<p>I'm not happy with my social life at school. Probably because the environment isn't really great. Very few people share my interest in science and math...the intellectual/chill character.</p>
<p>No one calls me to hang out, I end up starting conversations with anyone I meet, and its usually brief or boring.</p>
<p>I had a great time at COSMOS though. I'm not sure if I'm the problem...anyways, two questions popped up:</p>
<p>1) Does the environment affect social life of an individual.
2) Does social life get better at college? MIT?</p>
<p>1) Of course.
2) Depends on what you’re looking for. I can’t define MIT is universally better for everyone. You certainly wouldn’t have trouble finding people interested in science and math here, though.</p>
<p>“Does the environment affect the social life of the individual? Does social life get better in college? At MIT?”</p>
<p>Yes and no.</p>
<p>Yes, because the individual may have different opportunities in different sorts of environments. You seem to be looking for what my daughter used to call “nerdly ilk”: like-minded math-and-science nerds. Attending a school like MIT or CalTech will bring you into an environment in which many people share your interests and can challenge you intellectually. You can change for the better, or you can change for the worse. You can change for the better if you encounter other math-science folk who are also passionate about the arts, politics, literature, sports, and other things. Perhaps in such an environment you could begin to develop your own skills outside of math and science. At MIT for instance, you could take up sailing. Or crew. Or theater. Or poetry…etc. You can also change for the worse in an environment that is almost exclusively focused on math and science. You can forget how to converse with “regular people”. You can develop a deeper, but also a more narrow range of interests, and while this might be fine in the intense academic research environment, it will be a real drawback when you graduate and seek work in a different kind of setting.</p>
<p>Sometimes the answer is “no.” No, sometimes the environment has nothing to do with one’s social life, or very little to do with it. Wherever you go, you take yourself and all your baggage with you. You may land in an environment with new opportunities and new potential, but if you like solitary down-time and spend hours alone in your room, you will still be alone.</p>
<p>Start working on your social skills now. When I was a young introvert, my grandmother used to say, “Shyness is no excuse! Find the loneliest person in the room, go up to that person, introduce yourself, smile, and be a good listener!” That may sound ridiculous, but it actually works. If you ever decide to found a start-up technology company someday, you are really going to need those social skills.</p>
<p>The thing about MIT is social life is highly dependent on what community you want to surround yourself with. MIT living groups are so diverse/distinct in personality that there is surely 1 environment you’ll feel comfortable with. The only problem, is you have to find it, which is why Orientation is such an important time because that’s when you choose your living group. I certainly did not visit around enough during orientation (because I took quite a few ASE’s), and now I kind of regret it. It’s a terrible feeling to know you would rather living in another entry/dorm after you are already assigned one.</p>
<p>Someone from my school who got accepted to MIT 2 years ago seemed unhappy with the social life at MIT. She described it as “hostile”; she said that the kids were so smart that they were almost mean, condescending, and not so approachable. Don’t know how true that is though…</p>
<p>^^^ The only way I can imagine that would be true is if she was very, uh, ‘froshy’ - you know, always talking about how awesome she was in high school, her SAT scores etc. etc., in which case I could see others using a bit of ‘tough love’ on her to get her to grow up. In general, I’ve found people to be extremely friendly and approachable, regardless of where they live or what year they are.</p>
<p>Yeah, I’m with k4r3n2 on that. People get really annoyed when others brag, because EVERYONE at MIT is smart, and everyone knows that, and no one wants to hear about what you did in high school. I, too, have found people generally very friendly and approachable (if a bit awkward at times ). I had a pretty good social life in high school, and while my social life here revolves a lot more around academics (I met many of my closest friends doing problem sets together), I definitely find time to have fun with friends.</p>
<p>Also, at MIT, you live in a dorm with dozens of other students. Where I live, at least, if you don’t shut yourself in your room, it’s hard NOT to be hanging out with someone.</p>
<p>ok…no offense but ur probably the problem (but not in a bad way)
u r just interested in things that no one else is interested in…ie math and science
but these things are what will make u grow in life so dont give them up for some shallow friends</p>
<p>also when u go to MIT, basically everyone that goes there luvs math and science so 99% u will have no trouble making friends there</p>
<p>i actually had the same problem until i went to a math and science high school, and i have a ton of friends that actually care</p>
). I had a pretty good social life in high school, and while my social life here revolves a lot more around academics (I met many of my closest friends doing problem sets together), I definitely find time to have fun with friends.</p>