Friend groups shift throughout college experience

posted in: Opinion | 0

In more ways than one, college can be an experience that changes you and shaped you into a new person. One of these distinct changes shows itself through your social life. College is a great time to meet new people. 

In fact, sometimes it can feel like an exponential increase in social interaction. There are new faces at every turn, and every opportunity gives you the chance to meet a fresh group of people.

College gives you the chance to reinvent yourself, no matter whether you’re from a large or a small town. You’re in a completely new location surrounded by new people who don’t know you or the life that you came from. This feeling of newfound independence is intoxicating, and in some cases, can turn dangerous. 

Many people claim to be “great judges of character,” but it’s not uncommon for college freshman to veer off from their original friend groups. I know from personal experience that my friend group has changed multiple times, and the people that I spend the majority of my time with has shifted quite often as well. 

This isn’t a rare phenomenon either. I think because students are involved in so many different things — and our classes are changing each term, exposing us to new people — we’re always making new friends. This gives you the opportunity to hang out with multiple people, and they each may bring something different into your life. 

I have friends from my residence hall, friends from my major, friends from the clubs I’m in, friends from orientation last year, and not all of these groups necessarily intermingle. 

Just because you don’t hang out with the same people you did when you started college doesn’t make you a bad person. You’re allowed to hang out with a ton of different people without the obligation of any of them being your best friend. You get to pick and choose who you vibe the best with, and who you enjoy spending your time with the most. 

I also believe that it is easier to judge someone’s character in college because you are spending so much time with them. For the most part, you spend so much time with your friends that you’re practically living with them, and in some cases, you are. 

So, don’t feel bad if you find yourself shifting and sliding throughout different friend groups throughout your time at college. Change is normal, and it’s something that should be embraced during this period of our lives.

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