Most freshmen enter college in a relationship. A lot of them are long distance. The reason being is we are naïve at such a young stage in our lives. Fast-forward meeting new people and finding your own life away from your “high-school sweetheart” starts to be the norm, as many college students end their high school relationship. The reason is, they could be holding the person back especially if they are in two different points of their lives. Not saying that staying with your high-school sweetheart is a bad thing because there are the very few last a long time. But for those that gave up, they start to date with the people around them. Dating in college is much easier because they are there 24/7 and they have the same interests as you. It makes it easier. But at the same time if you were to compare a college relationship to any other relationship, there will be a lot more factors to consider.
People in college are finding themselves and trying new things such as greek life, maybe the newspaper, debate club, volunteering, and even partying. On top of all these extracurricular activities, there are, of course, academics. It’s a hard balance between growing up and already being an adult. Then there is the fact that college students make friends and spend most of their amazing experiences with these people who will be there in the end. Many college students also change friend groups because their interests change or they realize they weren’t the “right” kind of friends.
So here comes the relationship part. When two people on the same campus start dating, everything seems great. Just like in every relationship the beginning is always the most intriguing. Compared to high school where you only saw your significant other during a portion of the 6 hour day and then went home to family. In college a relationship is always there in your face. Some people jump too quickly and end up doing something crazy such as move in or do their laundry, cook and clean up after each other. It starts to feel like a marriage because in a way the campus is your house. At the same time, these are all great feelings, and sometimes they aren’t. College relationships are the best in my opinion because after all the stress, confusion, growing up and seeing each other more often than you would like. Through all the hardships, it makes these two people stronger and happier. There is nothing better than having the feeling that you can graduate college with another human being that you love and is just as successful. In the end you know that you made it out together and are ready to conquer the real world.
- The same study shows that religious colleges make up a significant proportion of the top 25 "marrying" colleges for both men and women.
Here are a few reasons why college relationships are the best. In college, it is easier to find someone who shares your interests. If you want a party-goer kind of partner, then there's the opportunity of meeting at a party or if you want someone religious, you can check out your church. Want to find someone in the same major as you, look around your class. Everyone is conformed to something whereas in the real world, everyone is mixed up in different locations. Therefore, it can make it harder to find someone right after graduation. Especially in New York City, where millennials aren’t ready to leave their single life just yet. But at the same time it is more challenging because there are more distractions than ever.
People change constantly throughout college, but if that’s the case the relationship will too. Either for the better or for the worse, it is just up to the people. College lasts around four to five years depending on the person; maybe even more if they are going on to get their masters or go to med school. This gives relationships years to grow together and figure out how wonderful the other person is and to see if they are ready for the next step. It is easier to start a life as an adult in the real world together then finding out later on and not sure where their head is at. It is a trial and error period that many people our age forget about. People run at the first sign of an issue. But that's what growing up is all about. Even if you don’t end up in the "forever" stage at least you said you tried so the next time around you can’t say you ever failed.
Relationship expert and author, J.M. Kearns, quoted, “Many people have a great partner in college but take them for granted because they were so easy to find,” Kearns said, “So they move on and let that person slip out of their life. Then they discover to their chagrin, years later, that ‘the one that got away’ was really the one. Don’t let this happen to you.”
