<p>I will admit, I felt a bit like that at times on Friday and yesterday…but then I got to meet my suitemates (live in HILC) and am pretty pumped.</p>
<p>Like other said, just wait until classes start.</p>
<p>What are you planning on majoring in, by the way?</p>
<p>@ansar</p>
<p>you live on HILC? me too and I am also a freshman. Which unit do you live on?</p>
<p>what about joining a club now or one of the intramural teams? it seemed like everywhere we went we received flyers for musical groups, frisbee teams, rugby teams, rowing teams, religous and other groups. </p>
<p>You didn’t say what sex you are, but what about going into college town with some girls. You will no doubt be invited in to some parties where you can meet some people.</p>
<p>You could also force yourself outside of your comfort zone and go talk to some people that you see–look at what is on people’s t shirts and use that as a conversation starter. My D went on a pre-orientation trip which really helped her find some friends right off that bat, but what was neat, was that people would stop her when she had her T-shirt on for outdoor odyssey and talk with her. </p>
<p>We saw this happen with other groups too–someone would have a frisbee shirt on or something and that would get it started.</p>
<p>Go out on the green with a frisbee and one person–then invite others to play…</p>
<p>Classes starting will help. Just try something new and different and see where it takes you.</p>
<p>I sympathize with all the freshmen out there and want to continue the words of encouragement around here.</p>
<p>Do not feel strange or surprised if you continue to at least slightly feel this way for a year or more. You will more than likely become friends with your hall-mates or floor-mates first, your class-mates second, and your true friends third (my own experience). We all look back on the OWeek things now and agree that it was all awkward and stupid, and frankly, I don’t remember a single person who was in my OL group.</p>
<p>But you will end up with friends. Please, I am not asking you to be a social butterfly, but DONT BE OPPOSED TO SOCIAL SITUATIONS. I’m not saying you need to walk around the building saying hi to everyone, but do leave your door open for the girl or boy who does. </p>
<p>I’m a junior and I still have a tendency to not talk to people in my large classes. I’ve found friends mostly in social classes such as lab classes or intro classes that had group work. If it’s a large lecture style, it can be intimidating (it still is for me), but try to at least make some chit chat.</p>
<p>And definitely join extracurriculars.</p>
<p>me and chendrix are friends…</p>
<p>if i can make friends so can you ;)</p>
<p>"You’ll probably have a really terrible time with that attitude.</p>
<p>Drink some redbull, network your a** off, and you’ll find some cool people. If all else fails go join a frat. "</p>
<p>wth?.. how does redbull help you make friends?..</p>
<p>my advice: think about the activities you wanna do. your extracurriculars / activities on campus will most likely be the biggest source of your friends. start planning. now. </p>
<p>as for orientation, be very friendly but also a little more selective. try to talk to as many people as possible, but try to see if you can actually connect with them. if you meet someone and it’s going well, keep connected with them. ask for their number, their facebook info, or whatever so you can stay in touch. then, a few hours later, invite them to go do something together. you make friends by doing things together, not by superficial conversations over “hey, what’s your major??”</p>
<p>Redbull makes you more outgoing. Try 1, or 9 some time.</p>
<p>BTW, lol @ Syracuse Basketball last season.</p>
<p>I agree with Cguilz on the redbull.</p>
<p>I definitely agree that orientation has been kind of weird and lonely for me. I know a lot of people say that you become friends with your floormates first…is it really unfortunate if that hasn’t really happened for me yet? I’m pretty shy so I was hoping I could meet my floormates together with my roommate and boost my confidence that way. But she already has her own set of good friends from before orientation even started, so I had to rely on my own devices the first few days. Which is kind of a problem, since I’m bad at striking up conversations with people out of the blue. I mean, I definitely realize that I probably won’t become best friends with everyone I meet…but the fact that I wasn’t able to make much connection with my floormates means that even now it’s somewhat hard to know who to eat with and stuff :</p>
<p>
+1 I didn’t meet my eventual best friend until the middle of the first semester. These things take time, and you’d be surprised at how many “orientation friends” are hanging out with other people by the end of the semester.<br>
this is to be expected, no? Everybody else is drowning in meeting new people, most of whom they know they’ll never see again. Just deal with it, roll with it, focus on yourself, and things will fall into place.<br>
again, another inherent “problem” with orientation. My eventual friends were nobody I met in orientation.
I don’t believe you have a bad attitude or anything. I just think you need to understand that this is totally common during orientation week (as we have seen from others in this very thread), and to not stress about it or anything. Really. Classes will start soon and this is when the “real” Cornell happens (and I miss it dearly).
