Living in a dormitory is a staple of the college experience. Many students make friendships in college that carry on for years. Others…well…do not. 

There are so many things that you can do to meet new students. You can offer help to those who can’t get a handle on the homework, go to the gym together, or even host a movie night. But what are some of the best ways to meet new people? Especially in a dormitory. 

It’s always beneficial to meet new people in your dorm because of the ease of access. Having friends in your dormitory means that you don’t have to wait until class to see someone again. Is it easy to make friends in a dorm? Well, that depends on how open you are to meeting new people. If you are, and keep in mind that most people are friendly, then you too can make friends in a dorm using these tips.

1. Smile at everyone

Remember to smile at others. That is a very important skill if you want to know how to make friends and expand your social circle. Smiling at others lets them know that you are friendly and open to talk. In turn, they can relax around you and open up a bit.

Protip: If you meet someone you like, make sure to ask what their name is and REMEMBER IT! One thing that we all have in common is that we love to hear the sound of our own names. And when in the middle of a conversation, be sure to actually LISTEN. Don’t just prep what you’re going to say next while they’re talking. People know when people are really listening to them.

Want to know how to grow a social circle even more? When somebody invites you to do something with them or their group, say yes! This will lead to you meeting all kinds of different people. It’s okay if you’re busy, but please remember that saying no too many times will cause people to stop asking, whether you have a good excuse or not.

This skill is also great if you want to know how to make friends in community college. These types of schools don’t usually have dormitories, but smiling at people is a great thing to do no matter where you are.

2. Attend as many college events as you can

This next step is perhaps the most effective step for making friends in college. Don’t just stay inside your room playing video games or reading Reddit posts. If you’re truly interested in meeting students with common interests, make sure to join a club. This way, you are guaranteed to meet people who have a passion for the same things you do.

You’ll learn more about your passion since your classmates will have a different perspective on it and might look at the same thing from a different point of view. They can tell you something about it that you didn’t know about. You can also discover what your strengths and weaknesses are in a particular area.

Attending events is an important lesson in how to make friends in college if you are shy because you can find a sense of belonging. There is something prideful about being part of a group where everyone has something in common. This is also important because you will learn how to work with a team of people. This provides you with soft skills that you will need after you graduate, especially when you start work. 

Speaking of starting work, you’ll be able to add your participation in a group to your resume. Joining a group proves that you have learned certain skills that will be useful to the company you want to work for.

3. Try to leave your door open

If you consider yourself an open person, consider keeping your door open. Many students are extroverted and want to know how long it takes to make friends in college. If you want to start quickly, this is great because you can meet new people without even getting up from your chair. 

When keeping your door open, you’re telling people that they are welcome to come into your room and chat you up. It shows that you are approachable. Eventually, other students will pop in and say hi. Some students are afraid to walk up to a stranger because they don’t know if somebody is open or not. Leaving the door open kills the nervousness that comes from trying to walk up and approach people you don’t know. 

Protip: if EVERYONE keeps their doors open, then it will be very easy to make friends with everyone on your floor. This is great if you don’t know how to make friends in class. Keep in mind that people WILL pop into your room. This tip is not for everybody, so if you’re the type of person who prefers privacy, maybe you can consider one of our other tips instead.

In Conclusion

With these tips, you will be able to meet people anywhere and know how to make friends in college when everyone already has friends. But no matter what tip you try, always remember to be approachable. Keep eye contact. Listen to others. Nobody wants to be around somebody who is in a bad mood all the time, so be sure to keep your spirits up when out and about with new people!

If you would like more tips on how to succeed in college and university, follow the Nerdify reviews blog for a comprehensive game plan on how to achieve great results in your studies.

In this digital age of ours, more of us are starting to avoid conventional colleges in favor of studying online. But with hundreds of platforms available to complete a full course or supplement your studies it can be difficult to know where to spend your dollars and pursue that vital education.

At Nerdify we are passionate about making education available and obtainable to everybody, which is why we asked our Personal Nerds to extensively review different platforms, apps and websites that are available and tell us which they think are the best.

