The Five Boys You Meet In College

Let’s face it — although we may come to college with the intention to learn as much as we can, experience personal growth and receive a diploma, we tend to keep dating in our minds. What kinds of guys will we meet when we get there? Who will live down the hall from us? What friendships will evolve into more… and will the boys be cuter than the ones we went to high school with? Though these thoughts may border on superficial, we can’t deny that they’ve crossed our minds (and boys, this includes you too, except the other way around).

As one of those girls who did date the boy across the hall and observe her other friends in relationships throughout that first year and a half, I became a bit of an authority on the types of guys one might run into at school. Keep in mind that you can’t lump everyone together exactly (some may even fit multiple categories — a good friend of mine claims to fit at least four of the five!), but these are just a few of the major categories I found when I got to college.

The Five Boys You Meet In College

1. The Ladies’ Man.
When he’s not hanging around his fraternity house, he’s most likely at the gym or the pool. At night you can find him at any party that has a surplus on beer and flip-cup tournaments, although he occasionally goes out to the local bars with his bros. He’s generally attractive and a sweet-talker, but his moves are as obvious as they are endearing. His girl of choice is scantily clad and often a few years younger than he is, and although he’s known to be a bit of a player, his male and platonic female friends alike still think of him somewhat affectionately. He may not be the best choice in boyfriend, but he is fun to have around in classes and at parties, and he provides good insight into what guys do when they aren’t interested in a serious relationship.

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2. The Hipster.
Often clad in a V-neck shirt tighter than anything you own, the Hipster frequents those hole-in-the-wall places you’ve never heard of and scoffs at the ones you have. Although his hoodie is oddly reminiscent of something Justin Bieber might own, he wouldn’t dare listen to a pop station on the radio unless he were doing so for ironic effect. If you do manage to impress this boy past his usual sense of mild entertainment, you will be exposed to the most obscure of bands, artists and films, with which you must keep up and then look down upon once they become better-known among society. You may have difficulty holding the Hipster’s attention for long (assuming you can accept his choice in facial hair), but never fear — if things end abruptly, you can always reflect upon the relationship by posting a few crappy polaroids on your Tumblr. You know he will.

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3. The Nerd.
Perhaps my favorite of all the boys, the Nerd uses his brain to his advantage. Confident in his abilities but not particularly cocky about much else, he knows how to have fun but also knows how to prioritize… usually. He may get more excited than most over some new technological feature, but it’s okay, because at the same time, he totally accepts your insistence at seeing the latest Harry Potter movie at its midnight showing or the fact that you have to finish that blog you started before you go out (cough, cough). He’s cute, but unlike the Ladies’ Man, he is somewhat unaware of the fact that he outgrew his awkward stage from high school, so he doesn’t let it get to his head. Even if you don’t end up dating him, he’s great to keep around as a friend — always willing to hold an intelligent conversation or fix your computer!

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4. The Nice Guy.
More often than not, the Nice Guy hangs out in the Friend Zone. He’s sensitive and sweet, always willing to listen and help you solve your problems, without asking anything in return. Because of this, girls tend to latch onto him, confiding in him everything they might tell their girl friends in the hopes of garnering a male perspective. He’s that shoulder to cry on and ideally everything you might want in a boyfriend, but you’ve never really thought of him that way and you would hate to rock the boat. Instead, the Nice Guy sits and waits because he doesn’t want to make you uncomfortable, and usually never tells you how he feels because he knows you’re falling for some jerk (Ladies’ Man, perhaps?) anyway.

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5. The Pseudo Nice Guy.
The most dangerous of all (much more so than the Ladies’ Man), the Pseudo Nice Guy disguises himself as, you guessed it, the Nice Guy. He works his way into your life, feigning concern whenever you need to talk, and stealthily gathers your inner-thoughts and secrets. Slowly, he proves his dependability and worth to you, but unlike the Nice Guy, he makes a move in the best way he knows how — by appealing to your heart in whichever way you have demonstrated possible throughout the course of your friendship. He constantly reminds you of what an honorable person he is, but through those reminders he manages to manipulate you in other ways. Such a boy can be difficult to spot because of the many ways in which he manifests himself, and he can also be difficult to abandon when his facade does begin to crack. Be on the look-out and if something in the relationship feels wrong, it probably is.

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Editor’s Note: Some of you may be wondering, “what about the Bad Boy?” After all, we’ve all met/dated at least one of those in high school. …Well, that’s simple. He didn’t make it to college!

My questions for readers:

– Have you encountered any of these boys?
– What other types of people have you met?
– Guys: do girls fit into these categories, or how might you categorize them if you had to?