No one can stop college relationships, but . . .

Latwell Nyangu-Youth Interactive Writer

No one can stop college relationships, but there are certain aspects that individuals should consider to ensure a healthy and meaningful connection.

Relationships of any kind are hard, even when they are good.

College relationships, although forced to be serious, cannot effectively operate. Many students regret college relationships while some emulate them.

But the matter remains subjective. And if you are in a serious college relationship, you deserve some serious credit.

On top of your giant course load and social commitments, you can balance yet another super demanding responsibility, being a good partner to your significant other.

While being in a serious relationship can, in many ways, make navigating the uncharted territory of college easier, it can also make things more challenging.

Still, if you think you have met “the one,” you shouldn’t let a little thing called college get in the way.

While college relationships can be fulfilling and lead to long-lasting partnerships, it is essential to approach them with maturity and commitment.

This week, I make my case in this column that, despite some giving us testimonies of college relationships, many have been left nursing wounds.

Proponents of college relationships will argue that it will work out while those against it will say such relationships are doomed from the start.

I fear that so many of us involve ourselves in relationships for less-than-stellar reasons and in less-than-ideal situations which will inevitably circle back to bite us in the end.

One thing that students should note is that college presents us with so many unique challenges to stable and healthy relationships, that they are virtually bound to fail miserably.

Fate has a way of testing even the strongest of bonds. As always, I write what I see and in general, college relationships are often influenced by various factors such as personal growth, shared experiences, emotional connections, and mutual interests.

Fellow students, it is essential to understand that each relationship is unique, and the dynamics of college relationships can vary significantly based on the individuals involved.

Many students fail to balance the many responsibilities. It is my wish that most students who can’t cope, wait until after college so that they can balance their tasks.

As I write what I see, most students have drowned in these college relationships and most of them do not last.

As much as we hate to admit it, at 18–22 years old, we are not the most mature human beings and we don’t have the most life or relationship experience.

This lack of maturity leads us to not only get hurt but to hurt others.

 It is ridiculous of you to expect an 18-year-old frat boy to be a serious  boyfriend. They are wired to hurt you. At that age it may also difficult to understand your standards, expectations, in a relationship.

If you don’t know what you want of your partner, and you are not sure what they want of you, neither of you is going to get what they want from the other.

College lends itself to unserious relationships, your basic flings, friends with benefits, cheaters, and quitters.

All of these kinds of relationships have unintended casualties and consequences on both sides, that get in the way of what college is supposed to be about.

A relationship or a breakup can seem like the end of the world, simply because our world is so small.

In most scenarios, students have committed suicide or have harmed each other.

Let’s face it, in college it is much easier to focus on your friends than it is to be constantly worrying about a young boyfriend or girlfriend doing what young people do that is, acting stupid.

Some students have lost their lives because of these college relationships.

On the other hand, while the lack of maturity in college relationships suggests that most aren’t serious, relationships at a university lend themselves to getting serious quickly because of the absence of any real space.

You are both confined to one campus no matter how large or small — to live on, eat on, socialise on, study on, and everything in between.

 No matter how much you try, you will inevitably get too close and too serious for your own good.

 It is far too easy to get way too into a relationship, because you don’t have much else to do. 

At the end of the 4 years, no matter how great the relationship was, you most likely will have different plans or aspirations for your lives after college, and someone would have to compromise to make it work. 

Again, this is too big of a decision to face at the age of 22.

Relationships in college can be hard. It can be difficult to find time for yourself, let alone for others.

If you ask a group of college students about having a relationship in college, there are bound to be mixed reviews.

I think that having a relationship in college can be a great thing as long as it is with someone willing to deal with the not-so-great parts of it.

A lot of college students argue that having a relationship in college will somehow cause you to miss out, but I never see it that way.

There is also the classic “why be tied down” argument or feeling like ‘playing the field’ is the best way to see what is out there.

For some people, that works and many people are happy to not be in a relationship and not have to worry about what their significant other is doing.

Above all, college is a time of growing and changing and because of this, people simply can outgrow a relationship that they feel no longer suits them.

Until we meet for a toast!

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