Coming to a new school is scary, especially one with 40,000+ students. If you’re from a small town or a place with not a lot of diversity, it can be very intense at first — it sure was for me. One way to make it less overwhelming is to find a group of friends to stick with. It may take some time to find one, but it will happen, I promise. Below are a few places to look.

Your dorm

Dorms are an amazing way to meet to people. Like you, most of the people in the dorms are new to college and are afraid they won’t make any friends or find their place either. Those people you walk past every single day in the hallway? Talk to them! The people you see eating in the dining hall all the time? Ask to sit with them! You’re gonna be seeing them for the rest of the year, so you might as well. Besides, nothing says ‘friendship’ like bonding over missing your friends and family, awful food, shower shoes, and floor meetings.

Your classes

I recommend befriending at least one person in all of your classes in case you miss a lecture, don’t understand a part of an assignment (or the whole thing), or need a study buddy. I know with some majors, the class sizes decrease as you go further into the curriculum, which is better for making friends, in my experience. There are also group projects, too, which can be annoying. But hey, you may bond with some of your partners over your hatred of group projects!

RSOs

Here at the University, we have a huge event called Quad Day where hundreds of RSOs (registered student organizations) set up booths all around the quad and try to get you to join them by giving out free stuff. There are all types of organizations, from a cappella groups to clubs specific to your major. It’s great exposure to the clubs we have here, and who knows? You’ll probably make some great friends through them.

Greek life

Though they’ve been seen as controversial and are often stereotyped, joining a fraternity or sorority is a great way to meet people. There are tons of events, like philanthropy dinners and exchanges, where you can meet people. If you do join one, there are so many people in it that you’ll be guaranteed to make a few great bonds.    

Toni is a sophomore in Media.

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