Hi, I need help with being gay in college. I'm an 18 year old gay male. I have not yet come out to my parents and friends, but I plan on doing that soon. But, within 6 months I will be going to college and choosing a roommate. I'm excited for college, but I've been extremely scared and anxious about pairing up with a roommate. I've mainly just been worried that everybody will be afraid and not want to room with a gay person, I don't know what to do. Should I tell people before we partner up that I'm gay? I really don't know what to do, and I've been panicking so much over this. Thank you so much.
First of all, your orientation is your business and yours alone. If you're not comfortable with telling people, then it's at your discretion entirely. You don't owe an explanation to anyone! I'm sure a lot of people will be able to relate to this and help you out. Some colleges have a service that allows the students to identify as LGBT+ friendly, so that's worth checking out. Depending on your roommate choosing service, you might just be able to check a box that says LGBT. Good luck!
Thank you for the advice, I never thought of it like that - Thank you for the tips, I'll look into the LGBT friendly programs my schools offer!
You don't have to come out to anyone. The second poster has some great advice. I would add that when you do get a roommate, test the waters and mention some lgbt issue or something just to see where they're at. I'm 99% out in my life, but I few people I haven't told because they're not down with gay people and therefore they don't need to know.
