For many people, their high school experiences have been defined by their friendships with a very specific group of people. High schools are known for being pretty cliquey, without a ton of opportunity to make new friends outside of your designated group.
Whether you chose to hang out with a specific clique or you were ultimately placed there by your own peers because of their perceptions of you, being yourself and forming different types of friendships with people who share different interests than you is not exactly easy.
College is so different. In college, you will see that people are a lot more mature and open to building meaningful friendships with a variety of different people. And those who still stick with their cliques from back home are truly missing out on opportunities to learn from individuals who offer a whole different perspective on even the simplest things.
In college, you will see someone who was the head cheerleader in high school become super close friends with her art- major roommate. You will see a jock befriend someone who has never been to a gym in his life. In college, the rules of previous friendships are thrown out the door and in their place, opportunities to nurture friendships with so many different groups of people emerge.
Likewise, you are not confined to one social group in college like you may have been in high school. People don’t judge you based on the one clique you are associated. Rather, you are judged on your ability to create positive relationships with all who surround you.