Welcome to Binghamton University. In this prestigious institution of academic excellence, students are exposed to a variety of classes, majors, extra-curriculars and friends that will last a lifetime. Or maybe just a semester.

It’s always unnerving to start out in a new place, whether you’re a freshman or a transfer. Sure, you probably arrive knowing names and a few familiar faces, but they may be the kind of people who make you want to feign a phone call when you pass in the hall. Because it’s human nature to want to be liked by others, it’s easier to make friends when everyone is in the same boat as you.

Most people need friends to be happy, regardless of what they say. Why would you want to eat dinner by yourself when you could split and share with someone else? Get the stick out of your ass and talk to people — no one always wants to be alone.

I’ve heard that first-semester friends are just that — friends for the length of one semester — and I can see why. You come into school and make friends in your classes, but after winter break your schedule has changed and so has theirs. Suddenly the people you thought you couldn’t spend a second without are never around, and there’s an entire new group surrounding you.

Things change. People start becoming more involved on campus, taking harder classes or joining Greek life. It may seem impossible to keep up a friendship when you’re bombarded by work and stuck in the library all day, but true friendships can withstand the drama that inevitably comes along with any healthy relationship.

As much as we hate to admit it, however, not all friends are forever. People change, minds change and hearts change. We would like to think that the friends we make freshman year will be our bridesmaids and groomsmen (or maybe only I think that way), but that’s not always going to be the case.

I don’t want to get all pessimistic about friendship or relationships, and I am definitely not criticizing those who believe they will be friends with the people they know now for the rest of their lives, because that happens all the time. You just have to remember that things aren’t always what they seem to be. It’s better to be pleasantly surprised than unexpectedly let down.

Personally, I believe and hope that I will keep the same friends I’ve made now until forever. I’m thankful that even hours away from my family, I can come back to my dorm with my friends, and it feels just like home.

People are by no means perfect — girls reveal secrets that no one else was supposed to know, boys cheat on their girlfriends with their best friends and when people get pissed off, they make things up. Through it all, it’s good to know who has your back for the right reasons — not just to stab it.