Kissing Booth 3: Why Elle Choosing USC Over Harvard & Berkeley ...

Netflix's The Kissing Booth 3 answered the first sequel's big question about where Elle Evans (Joey King) would go to college, and here's why it was the right thing for her to choose the University of Southern California (USC) over Harvard and Berkeley. Based on the novels by Beth Reekles, the teen rom-com trilogy up with its final film in August 2021. After 2020's The Kissing Booth 2 ended with a cliffhanger surrounding Elle's choice between Harvard or Berkeley, it was expected that this decision would be a major plot point in the next movie, which was announced last summer.

The Kissing Booth 3 did address Elle's college choice, and the storyline went in a surprisingly satisfying direction. Prior to her choice, Elle was eager to make the most of her last summer before college and happy to spend it with her boyfriend Noah (Jacob Elordi) and her best friend Lee (Joel Courtney) at the beach house from their childhood. As the summer played out, Elle found it challenging to figure out her future while making time for Noah, Lee, her job and her own family. The film's ambiguous ending regarding Elle and Noah's relationship may have caused some division, but one decidedly good conclusion was Elle's choice to attend USC.

Related: How Old Elle Is In The Kissing Booth 3 (Including The Time Jump)

The fact that Elle ended up at USC instead of Harvard or Berkeley in The Kissing Booth 3 was the right choice because it was her own choice. Throughout the franchise, Elle tries very hard to maintain her friendship with Lee as well as her relationship with Noah, and this leads to a lot of people-pleasing. Heading into the third movie, Elle hadn't really given any other schools much thought; she only considered honoring her childhood pact with Lee to attend Berkeley or going along with Noah's prodding to attend Harvard and be close to him. All of the stress surrounding her college decision related to her fear of letting one of the brothers down. It seemed as if her own fears and desires weren't even a factor.

However, neither school would have been the right decision for Elle. Although she seemed proud of herself for getting into a school like Harvard, the main reason she applied was for Noah, and their relationship had been problematic and unstable throughout The Kissing Booth franchise. With their long-distance struggles, Berkeley might have led to a breakup and might have been best for Elle overall, but it still wasn't ideal. Elle shouldn't have been expected to honor a childhood pact with Lee when neither of them had any concept of college at a young age. Plus, Elle and Lee already broke some other rules from their pact.

After her breakup with Noah and a big fight with Lee, Elle reached a moment of clarity and owned up to the fact that she was always basing her decisions on other people. She realized she had a passion for video game design and applied to the USC program. This indicates some distinct character development on her part, and it was a surprisingly good ending for a film genre that's typically known for clichés and romantic happily-ever-afters. By the end of The Kissing Booth 3, Elle was happy because she stayed true to herself after all.

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Next: The Kissing Booth 3: Ending Explained - Do They Get Back Together?