going if I’d gotten a letter. 

2. Xavier’s School For Gifted Youngsters- The X-Men Franchise

While a lot of people might have been waiting for their letter to arrive so they could go to Hogwarts, I spent my adolescence hoping my mutant gene would activate. Why? Because I wanted to be an X-Man. Heck, my inner child still does! The Xavier Institute is located in upstate New York and serves as a sanctuary for all the mutants in the world facing prejudice for their abilities. It’s a beautiful, sprawling school filled with incredible technology and a pretty cool staff working there. Of course, the school does tend to come under attack from supervillains and militant bigots from time to time, but they usually learn that they “came to the wrong neighborhood” pretty quickly. If you do get kidnapped, rest assured that the teachers at the Xavier School really care about their students. They will come for you, and they will kill whoever took you. That’s just peace of mind out there.

1. Shermer High School- Numerous John Hughes Films (The Breakfast Club, Weird Science, Sixteen Candles, and Ferris Bueller)

Just think of the potential of attending Shermer High School! There’s no telling what might happen to you there. You could have a life-altering Saturday morning detention. Perhaps you and your bud would create the ultimate woman with your computer one day and accidentally bring her to life. Maybe your best friend convinces you to cut class so that you can spend one perfect day in the city together. So many coming-of-age adventures have unfolded at Shermer High School I’m starting to believe that every student is assigned one freshman year. Plus, nothing really awful ever happens at Shermer High. Sure, you might have it a bit rough sometimes, but everything always turns out okay in the end. Because of that, I think that Shermer High deserves the top spot among these movie high schools. 

Honorable Mention: Welton North Shore High School- Mean Girls 

There’s a lot of potential at Welton North Shore High. It’s a nice campus filled with all kinds of students and has some pretty cool teachers. Sure, you’d have to avoid “the plastics” and their machiavellian reign over the social classes, but we all knew “those girls” in high school. The reason why Welton North Shore barely missed an official spot on this list of movie high schools is the dreaded “Burn Book.” It’s a book that students use to record all dirt, embarrassing moments, and dark secrets on their fellow students. Why anyone would think that was a good idea, I have no idea. But I definitely don’t want to be anywhere near that book.

Dishonorable Mention: East High School- High School Musical

Imagine you’re walking through the hall and a huge dance number breaks out. All these kids are singing and leaping around while you’re just trying to get to algebra before the bell rings. You’d never know when the next one might break out ,and pretty soon the tension starts to drive you insane. Hey, I’m all for artistic expression, but not when it jumps on the table during lunch and croons about how hard it is being a star athlete when all you really want to do is sing. Hard pass on East High School.  

Those would be my picks for the best movie high schools of all time. Coming-of-age tales are a dime a dozen though and each of them comes with their own high school. You can let me know if I missed a good one in the comments below. As always, I’ll be updating this list when new movie high schools make their way to the big screen. So, be sure to check back from time to time in order to see how the rankings might change!