I guess it’s not only me who wonders how their favourite TV characters would act at UNSW! It seems that you all enjoyed wondering if the people you see on TV could become your new uni friends. 

This is the long-awaited (or maybe not) part two, where I make weirdly specific assumptions about the university lives of fictional characters you know and love.

Primary/Secondary Education 

Jess from ‘New Girl’ would obviously study either primary or secondary education. She is the type of student who shows up on the first day with a huge pencil case filled with colourful stationery and a large exercise book that she will never use. Even during exam season, she would carry her usual naivety and sunshine persona. You would find Jess at almost every society event, and partaking in some campus activism.

Journalism

Chris from ‘Total Drama’ would be studying journalism with aspirations of being a big-shot television presenter on any breakfast news or game show that would have him. Chris would be the best and worst person to be paired with for a group project; his unwillingness to contribute would make the group hate him, but his charisma and top-notch presenting skills would give them a high distinction. His dream job would be to host Survivor Australia and find fulfilment in watching the contestants suffer. If the organisers of UNSW Love Island are looking for a host, Chris is your man!

Textiles & Fashion Design 

Alison from ‘Pretty Little Liars’ would definitely be someone to watch out for on campus. She would be the life of O-Week parties, and everyone would envy her good looks. Alison has an excellent style, and I see her excelling in subjects such as textiles and fashion design. You can spot Alison walking around campus, gathering secrets from a large number of students. We know Alison loves wearing a yellow shirt — maybe she would consider becoming a Yellow Shirt volunteer for O-Week. 

Psychology 

Belly, from the most talked-about show of 2025, ‘The Summer I Turned Pretty,’ would probably study psychology. Her love life would be hot gossip all over campus, and I’m sure most people would be weirded out by the fact that she dated two brothers. Belly loves volleyball, so I can imagine her being a part of the UNSW Volleyball club. Her BFF Taylor would also attend UNSW, and the two of them would frequent Plume Café with a coffee and croissant in hand, pretending to be in Paris.

Business

I think Peppa would study business and sell a line of designer boots for puddle jumping. Peppa would have a lot of friends at UNSW, and she would make them go on all sorts of crazy adventures with her. Peppa would be a troublemaker by being late to class because she was getting a matcha or for talking too much in tutorials. 

Media

Serena van der Woodsen would be UNSW’s ultimate it girl, wearing designer and walking across campus like it's a runway. Serena would likely study media and aspire to work in fashion PR, creating headlines for the world's largest fashion companies. Serena would annoy her classmates as she receives thousands of text messages from adoring fans and possibly an anonymous gossip blog...

Engineering

The Bananas would do absolutely everything together at UNSW. They would do the same degree, eat the same food at lunch and even wear the same matching pyjamas to class. The Bananas are the type of people to volunteer for absolutely everything and would be on almost every society’s subcommittee. Despite their kind hearts, I am not sure how helpful they would be, given the fact that they are very clumsy and likely to knock over something they just set up. 

So there you have it, 

This is how I imagine TV characters would spend their time at UNSW! I hope you had as much fun reading this as I did writing it!

Hayley Zantis is studying PR and Advertising at UNSW. Hayley loves all things pop culture and spends her free time scrolling on TikTok to get the latest goss.