Balancing a committed relationship and school can be difficult.
Relationships can become even more challenging if one’s significant other is already graduated from college. Spending time together is important. However, so is spending time apart. Finding the right balance can add a new level of stress for couples.
Trust is a necessary aspect of any healthy relationship. However, maintaining that trust when one partner is liv- ing on a college campus and the other is not, can be hard for some couples.
It is not easy to trust a significant other living away and being tempted at college parties filled with all different kinds of people and alcohol.
Having an older partner can have both its ups and downs. Senior International business major, Meagan Kalinoski, has been dating her partner for a year. Although he graduated from college, they are happy to spend week- ends together and occasional dinner plans during the week.
“It is really motivating to have someone to look up to and only see them on the weekends,” Kalinoski said.
School work during the week and date nights on the weekends could be a great way to balance a relationship.
Relationships with an older partner can also be moti- vating. Sometimes students are more inclined to work harder during the week because they get to see their sig- nificant other on the weekend and the relationship can be a positive reinforcement. However, if they focus their attention on worrying about the next time they’ll see their partner, it could have negative affects on school work and social life on campus.
Kalinoski feels the relationship can almost be easier to handle because of the older partner’s schedule.
“It’s easy to work out time to see them because they work full time and have the same schedule almost everyday,” Kalinoski said.
There are both pros and cons to being away from significant others.
A prime example of a con would be the struggle of not being able to spend time with a partner nearly as much as one would like throughout the week.
Junior criminology and psychology major, Erin Gleason, has been dating her boyfriend Josh, a Temple graduate, for two years. When she is back at school she gets to see him more often because they live closer to each other than when she is at home for the summer.
“One of the biggest struggles for me is not being able to see him as much as I’d like throughout the week,”Kallinoski said.
The pro to this idea is the time apart allows time to focus on personal things, therefore allowing more accomplishments throughout the week without any distractions.
Gleason added, “I think I would skip homework and studying to spend time with him if he went to the same school as me.”
Not being distracted during the week and focusing on studying may be the ideal way to tackle the challenging task of balancing a relationship and staying on top of school work.
