Sections

Ok girls, lets be honest. Correct me if Im wrong, but I think that most of us want a boyfriend. Part of us wholeheartedly believes in that I dont need a guy to be happy mantra, while the other part looks with a mixture of jealousy and longing at those couples who hold hands while walking around campus. (At the same time, let me also condemn those who feel the need to express their carnal affection by the salad bar in Usdan;

we all know these couples and I dont think any of us want to see it!) So, if so many are looking why is it that not so many are finding?

It seems that sometimes, especially among upper class girls, that there exists the general consensus that there are very few dateable guys here. Having a Facebook group called “Brandeis Guys Are Freaks” doesnt help, either. As girls progress through college, they find their pool of options to be shrinking: the best junior and senior guys are probably already taken, and they dont dare consider anyone below, god forbid, a sophomore. Well fellow upper class women, you might be skeptical, but I have a bold suggestion for you, if you choose to consider it: the class of 2009.

A while back, there was an article written in The Justice by a senior who was fed up with first-year girls honing in on their territory. It only seems fair, right? Mix with your own kind;

leave the senior guys for the older, more experienced girls. But if senior guys can date underclassmen, why can upper class girls date first-years? You may disagree with me, but I think that this is a demographic being seriously overlooked.
Many girls I know would never even consider a first-year guy. There are the obvious assumptions: too immature, too inexperienced. Hell, he might not even be eighteen yet! Of course these factors may indeed be true in some cases, but there are a lot of Class of '09ers out there who may be more socially advanced than our own, and it would be a shame to pass up the opportunity simply because we think theyre too young.

I am promoting the cause, of course, because I am dating a first-year myself. We are proof to the nay-sayers that it can in fact be done successfully. Initially I had those same doubts about the age-gap, but the more I thought about it, the less of a difference it made. If youre compatible with someone, a few years is going to make no difference whatsoever. At the beginning I fielded a few of those questions, raised eyebrows, maybe even a superlative “robbing the cradle” comment or two. But once everyone got used to it, it wasn't an issue at all. And Im not the only one whos made some visits to North or Massell recently.

So, if the right opportunity strikes, upper class ladies, grab it. Dont worry about whats the average, normal thing to do. Be abnormal. Be the older woman. Date a first-year. With the semester coming to a close, theres a whole new class of midyears coming in January. Maybe you can even help him with his USEM paper.