+1
+1
-1 You wait.</p>
<p>I’m kinda feeling the same way. Not that many freshman in my dorm (I live in Risley), and they all away most of the time with other friends.</p>
<p>this is the first time i’ve seen a REAL “what’s it like at orientation” thread!</p>
<p>kudos to posters <3</p>
<p>I think it’s natural to feel uncomfortable at first. You guys need to be patient and realize that it’s only been a couple of days since you got to campus. You’ll meet plenty of people in your classes when they start. College is the first time many people are on their own without a structured support network they can rely on. Just remember that everyone is friendly and don’t be afraid to ask for help.</p>
<p>Also, there’s nothing wrong with dudes drinking beer in c-town. I fully enjoyed my time sitting at CTB watching hordes of freshmen walk by during orientation week while sipping on some magic hat and talking with my friends.</p>
<p>My son was introverted and shy as well. It took him a while to develop friendships, and those friendships were not with suite mates. Ultimately, he decided to join a fraternity and that made all the difference. I’m not advocating for or against frats/soros, but getting involved in a club or activity will help. You just started, don’t expect too much too soon.</p>
<p>Flash to the future: My upperclassman daughter reports two parties in two days!</p>
<p>She met her best Cornell friend while waiting on line during orientation, so this can happen as well; keep an open mind.</p>
<p>Being among all new people like this is inherently awkward, and some people just are better in these situations than others. Maybe this is one of the first times you are in such situations, but for many of you it will hardly be the last. I’m thinking about the times I had to “work the room” at conferences when I was in banking. </p>
<p>If you can possibly bring yourselves to toss away some of your shyness it might help a bit. Get a guy you just met from your hall to go out with you to some destination in collegetown, and then invite three other people you guys barely know if they want to go with you too. They don’t know anybody either, it’s an opportunity for them as well.</p>
<p>If there’s anything you like to do socially for fun- sports, ping pong, bowling, whatever- ask around if some people from your hall want to go with you. If they say no, so be it, but the upside is you can meet some new people maybe. </p>
<p>The main thing is, recognize being among strangers is awkward for most, until some of them are not strangers anymore, which can take time.</p>
<p>One thing I agree with, an orientation activity that consists merely of dumping everyone in a big room and seeing what happens is not really a highly effective icebreaking function, for many. If that’s all they’re doing, they could do more. If you guys have specific ideas for alternative activities you should mention them to the coordinating committee for these things. But on the other hand, other people will walk out of these rooms with a bunch of phone numbers, or whatever the modern equivalent is.</p>
<p>In my day, where we really started connecting with people is BS’ing in the hallway of our dorms till late at night.</p>
<p>Going forward, anything you can do to cut the place up into smaller, hence more intimate, groups where people have to talk to each other is what you need to do to connect with people. Clubs, intramurals, theme house events maybe, etc. Get a house with a group of people some of whom are your friends. </p>
<p>And this one is key- Throw parties, with a couple other people. You will be surprised at how many will come, it will be great, and those people will invite you. I only threw one, and after I did it I wished I’d done it more.</p>
<p>You can skip pretty much anything you want in college. That’s the beauty of it.</p>
<p>And I think you guys just need to give it a little time. My closest friendships in college were built up over the period of the year, and it was not until I was nearly finished with my freshman year that I felt like I could call them my homegirls. And I didn’t meet them at orientation. Just join clubs and groups that you have an interest in. There are thousands and thousands of people at college. If you can’t even find a couple to get along with, then…</p>
<p>I think an important thing that all new students should be doing in their first couple of weeks at Cornell is to get outside of your own comfort zone. Go to a random event or group meeting that you wouldn’t otherwise think of attending. Strike up a conversation with the person who looks different from you down the hall. If you aren’t the best singer, audition for an a capella group, and if you’re not the best writer, try out for the Daily Sun. </p>
<p>Don’t be afraid to take risks – certainly not this early in your collegiate career. While it may not feel like it at the time, college is one of the easiest places to fall and get back up. I guarantee that whatever you do will end up being a lot more fun than sitting in your room watching Youtube on your computer.</p>
<p>Don’t be afraid to go to any activity alone. You will meet people there.</p>
<p>(For me, I attended a Cornell Hillel event even though I was not Jewish in the slightest, ran for hall council just for fun, and tried out for the ultimate frisbee team even though I wasn’t very athletic.) </p>
<p>I realize this may be a tall order for some of you introverts out there, but we all have our own challenges. You will do great.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I agree. I threw a ‘root beer party’ for my dorm hallway freshman year. It was innocent and fun and tons of people came.</p>
<p>I’m not gonna lie, I have been loving orientation. Collegetown is fun if you know where to go!</p>
<p>Whatever you do, wait till you go out to drink. From what I’ve seen and heard just around, drinking in the dorms is ALWAYS a bad idea. I saw EMTs walking up in my hall at like 3:30 last night, plus I’ve heard an RA ja’d some people “pregaming” in their dorm. Don’t do it.</p>