If you’re an avid fan of Sex and The City, you know it took Carrie six seasons and one movie to finally settle down with her man, Big. For Charlotte it took one awful mother-in-law and a divorce, and for Miranda a baby (Samantha is for another time, another story). But that is an HBO television show…dating in New York City can’t really be as hard as Carrie and the girls make it seem…can it?
When coming to NYU, I never thought dating would be an issue; there are, after all, nearly 8.5 million people living in the city. There is bound to be at least one catch, right?
Maybe the dating scene gets better after college, but it’s hard to ignore the hundreds of NYU girls roaming the Village looking for their Mr. Bigs—younger versions, of course. After venting with my fellow coeds for nearly three years (copying my fictional idol Carrie for a moment) I can’t help but wonder, why is it so hard for NYU girls to find guys?
Don’t assume you’re a weirdo doomed to old cat lady status. Here are what that stats and your classmates are saying:
“NYU doesn’t have a strong community feel to it,” says sophomore Melissa Esguerra. Melissa believes the lack of college spirit and not having a definite campus greatly affects the typical ‘college experience.’ There aren’t football games to meet and greet the cuties sitting behind you. Sororities and fraternities aren’t extremely popular at NYU either. According to College Board, only 5% of NYU female students join sororities.
Another reason, and I’m sure we’ve all said this at least 30 times, why it’s so hard to find a boyfriend at NYU is because, duh, many of the guys aren’t straight. Don’t get me wrong— every Carrie loves her Stanford and every Charlotte loves her Anthony. The simple fact is these men are undatable. College Board reports that the girl-to-guy student ratio at NYU is 60-40—this is not taking into account all the Stanfords.
Junior Manya Blau sites another possible explanation for why dating might be so difficult: the hookup culture of New York. New York, the “city of sin,” is known for wild and crazy nights at the club, flirt fests at the bar, and “rememberable” one-night stands. None of these things, however, positively influence the dating and relationship scene. To make things more difficult, many college guys just look for a hookup buddy. Together, these two factors can have a great impact on how dating works at NYU.
Then of course there are the typical difficulties coeds face in every college–the immature guys, the guys who never do their laundry, the guys who won’t hold the door open for you (biggest pet peeve ever!), the guys who try too hard etc…
With all of this working against us, how can we have any hope? We might as well throw in the towel now, right? WRONG! The best way to find someone is to stop looking so much and keep an open mind about everything that comes your way.
After all, I’m sure Charlotte didn’t expect to fall in love with her bald divorce lawyer and Miranda with a bartender she met after getting stood up by her bff Carrie.
Image Credit: Flickr
Statistics found on Collegeboard.com
Want more from Kayla? Follow her on Twitter @ksk316.