Taking into account student feedback, personal experience and customer reviews, Nerdify are happy to present (in no particular order) some of our favorite destinations for online learning!

Coursera

The Personal Nerds at Nerdify speak very highly of Coursera, and the educational platform comes with great reviews and feedback from students too. Faculties from elite universities all over the world have courses on Coursera and they’re often very affordable too, with funding sometimes offered to the right students.

Coursera offers both short courses and even whole degrees can be completed there. Our Personal Nerds are especially impressed by the fact that elite universities like Stanford collaborate with the platform. In short, a great platform with loads of variety and options and its affordability means Coursera is bringing education to basically everyone.

Udemy

Based on reviews from students and educators using the platform, Coursera’s closest competitor Udemy is considered to be a cheaper and less impressive option, albeit similar. Udemy does impress students however with a slightly larger selection of short, cheap (or even free) courses, which can be very attractive for people wanting to get some extra, quick training on WordPress of Microsoft Excel, for example. Keep in mind that Udemy doesn’t usually offer certificates or diplomas upon completion of a course, while Coursera often does.

Duolingo

Smartphones and tablets have made obtaining certain types of information easier and getting a good education more obtainable. There has also been an explosion of language-learning apps too, which has seen the sales of language-related books take a sharp dive.

In a competitive field however, Duoligno still reigns supreme with over 150 million users around the world. As of November 2016, the language-learning app offers 68 different language courses across 23 languages, with 22 additional courses in development. The app is available on iOS, Android and Windows 8 and 10 operating systems. Our Nerds love this app and it comes highly recommended from us all at Nerdify!

Memrise

Memrise operates in the same sphere as Duolingo but with a slightly different approach, using memory techniques and entertaining content to make learning the language a bit more fun. Duolingo, in comparison, has been called more academic a little less immersive and fun. But Memrise can also boast of a much bigger selection of modules with 150 courses across 25 different languages. There’s a bunch of other stuff you can study with the app also, though. Memrise doesn’t only limit itself to languages and you can do crash courses in everything from different breeds of cats to international relations and history!

EdX

EdX is a very specific platform where you can expect to get some good education and acquire some very useful knowledge, which isn’t surprising considering it was founded in 2012 by guys from MIT and Harvard and the platform now works with the likes of Berkeley and Columbia too.

Featuring a broad range of courses that mostly fall into science and technical categories, students will welcome the self-paced timing of the classes and the freedom to pick when you engage with the educational content. Videos and game labs form a vital part of the courses which usually end in obtaining a certificate (for an extra small fee.)

Udacity

According to our IT Nerds and reviews from customers and students, Udacity is the place for you if you’re interested in computer science and programming. Hardly surprising considering this platform has corporate partners like Google, AT&T and Facebook. Other than IT and programming however, the variety on offer is pretty limited but computer nerds should definitely apply!

And there we have it, some of the best options currently available for learners who are looking to take their studies online, as selected by Nerdify’s Personal Nerds. Good luck with your studies!

As you know, Nerdify reviews only the most interesting and helpful stuff. And this time it’s all about leisure!

Summer is the best season to visit some outdoor music events and, with the increasing amount of music festivals all around, the possibilities are endless. If you haven’t attended any yet, it’s not too late to jump on a wagon! So if you live for music, sun and enjoying both with other music lovers, then this list may set up your itinerary for this summer vacation!

Some festivals have won their reputation throughout the years while the others are just starting to gain their followers, overall, Nerdify has compiled the best of them!

