We all remember, some with pride and others with dread, our experience at New Student Institute here at SNU. All summer Misty Jaggers and her wonderful interns pray for, plan, and organize five days of amazing events and presentations designed to help freshmen and transfer students to transition more smoothly into college life here on our campus.
Every year bright-eyed freshmen, full of hope and desire for their future, meet and often times couple up in the first few weeks of school. With the Oklahoma heat still in full swing, love (or is it just humidity?) hovers in the air on campus. But there are several downsides to dating the first, or second, guy you meet here.
People will identify you by your significant other.
As a new student in a new place, you have the chance to redefine yourself. Jumping into a relationship with someone that you have known for at most a week or two is more than a little risky. Not only do you not know who the person is or where they stand, but you also don’t really know that much about yourself yet.
Also, dating someone can cause people to put you into certain molds based on your significant other’s personality and interests. It can be hard to shake a first impression and that may cause difficulties for you later on down the road.
College presents a unique opportunity for individual growth.
Since both of you are just starting out, it can seem like a great opportunity to grow together as you figure out your new life, but being in a relationship can actually inhibit your growth as an individual. Relationships can cause certain expectations and strains that you shouldn’t have to deal with on top of your class load and personal development.
If you go into your new college life as a new couple you will probably end up cultivating the same mutual friends within your group.
While this isn’t necessarily a “downside” it does tend to make it very difficult if you break up. It can put your mutual friends in a very awkward position and make your life here on campus harder than it needs to be.
Celeste Forrest, junior, met her boyfriend of two years, Joseph Blissett, at NSI and she had this to say about relationships, “I’m really glad that first of all I just let God take control of my love life…I feel like in the beginning thats what you should do. You shouldn’t just start pursuing people right off the bat; you need to let God take control and let him work his way through your life, and eventually he will lead you to that person. Whether its the beginning of NSI or the end of your senior year, you need to just let God take control. You don’t need to worry about anything else.” Celeste met Joseph on the last day of NSI her freshman year and they have been dating ever since.
[author image=”https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?ui=2&ik=c66244d906&view=fimg&th=147ad51f8dc8c96e&attid=0.1&disp=inline&realattid=f_hyj6ri0a0&safe=1&attbid=ANGjdJ9pLrqbjmeELEI6Zyb0C7hjYL28Aqct9fQ7eej0MmAeXxIrnQRz8Xv_xyeSIW1w-YLBGaiGg6uK0yJZNSuVwa_8l9vvwQXPv63kdOC478FuRWsGItZG2m22aLE&ats=1409107736771&rm=147ad51f8dc8c96e&zw&sz=w1248-h559″ ]Hannah Bean, Business and Social Media Manager Hannah is a sophomore studying English Education. Last year as a freshman she worked on the staff of the Arrow.[/author]