All colleges have a reputation. For some it’s the great academics, others are known for being extremely selective and difficult to get into, and some might have a note-worthy sports program, and some, like mine, have been pegged as somewhere to go if you’re interested in partying. Now that’s not necessarily bad because all schools have aspects of partying, especially if it’s a school of 30,000 people. The problem arises when others assume that’s the only reason you are there.

At a school with a party reputation, people often assume that you are only there for the party aspect when in reality, not everyone likes to drink or even go to parties. With a large student body comes a large variety of activities. Some of them may take a lot of time, and some not very much but whatever it may be, drinking and partying isn’t the only thing to be done.

The problem is, even though there are an abundance of activities that don’t revolve around consuming copious amounts of alcohol and dressing as skimpy as possible, there aren’t always a ton of people that share the same disinterest in partying. Sure, they’re on campus and they exist but they’re harder to find. I am just SO tired of hearing “then why are you here?!” as a response to me saying “I don’t party”. That’s such an unjustified response to someone going to a certain school.

I DID NOT PICK MY SCHOOL FOR ITS PARTY REPUTATION. I feel like I need to yell it from the rooftops for people to understand. But the most important thing is I am not alone. Plenty of people go to schools that are considered a party school and they don’t like to party. As much as it seems that the only way to make friends is to go get drunk, it’s not the only option.

Go out and find groups on campus that you are interested in. Whether it be an intramural sport, an academic team, a music club, or a book club, there is so much to do on campus that doesn’t involve partying.

Another awesome thing about not giving into the party reputation is the ease of being happy with a movie night in your room. Nothing makes me happier than binge watching Netflix and eating Nutella out of a jar with a spoon (but don’t tell my mom I do that). By taking a pass on the party scene, you can also help your future self. You can be totally sure that in the future employers won’t find any incriminating or embarrassing information on you. The same probably can’t be said for your peers that constantly go out.

No matter what your reasoning, you’re not all that strange for not partying and you are doing your school’s reputation a favor by not going out. You continue to be a shining light in the cesspool that is a school’s partying reputation. Many people feel the same way and they are out there! Don’t give up hope trying to find them.