Online Dating Reaches Colleges

By SAMANTHA COOK

In a world where we can do everything from grocery shopping to getting a college education online, it is no surprise individuals are fleeing to the web in hopes of finding their perfect match.

Last year, 12 percent of U.S. marriages were created through online dating sites, according to Online Dating Magazine. Let’s be honest, most people are looking for “the one,” even when they are young in college.

According to Business Insider, online memberships are up 15 percent since 2007 for daters between the ages of 18 and 24.

The new trend is sites that aim at the college student demographic. Online magazine reports that 30 million members are gaining dating options everyday with these additional sign-ups.

Bestselling author of Dating Rocks, Steve Nakamoto said, “Online dating is a great resource for women because they can hunt out the men who are looking for committed relationships.

A lot of times I find my clients are looking to push men into serious commitments they are not ready for.”

Most people think online daters are divorced 35 year-olds with kids, but now the younger generation is logging on to find their perfectly matched partners.

“In college all you can find are ‘drunken hook-ups.’ It is a very rare occasion in a bar you come across any potential for a relationship,” said University of Tampa senior Christina Samale.

There are lots of benefits to online dating. Instead of dating someone for a few weeks to realize you are not compatible, you can tell immediately by a person’s profile if you won’t be a great fit.

Religion, smoking preferences, family views, you can find out about all these potential deal-breakers instantly through the Internet.

University Love Connection has over 130,000 members, some of whom attend the University of Tampa.

On a positive note, these sites can connect you with a potential boyfriend or girlfriend from your campus that you may have not even known attended you school. Student-driven dating sites are free.

It’s no secret that students are on a budget, so shelling out the $107 for a six-month membership to Match.com doesn’t seem so appealing.

Cornell University created their own online dating site.

At Cornell’s GoodCrush, you log in and list five crushes you have on campus. Those students then receive an email telling them someone has a crush on them, but it is anonymous unless you join the site expressing interest in finding a potential partner.

Over 20 universities have joined in this trend.

Is getting hammered at a bar and waking up next to a complete stranger a better option than online dating? If analyzing someone’s interests and aspirations in life before you considering dating them is “weird,” then you may need to reevaluate online dating.

“I don’t see that much of a difference between my profiles on eHarmony compared with my Facebook page. Let’s face it: at one time or another, everyone has Facebook-stalked someone they are interested in,” said graduate student Stephanie Wheel.

She said she chooses eHarmony over the college dating sites because it is a more reputable service. It is now more common for college students to be graduating without being in a serious relationship.

This generation has come a long way from past generations, when women were properly courted through romantic dates and gestures.

“My parents are scared I’m never going to find a husband,” says graduate student Lauren Askanazi. “They forced me to join JDate and in return they pay for car payments. Within my first 24 hours of creating a profile I had 22 emails. I met up with one guy and he obviously didn’t update his picture since his hair plugs. And my parents wonder why I don’t date.”

JDate has over 600,000 active single Jewish members of all ages. With over 30 million people looking for love on the Internet, it helps to have specific sites to limit down the number of potential daters.

One hundred UT students were randomly questioned around campus if they would ever consider online dating. Twenty-three said they were open to the online love search.

“I would never make an online profile. Not only do I think it seems desperate, I also think it takes away the important physical chemistry you have in the beginning of a relationship,” said senior Kirk Hansen.

“I haven’t gone online to date, but I wouldn’t be opposed to the idea. It is obviously working for a lot of people, so why not,” said senior Casey McClear.

Although some people may think going online is the easy way out, they are not completely right. While you may not need the perfect pickup line, you do need the perfect profile.

Cyber Dating expert Julia Spira, who has been featured in the New York Times and Glamour magazine, gives these five tips to follow to guarantee a successful response from other cyber daters: have a catchy screen name, smile in your photo, limit the length of your description, avoid clichés and be specific!

“You can’t believe people’s profiles,” said graduate student Christina Breaden. “My dad went on a few dates with women and they would show up being someone completely different than their profile picture.”

Be aware: it is not uncommon for Internet daters to embellish their looks and character traits. If someone’s profile seems too good to be true, it just may be.

“My friend went out with this guy she met online and he started following her to work until she threatened him with a restraining order,” said senior Sarah Inkapool.

Make sure you are dating safely on the Internet. Never reveal information about your home address or personal place of work.

College females in particular must always be on guard to avoid a stranger taking advantage of them.

It doesn’t seem that the online dating industry’s growth is going to slow down anytime soon. The industry is projected to bring in $932 million dollars by 2011.

In the past few years online dating went from creepy loners, to the hot spot for singles of all ages.

Samantha Cook can be reached at scook@spartans.ut.edu.