RPI, like most small colleges, has carved its own niche in the prospective student pool. RPI tries to attract students outside this narrow demographic by luring them in with the giant EMPAC burrito and the shiny Biotech Center. However, the simple fact is the majority of people attracted to RPI’s engineering-oriented curriculum are male, with a strong tendency toward the nerdy, WoW-playing type. (So much so that it is acceptable to print WoW in the newspaper in lieu of the full name.) In such a male-dominated school, sexually-frustrated boys run rampant. As a woman, I’ve found this environment to be frustrating in a very different way.
Within a month of move-in last year, I found I had somehow managed to make countless friends. Coincidentally, all of those friends were male, and—shockingly—when they discovered I was in a relationship, started to drift away. Making real friends with boys has been especially difficult, since they all seem to be starving for a more sexual, and sometimes romantic, relationship. If such a relationship doesn’t bud in a few weeks, a supposed friend suddenly becomes very busy with a vague assortment of excuses.
This, however, is one of the better scenarios when he finds out you’re not interested. The phrase “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again,” can be very helpful if you are inventing the light bulb, or working on that chemistry homework, but should never be applied to pursuing a girl. Persistence and stalking are two very different concepts and should not be confused. He might be desperate and horny, but stalking is never the answer. The stalker is difficult to evade, as he usually knows within days your class schedule, and sometimes you’re forced to be very mean to get your point across.
Another unfavorable outcome when the “I’m not interested” conversation comes up is the creation of an overly sexual friend who is very eager to see you when you’re drunk. These people are just a little bit more than an acquaintance, but definitely a far cry from a good friend. Generally every conversation starts out with “Hey hottie,” or “Sup sexy?” and ends with “Want to keep me company tonight?” At this point, I usually start to ignore him. Key phrases to stay away from around this type are, “I’m really hot in here,” (“Oh yes you are”) or “I really need to shower,” (“Want me to come help?”). Any statement or word that can be interpreted sexually will be. Be careful with what this type gives you to drink.
This is not to say that everyone here is sex-craved and frustrated. It’s been a year and I’ve succeeded in finding several male, and even a few female, friends. I know that the abysmally small number of girls is difficult for boys here, and I’m sure there are enough girls who use this ratio to their advantage to warrant the existence of Ratio-Induced Bitch Syndrome (RIBS). However, it is difficult for girls in this environment as well. Everyone needs to chill out, relax a little, and stop worrying about the relationship status line of their Facebook or when they’ll get to have their next co-ed sleepover.
