University of Virginia (UVA)

The University of Virginia (UVA) is a college destination whose significance in the story is made concrete through two students’ prospects: Lara Jean hopes to study Korean there, while Josh receives early admission. The university links educational ambition to family memory, friendship, and the changes that come with leaving home.

Academic Opportunities

Lara Jean tells her father that UVA has a Korean language program and says she will take Korean if she is admitted. Her plan follows a family conversation about Korean food and her father’s memory of Lara Jean’s mother introducing him to Korean cuisine on their first date. The university’s language program therefore gives Lara Jean a possible way to pursue a connection her father regrets that his daughters did not maintain through Korean school.

Admissions and Family Consequences

Josh tells Lara Jean that he has been admitted to UVA early. He is pleased, and his parents are especially excited because the admission means they will not have to pay out-of-state tuition. He says they have not fought in days, making the news significant not only as an academic achievement but also as a brief easing of tension at home.

Connections to Margot and Lara Jean

Josh credits Margot with helping him study and says that his admission is partly because of her; he asks Lara Jean to tell Margot because he feels unable to call her himself. The news thus carries a connection to their former relationship even after their breakup. For Lara Jean, Josh’s admission also makes his impending departure feel real: she imagines that he will no longer be her next-door neighbor and asks whether he might come over for dinner again once enough time has passed and Margot has been told. UVA represents both a new future for Josh and the change in the familiar neighborhood ties Lara Jean hopes to preserve.