Is it weird to be a 21 year old college sophomore?

I mean, is it weird? I think sophomore is usually 19-20, but is 21 uncommon? Does it mean one was held back in all cases or something?

Not that weird.

What’s the other option, to never go to college because you are too old?

Less and less uncommon. My D was a soph when she was still 18 and a good friend turned 21 shortly into sophomore year. Many students are deferring these days.

Not at all weird, and no one will care about your age unless you make it an issue.

My son was a college freshman at 21. No problem at all, except that he was a little annoyed by the immaturity of his classmates.

Nope, not weird. Lots of kids starting later in kinder, plus homeschoolers at their own pace, and gap years after high school. I wouldn’t worry about it at all

That’s gonna be me! Like everyone said, it’d weird in HS but come college, everyone goes at their own pace and no one gives much of a hoot about your age.

My freshman year roommate had male-pattern baldness. How will anyone know your age unless you tell them?

it means nothing except you don’t need a fake ID to get into bars lol.

My nephew will be 20 very soon after he starts college later this year. Which is sort of interesting actually since he’s 6-9 months older than his 2 cousins (my kid being one of them) and they’re already freshmen in college. But no big deal at all, his mother decided to put him in post-graduate school to get a better chance at elite schools.

I think that very few people will care at all. You might be a bit more mature than other students, or might not. In my experience slightly older students are usually better students.

There are a lot of reasons for someone to be one or two years older than the average student. Having taken a gap year is a common and often very good reason.

I would not worry about this at all. However, I would definitely not offer to purchase alcohol for underage students.

No one knows or cares how old you are, except for the person checking id at the bar.

Not weird - I know many kids in my son’s class who were born in summer and started Kindergarten the next year. That made them 19 when they graduated high school. They would turn 21 as a sophomore, even earlier if they took a gap year.

I was 28 when I was a sophomore. My D was 16 when she was a sophomore (not highschool).

Neither of us felt weird; nor did anyone at the universities care.

@Momma2018

" I know many kids in my son’s class who were born in summer and started Kindergarten the next year"

Is that odd?

I’m asking about someone who didn’t take a gap year or defer, like went to college straight after

Answer is the same: it is not weird. College is really not like high school, and basically nobody cares how old you are.

weird i* - suggesting something supernatural; uncanny.

I fail to think a 21 yr old person being a college sophomore as supernatural or uncanny, regardless of the reason.

I also fail to see why you persist in getting different answers.

just to play devil’s advocate here, for many Asian cultures, age does matter somewhat, you do get addressed differently depending on whether you are younger or older. Just throwing it out there…

@ProfessorPlum168, there are quite a few cultures that acknowledge age differentials- but I don’t know of any where a difference of a year or two is sufficient to trigger them. Can you add more detail?