It's a bit ironic that "it" girl HILARY DUFF would star in a movie about not fitting in. Then again, if you thrust the 17-year-old out of the limelight and into a high school like yours, she'd be like a fish -- albeit a funky, pop-star fish out of water.

After all, it's been about seven years since the "Raise Your Voice" star (Hilary's newest movie, opening October 8th) set foot in a classroom. Oh sure, she's been home-schooled since the fourth grade, and it wasn't easy. "I got a good education because it was me and a tutor, one on one. I couldn't fall asleep in class or text-message my friends," she says. But we know -- and so does she -- that it's not the same. "Sometimes I wonder if I'm going to regret not going to dances, or not passing notes in the hallway," Hilary expresses.

Not what you'd expect to hear from a super movie/TV/music star? You'd walk in her trendy shoes in a minute, wouldn't you?

Then again, Hilary hasn't ever had time to just be a regular teenager. "It's hard," she explains. "Sometimes I don't have any time for myself. I work all day into the night -- everyday." Check this schedule: If she's working on a movie, she'll typically put in 10 hours a day, then go into the studio to record afterward. "I have to split my time, but try not to complain too much. This is what I want."

Now, as she emerges yet again -- this is her seventh movie -- she ponders life beyond the screen and stage.

"I'd love to go to college," she says. "When I graduated [high school] a couple of months ago, I was like, 'I never have to go to school again if I don't want to -- that's awesome!' But then, I found myself needing to learn something."

You'll see, says Hilary -- when it's up to you to decide what to study, it makes a big difference in your motivation factor. "It wasn't like someone was pushing it on me, so I wanted it," she says. "In a year or so, when things slow down, I'd like to enroll in a local college or take classes online. I have no idea what I'd major in, but I do know it would be something totally unrelated to show business."

Not that she doesn't love Hollywood life... "I do, but it's such hard work," she says. Without such passion, she adds, there would be no way to sustain stardom and her sporadic schedule. "It becomes an addiction: 'How hard can you challenge yourself?' 'How hard can you push?'" she says.

And that's how Hilary discovered a commonality between her true persona and the main character of "Raise Your Voice," Terri Fletcher. Terri, a 16-year-old aspiring singer/songwriter, struggles to find herself in the bright lights of Los Angeles when she's accepted to a summer conservatory program at a prestigious music conservatory. "Terri's so strong, yet she's a 'pleaser'," Hilary explains. "She does things to make everyone else happy, but doesn't go after what she wants because she's so focused on everyone else."

Among some of the issues Hilary's character must deal with: An overbearing father, the loss of her brother, a Lindsay Lohan-esque rivalry with her musical nemesis Robin (LAUREN C. MAYHEW, read more about her at left), competing for a $10,000 academic scholarship, and of course -- to make things date-movie friendly -- a budding romance with a mysterious former-alcoholic -- but talented -- musician/bad boy named Jay.

You know him as English newcomer Oliver James. Though not a new guy to the big-screen love interest role (he starred opposite AMANDA BYNES in last year's What a Girl Wants), this was Oliver's first time meeting Hilary.

He actually went with a friend to see Hilary in concert a day before their first face-to-face time on set. He was amazed at what he saw. "I didn't know that much about her," explains the London native (accent and all). "When I saw all of Hilary's thousands of screaming fans in the audience, I couldn't believe it."

Even more shocking to Oliver was Hilary's down-to-earth nature. "She is a cool person, which is surprising when you have someone with such a high profile," says Oliver. "To see she was a 'normal' person was refreshing."

Also refreshing for Oliver was the opportunity to combine his love of music and acting on the big screen. In fact, since he attended a similar program to the one in "Raise Your Voice" -- he went to college in London at the Guildford School for Performing Arts -- Oliver had plenty of academic experiences to draw upon.

"At college, I was pretty shy. I hadn't really come out of my shell yet," he says. Though the character Oliver portrays is far from the quiet type -- he is actually dealing with his parents' nasty divorce and sinks himself into music as an escape -- Oliver was able to relate to the movie's main message.

Like Terri, people should be encouraged to chase their dreams, he says. "Don't let others put you off your course. Believe and positively imagine what you want to come to you."

As for Hilary's advice on dealing with a rough patch?" Everyone goes through difficult stages of their lives -- sometimes they last a little longer than others," she says. When you get lost and begin to wonder -- 'What am I going to do?' Who am I going to be?' 'Who am I?' -- believe in yourself, know that everything will be OK, study hard, work hard, and have fun. You can make for yourself whatever you want."

Despite a different type of teen life than the average high school grad, Hilary knows exactly where she wants to take her life. And, at least she's got one thing in common with the campus crowd and her collegiate co-stars -- pulling all-nighters to get the job done is her way of life, too.

She may play Robin, the nemesis of  

Hilary Duff

 's character in "Raise Your Voice,", but in real life, Lauren C. Mayhew is a hard-working sweetheart. In addition to the movie (her first one!), Lauren is the host of "Real Access," a TV news magazine for teens that airs on The N. She also just began her freshman semester at University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA).

"The campus is beautiful, the education is amazing, and it's located in the perfect area for where I need to be for my career," Lauren explains. "I wanted to go to a big school, especially after being at a private school in Tampa, Florida for so many years. It was wonderful to go to a school where I would meet new people everyday."

Not that she was a wallflower in high school, though. "I was captain of my dance team, in the spirit club, a member of the National Honor Society, and more," Lauren explains. "I tried to do and juggle as many things as I could."

It's no wonder her and Hilary got along so well. If anything, "Raise Your Voice" is filled with over-achieving, rising stars. Watch out!

Curious about the stars' preferred subjects? We checked Lauren's fall UCLA freshman schedule, and chatted academics with Hilary and Oliver...

Lauren: Astronomy, life science, and women's studies

Hilary: "I'm not big on English, but I am into math. If I'm able to focus on it, I like it."

Oliver: "I'm fascinated by history, evolution, all that kind of stuff. I'm not much of a scientist, not a great mathematician, but I like anything to do with the past."

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