I'm 19, have never dated, and am a second-year at an engineering university in the countryside. I deeply admire the people here, because many are from middle- to lower-income backgrounds and all of us are working hard to educate ourselves for a better future. Most of the student body is diligent, smart, and have good character. But there is definitely a marked difference in the average social skills between the men and women.

I cannot see myself with anyone here. Being fairly sociable, I have been pursued, but there is rarely any desire to go beyond friends. There has only been one person who I was willing to go further with, and he and I don't have compatible lifestyles (he's still as much of a sweetheart as before, he just joined a frat and has... other priorities). What I liked was his emotional intelligence, but I also wanted competence in their work (whatever it may be).

I will be going to grad school in two years and I will be targeting larger cities, to round out my college experience. If I wait till then I will have a larger dating pool, but will also be 21. It will be harder to meet people then, and I fear all of the good guys will be taken.

So should I take the risk and focus on myself while I wait it out, or am I just not trying hard enough to get out there?