Campus Involvement,  College Tips

Social Life

If you ask ANY college student, they will tell you “social life” is the best part of being a college student. I mean, we have unlimited freedom, we can order food at 3 A.M., and run around with our friends. The most important of all, there’s no curfew! It doesn’t get better than this. However, it is tough to adjust to this life, Especially for freshman; it’s tough to get used to the freedom that comes with living away from home.

But how? How do college students maintain a social life? How do we even start one?

From my experience, maintaining a social life is just as important as balancing school work.

Getting involved on campus is a significant factor in building your social life in college. Joining clubs and orgs will practically force you to meet people! The easiest connections are made when getting active on campus. Check out my last week’s blog to read more about campus involvement!

Okay, but what else can you do to maintain a social life?

Honestly, going to parties and the bars (if you are of age) with your friends is a critical aspect of college social life. I know the party scene isn’t for everyone; however, social gatherings like these are great opportunities to meet new people. As a freshman, it may be challenging to find a group of people they trust to go out with. When I was a freshman, I met many of people by walking around with my roommate and hanging out in other people’s dorms.

Now, as a senior, I still am in contact with people I met freshman year. I remember being so nervous about introducing myself to new people. However, I can confidently say, going to other dorms and social gatherings broke me out of my shell. I grew confident and now have no hesitation in introducing myself to new people (which is a great skill to have, post-college).

Maintaining a social life is truly a balancing act. Students must upkeep their grades and schoolwork, but it is also vital to maintain their social life.

Balancing education with social life helps students maintain stability. For me, it wasn’t easy to adapt to the freedom that comes with college. The difficulty soon disappeared once I created my social life, once I found my group of friends. Without my friends, the balance of school and free time wouldn’t have worked.

To conclude my advice, don’t hesitate to reach out to people! Even though it may be scary, push yourself out of your comfort zone. It is imper to create a social life in college. Don’t be afraid to go out and have fun!

4 Comments

  • Lindsey Buchanan

    Hi Brianna,
    I agree with you that balancing education and a social life helps students maintain stability. I also remember freshmen year of college was very hard at first for me to get used to all of the freedom! It was hard to not only come out of my shell and get used to new people, but it was also hard to pass up times with friends when I know I needed to study. This balance is all about learning from mistakes and estimating what will work best for time management! If anything college has definitely taught me how to have good time management.

  • Julianne Gantar

    Hi,
    I am also a Senior this year and I can easily say that I can have a conversation with at least 85% of the people on my floor from freshman year and it wouldn’t feel weird. My friends and I always say how lucky we were to have an amazing floor community our first year and I am still very close friends with the people I met on my dorm floor from freshman year. I think that dorming is a very important experience that everyone should go though.

    • Brianna Olstad

      I agree! I genuinely feel for the freshman now.. I mean, COVID has nearly stripped freshman from their dorm experience. It is a great way to break the ice into meeting new people in college, for sure!

  • Kim Reinders

    I love that you are still in contact with people from your freshman year. I know for me, as a first generation student, college was scary at first but I got involved in the marching band and then with the campus television station. I have loved everything and everyone that I have met throughout my years here. Even though it is coming to an end, I am still meeting new people and hanging out with the friends I have known the longest. College is a werid time but sometimes you create the best memories.

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