Tinder and Bumble have provided a platform for people to meet and connect in the digital age. At the university level, it has altered and facilitated the dating scene.
Sophomore human resources and business law double major Amanda Rodriguez said these apps have made the “got with” culture at the University and Miami much easier to access.
“It’s Miami. The city in it of itself is a hook-up culture,” said Rodriguez. “I think being in college, it is just amplified that much more. I do not think it bolsters it— I think it is just making it easier for the environment to happen.”
Freshman international finance and marketing major Dino Tousis agreed with Rodriguez’s statement and said he has experienced this culture himself.
“Something tells me that the University of Miami was never a really strong place in terms of relationship culture,” said Tousis. “Just based on what I have seen and heard.”
Tousis said that he has both Tinder and Bumble and utilizes the two to make open connections.
Rodriguez said she uses it to curiously look into how people display themselves outside of classes.
“I have used Tinder and Bumble before, but honestly not very seriously,” said Rodriguez. “It is interesting to see people that you see in your classes all the time in this different way.”
“It is like an ego boost when you get matched with someone,” she added. “I am not going to lie. I am doing it for the ego boost at this point.”
Tousis said he does not believe that students need dating apps in order to make connections on campus, but he also said it doesn’t hurt to have them.
“I just feel that there is no need for it especially because there is much opportunity to meet people here and have good fulfilling relationships in person,” said Tousis.
Colin Martins, a freshman majoring in motion pictures and production, has personally never used any dating app. He believes that there are certain aspects about meeting someone in person that could not be replicated through an online dating service.
“I really prefer the other way—meet in person and text later,” said Martins. “There is stuff that you can’t get across just typing. Speech pattern is kind of important.”
Rodriguez said she doesn’t think students should be looking for a relationship within their first few years of college. As a freshman, she said it’s better to focus learning how to become more responsible, a goal that takes time and energy away from the possibility of finding a significant other.
“You mature a little if you give yourself that time,” she added. “You end up realizing what you are really looking for in a person does not really make full sense to you until you understand yourself more and deal with the new things.”
Martins said he did create a Tinder account, but with the intent of fulfilling a school project about catfishing, a term referring to the act of luring someone into a relationship on false pretenses.
He added that he thinks catfishing is very real in the world of online dating apps.
Tousis said he has never been catfished because there are obvious red flags that he would notice, but he’s had friends who have experienced this form of deception.
“You can usually tell by a mile away,” said Tousis. He emphasized that photo quality is a significant indicator of whether or not an online profile is real.
Martins said that he might eventually get Tinder because he sees most people using it at UM.
“I’m probably going to,” said Martins. “I didn’t think that I was going to, but then I started getting the vibe around the floor.”