I think a lot of high school students have an idealized version of what college and their college friendships will be like. They will have one group of friends. They and their friends will be very similar to one another. That one group will do everything together. And so on, and so forth…

Here’s the thing. I was like that. I was ready for my one big group. But the thing is, I learned that that’s not necessarily what happens. For some people it does, to a point. But honestly, it’s not even the best option, in my opinion. The best option is making friends wherever you go.

I have friends from my hall freshman year. I have friends I met at Camp Crimson. (By the way, if you’re debating whether or not to go to Camp Crimson, go.) I have friends I met in class (yes, that’s possible). I have friends from work. I have a bunch of friends from a variety of places, and I honestly think I’m a better person for it.

Doing this has allowed me to have a variety of friends. I may not be completely similar to them. I may not agree with them on everything. But I’ve learned from them, and I’ve learned to adapt to an array of personalities and people in the process.

Work is an especially good example of this. I work at the OU Communications Center, a subset of OU Recruitment Services. Our job is to basically call high school seniors (and some juniors) and help them with the often-stressful job of applying to, deciding on and enrolling in college. So pretty much if you get a call that says, “Hi, I’m Brittany from the University of Oklahoma. Is (fill in your name) available?”…that’s me. So hi, if I’ve ever talked to you!

There are a variety of people that work at the Comm Center. This is for one simple reason…there are a variety of people that go to OU. We try to be as representative of OU as possible. We all just have one major thing in common—a passion for OU.

Because of this, I’ve met so many different people. It’s not like class or my internship, where almost every person is a Public Relations major (my major). It’s not like most other friendships I’ve made, where the people I hang out with are the people I would have hung out with in high school. But meeting and befriending these people has been an awesome experience.

And these aren’t just people I say hi to at work. We hang out outside of work. I’m in class right now with one person. Sometimes one of the other students at work even treats us to lunch at the Caf.

We formed friendships that may or may not have seemed likely on the surface. And once we started talking to one another, we realized we have more in common than we think. My coworkers are some of the funniest, most-driven people I have met on campus.

This is just one example of why you should make friends everywhere you go. I know I, and most other people, have had similar experiences in many different areas of our lives at OU. What I’m just trying to say is that you should be open to making friendships with anyone, anywhere.

And you don’t have to work at the Comm Center to do this. (Although if there are spots open and you have a passion for OU, we’d love to have you!) Join CAC. Join UPB. Join one of our hundreds of clubs on campus. Join a fraternity or sorority (we have Pan-Hellenic, Multicultural, Service…you name it). Join your major’s organizations (for me, that’s PRSSA). Talk to random people on your hall, in the study room, on the elevator, in the laundry room, etc. Because if you don’t, you never know what friendships you will miss!

 

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