A freshman’s guide to making friends in week one of college

The first week of college is incredibly daunting. A whole new place with all new people. 

But it is also incredibly exciting. You have an entire new opportunity to learn about yourself and really define who you want to be as a person. 

The number one way to really explore yourself is by aligning yourself with a new group of people, especially now, where many freshmen are here alone, without the close friends that may have been around during highschool. 

So how do you go about making friends? 

The beginning of that answer is a question. “What kind of friends do you want?”

This is a vital question, and is often overlooked by freshmen, as they latch onto the first group they can find. 

Are you wanting to stay with your nose to the grindstone and make studying your priority? 

Seek out a club with like minded people.

Speaking of clubs, there are so many opportunities around campus to get involved. 

Whether it is with an academic organization like the Honors Society, a competitive organization like intramural sports, or a social one like joining a fraternity or sorority, finding a club that interests you will put you in close contact with people that have similar interests. 

Shameless plug: but a great way to get to know the MNSU campus community while also meeting great friends that will last a lifetime is working for the newspaper. You get great opportunities to explore the campus community, and meet tons of people that you may not meet otherwise. 

If you are looking to venture out from highschool, and explore what the “party scene” is like, try knocking on the dorm room that is blasting music on a Saturday night, the worst they can say is to go away. 

One place where friendships are cultivated is in the dorm lounge. 

If you need to get some studying done, but don’t mind some extra chatter, make it a priority to lug your laptop to the lounge. 

Start up conversation with the other people in the room. Time and time again, this leads to late night conversations 

One of the easiest ways to meet new people while living in the dorms though is by going to the weekly “What’s on Wednesdays” that is put on by each residence hall. 

This is a great way to mingle with other students that are in the same building as you, and with very little pressure, as everyone is there to mingle and get to know each other. 

It is so easy to feel lonely during the first few weeks of college. It is a natural reaction to such a drastic life change. 

It is imperative to know that it will pass. Homesickness starts to go away when your dorm starts to feel like home. 

Everyone goes through the feeling of missing “home”, but then slowly but surely, your dorm feels more and more like the place where you belong. It is a huge part of the college experience.

If you are having trouble finding your “group” or place, it’s okay. You will get there, and you will get there exactly when you need to. 

In the meantime, go looking for people that reflect who you want to be, because that is where the best friendships come from.