<p>I have quite a bit of experience in being a non-conformist in socially conservative environments, including in the university context.</p>
<p>There’s nothing someone like you can do to make yourself fit into a socially conservative environment. It’s much better for you to find an environment where you’re accepted for who you are.</p>
<p>Even if there is some small fraction of the population with which you fit in at a place which is otherwise unwelcoming, this is far from a complete solution. You’re still constantly meeting people in class, in residence halls, in activities, etc., who you don’t fit in with or worse. You can’t count on being able to restrict yourself to just that fraction of the population which you’re compatible with.</p>