Lifestyle
The 8 Types Of Friends You'll Make Your First Semester Of College

Going to college is life-changing. You're expanding your horizons and possibly getting outside of your comfort zone. You're learning to live on your own, and making new friends along the way. When you graduate, you don't just walk out with a diploma, but a lifetime of memories. This entire adventure starts the day you decide on a school, and seemingly never ends. The people you meet aren't just around for four years. I'm here to give you the scoop on the types of friends you make your first semester of college — the friends who might just be around forever.

You want to know exactly what to expect, right? College can come with a lot of question marks, so it's nice to have some answers. Going into your first semester, you're trying to figure out your major and the best route to the art building. Don't worry: Plenty of people have been in your shoes before, and the best is always yet to come.

After a little bit of exploring, you'll know your way around campus and have met people that share the same passions as you. You'll befriended a girl in your class after passing her the syllabus, and go to dinner with the girls in your dorm. You'll be ready to rock 'n roll into the next adventure in no time — ice cream socials, midterms week, or studying abroad. Oh yes, these few years are going to be sweet, but mostly because of the friends you meet.

01
Your Roommate
Giphy

First thing's first: Your roommate will be one of your friends during your first semester at college. You were randomly assigned to live together, or picked each other after talking a bit over social media. Now, you'll be sharing a room and learning each other's quirks and lifestyle.

She'll likely become someone you lean on and hang out with on the reg. Or, the chemistry might not be there, and that's OK, too. As long as you are kind and respectful to one another, you'll be good to go. But, if you and your roommate become really close, you'll be attached at the hip for a little while. You'll explore campus together and meet for coffee in between classes. Those trips to the grocery store are a great bonding experience, too.

02
Your Bud Who Lives Down The Hall
Giphy

There will be your roommate, but then there will be the girl who lives down the hall. She'll be the one you go to when you want to watch the football game on a Sunday afternoon, or are getting ready for a night out on the town. She'll let you raid her closet and will organize the best group hangs. Along with her roommates, you'll make quite the crew on campus.

In the upcoming years, you'll probably rent an apartment and live with her for real. During the first semester of college, you'll just hang on her couch with the rest of her roommates. Nobody will mind, though. Their dorm is your dorm, and vice versa.

03
Your Classmate
Giphy

Aside from getting out on your own and cheering on the football team, college is all about your classes. You picked a university for its science program or law school, and this will be the time to put in the work. Truth be told, you'll probably have a few long nights in the library. But, you won't be hitting the textbooks alone.

Your bestie from class will be sitting right there with you. Together, you'll go through the PowerPoints and study guides, and memorize all of the vocabulary words. When you're truly stuck on an assignment, or need to obsess over a cool video project, they'll be the first person you call. (Nobody else would understand that chemistry problem, or your love for the blur transition.)

04
Your Sorority Sister
Giphy

One of the things you might do on campus is join a sorority. You'll scope out the different organizations during your first few weeks at school, and look them up on social media. This one has a really amazing philanthropy, but you think you'd have a better connection with the girls from this other one. So, you'll go through the recruitment process, and then find your "home."

After landing a bid, you and the other new members will start meeting everyone. You'll find one or two sisters who turn into your best friends, and later your bridesmaids. It's not for four years, after all — it's forever.

05
Your Orientation Pal
Giphy

The first weekend you're at school, you'll be part of an orientation group. Some upperclassmen will show you the ropes and teach you all about campus life. They'll show you where to put your tray in the cafeteria, and give you the scoop on the coolest restaurants and spots in the library. Those few days will be long, just because you're seeing and experiencing so much! But, it won't be so bad, thanks to your orientation pal.

This is the person you bonded with during those icebreaker activities. They also want to study abroad, or are from a town near yours. The first few weeks of the semester, you'll grab lunch with them and talk about your classes. Who knew going into that weekend you'd walk away with a friend for life?

06
Your Teammate
Giphy

During your first semester of college, you'll likely join a lot of clubs and sports teams. You might have gotten recruited for field hockey before you even stepped foot on campus, or will scope out some intramural teams at the involvement fair. After going through tryouts and that first initial practice, you'll officially be part of the group, and making new friends left and right.

Every time you're getting ready for a game, you'll text your new best friend. She'll hang out with you during the pasta parties, and make sure you know when there are events or an early-morning gym session going on. Phew! You don't want to miss that.

07
Your Friend From Home
Giphy

You may be lucky enough to have someone you know from home at school. Maybe it's one of your neighbors, or maybe it's just someone you know from high school. Either way, this person will become someone you're close to in that first semester, because they're a familiar face.

Over the summer, you'll message each other and talk about your classes and what you want to do on campus. She'll be the first person you text when you're homesick, or need a buddy to go to the soccer game. On the weekends, you'll carpool back to your hometown for a quick visit and talk about your old teachers. (A walk down Nostalgia Lane is kind of inevitable with this one.)

08
Your Familiar Face On Campus
Giphy

This is the friend you meet because you're in the right place at the right time. It's sort of random, or out of the blue, but just as true as any other friendship you make during your first semester of college.

Here's how it will go down: You'll both be standing in line to grab a sandwich and start a conversation. Soon enough, you'll know about their family and where they're from. After grabbing your lunch from the counter, you'll wave and then move on with your day. Next stop: The library to do some studying before class, and then dinner with your roommates.

But then, like clockwork, you'll run into that same person again in the cafeteria. Just like that, they became a familiar face, and someone you consider a friend. Moments like that will make campus feel smaller, and your first semester much sweeter.