With movies and television shows commonly portraying college students as eager to experiment sexually, students transitioning to college life may believe that they will be faced with a lot of pressure to be sexually active.
The reality is that not everyone on our campus is sexually active, said Ann Brooks, a nurse practitioner at the Arthur Ashe Student Health and Wellness Center.
According to a student survey conducted by the Ashe Center in 2002, about half of the undergraduate population at UCLA has engaged in sexual intercourse in their lifetime.
New students are faced with freedoms and opportunities that they may not have had in the past.
“My parents were very strict,” said Lara, a fourth-year linguistics and psychology student. “I had a very dictated life, so when I came here, I wanted to celebrate every aspect of my freedom.”
Lara exercised her freedom by making her own choices regarding everything from what classes she would take to whether or not she would drink alcohol, use drugs or experiment sexually.
Besides the freedom to experiment, some students have also found that college has provided them with opportunities to assert their sexual identities, possibly for the first time.
David, a second-year American literature and culture student, became open about his homosexuality when he started attending UCLA.
“I never did anything before college and was still in the closet,” he said. “But as soon as I came here, I could be myself and talk to other people who were open, which was a huge change for me.”
Students who do choose to experiment find that they need to make decisions regarding their sexuality, including the number of partners they will have. Some students choose to have multiple partners, while others decide to remain monogamous or to abstain from sex altogether.
David has been sexually active for six months and has had four sexual partners in that time, he said.
“I did want to explore and experiment and meet other young people, and most of them just wanted to hook up and have fun,” David said. “Now I’m really balancing the idea of a relationship or having fun, but I do want to experiment ““ that’s where I am right now.”
Lara experimented with sex, alcohol and marijuana during her first two years of college. After having sexual intercourse for the first time, however, she decided to stop experimenting.
“Last year I remained chaste and now I openly choose to lead that life, at least until I find someone I love and want to marry,” she said.
Some students have chosen to remain monogamous. Devin, a third-year communication studies student, has had one girlfriend since he started college. “I haven’t cheated on her, and we’ve been long-distance the entire time,” he said. “I’m a one-girl kind of guy and always have been.”
Researchers believe that the behavior of students who do experiment may be part of a larger pattern of risky behavior.
“People of college age feel invulnerable, that they won’t get sick and that life will stretch out in front of them,” said Christina Miller, associate director of the UCLA Center for Women and Men.
They tend to underestimate the risks associated with their behavior, she said.
The greatest risks involved in sexual experimentation include contraction of sexually transmitted diseases, pregnancy and situations that could potentially lead to sexual assault.
When alcohol and drugs are involved, engaging in sex becomes more dangerous because consent may be unclear.
“It’s impossible to have true consent for sex unless both parties are sober enough to know what they are doing,” Miller said.
Counselors and experienced students urge people who want to experiment with their sexuality to understand what issues may arise.
“We’re not saying students shouldn’t have fun,” Miller said, “but to be safe, they need to be informed about the risks and they need to know their partner.”