Making Real Connections in College

A guide to building the kind of friendships where you can actually be yourself You’re about to meet more new people in a shorter stretch of time than at almost any other point in your life. You’ll sit next to strangers in lecture halls, share a bathroom with someone you met last Tuesday, and get invited to things by people whose last names you don’t know yet. And here’s what nobody tells you: most of it will feel weirdly shallow. Not because anything is wrong with you. Not because you’re bad at socializing. The settings you’re in — dorm small talk, party conversations, group chats — aren’t built for the kind of connection that actually makes you feel known. They’re built for something else: sorting, scanning, surface-level friendliness. That’s fine for what it is. But if you mistake it for the whole menu, you’ll spend four years surrounded by people and still feel alone. This guide is about understanding why that happens and what to do about it. Why It’s Not Just You Here’s the…