Folk on the Rocks (July 20 to 22. City of Yellowknife, Spectacular Northwest Territories)

Folk on the Rocks is an adventure worth to live for! Yellowknife welcomes thousands from all over Canada to Long Lake each year since 1980. Just imagine a perfect combination of amazing landscapes, a true beer garden and more than 24-hour music program not even mentioning the children’s area. Here is all the information you need: https://bit.ly/2Mdawka

Panorama (July 27 to 29. Randall’s Island, NYC)

This festival comes from the hand and mind of Coachella’s producers. It’s just one more reason to take a closer look at this newbie. This year’s line-up includes The Weeknd, Janet Jackson, The Killers, St. Vincent, David Byrne, and many others. Panorama also brings THE LAB, which places experiential digital art that combines technology, artistry, and design, created exclusively by New York-based artists. An experience exclusively brought to this festival. More info: https://bit.ly/2iYVpPd

Osheaga (August 3 to 5. Parc Jean-Drapeau, Montreal)

Every year Osheaga proves to be one of the best festivals in Canada. Its line-up is amazing and full of artists well known worldwide! From Arctic Monkeys, St. Vincent, Chromeo to Florence and the Machine, Franz Ferdinand, and it goes on and on with three days of non-stop music! Just click here and be amazed too: https://bit.ly/2l8oiLz

Lollapalooza  (August 2 to 5. Grant Park, Chicago)

Truth to be said, this one is one of Nerdify’s favorite festivals, no wonder it appears in Nerdify reviews. It was created in 1991 and quickly grew into the legendary music event of US. Although it almost ended in 1997, it came back a few years later in 2003. Grant Park in the city of Chicago! Different genres of music (rock, pop, hip-hop, electronic, etc.), eight different stages, endless food stands, and the most beautiful scenery with the Chicago Skyline on one side and Lake Michigan on the other side, make Lollapalooza one of the most powerful stages in the world. The line-up for this year includes The Weeknd, Bruno Mars, Jack White, Arctic Monkeys, The National, and many more. For tickets and more info follow the link: https://bit.ly/2erRyWP

Arise Music Festival (August 3 to 5. Sunrise Ranch, Loveland, Colorado)

This festival is best described as a movement, where yoga, art installations, workshops, performances, sustainability, social responsibility merge with tons of music for 3 days in the mountain valley of Colorado. An eclectic line up with some reggae, EDM, and folk. A huge variety of organic food in food trucks. And the best part is that every ticket sold funds a tree planting and honestly, in Nerdify, we think this only reason is enough to go there! Here you can get more info: https://bit.ly/1OltGyI

Outside Lands (August 10 to 12. San Francisco, California)

Food, wine, beer and all the sights surrounding the San Francisco area, make this festival really unique. Every August the Golden Gate Park turns into one of the biggest music events of the West Coast. With artists such as Janet Jackson, Florence and the Machine and  The Weeknd, this year Outside Lands will make a lot of people very happy. Get all the info for this one here: https://bit.ly/2odMU3r

Mutek (August 22 to 26. Montreal, Canada)

Mutek is listed in Nerdify reviews for a reason. This multicultural and international festival sets place the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal, unifying electronic music and audiovisual performances. The splendid female artist is the one in charge of this year’s line-up. For more information click here: https://bit.ly/2teDLfa

Burning Man (August 26 to September 3. Black Rock, Nevada)

Nerdify reviews Burning Man as well, though many people will not consider it as the one dedicated to music. We needed to include it in the coolest festivals because it is indeed one of the coolest! It sets up in an inhabited part of the Nevada desert that transforms into the Black Rock City for the next 7 days. A place where people are the part of an artistic community, surrounded by futuristic sculptures and surreal art, everything in the festival comes alive when the last minute surprised DJ starts to play. It ends with burning THE man. More info: https://bit.ly/2ppRVJe

Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival  (September 22 and 23. Franklin, Tennessee)

With a 3-year history, this festival has already gained a fame of the place to find all the best bands in every genre on its 6 stages: rock’n’roll, country, bluegrass, jazz, indie, gospel, pop, and blues. Its creators have thought every single aspect through to make this festival the best experience ever – everything is kept on the highest level of performance.  This year’s line-up includes Lionel Richie, Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds, Jack White, and many more. Check all artists here: https://bit.ly/2ywqsM5

We admit, there’s a great number of music festivals all the year round, so probably these Nerdify reviews are just a start. We will definitely have to post similar entries for the other season’s music fests. But for now, summer is the sunny season that’s just too perfect to enjoy music outdoors all day and all night long! So go ahead and start filling the agenda!