Imagine you’re a virgin.

You’re in a scene riddled with promiscuity and references to detached hook-ups. The lights are low, there’s sex in the air, but you’re not interested.

From religious constraints, personal choices and a deeply rooted fear of sexually transmitted diseases, college-age students are performing a balancing act between sex and abstinence.

Leah Orden, president of the Women’s Center and a senior creative writing major, said students feel pressure when they hear about sex and think everybody has done it.

She believes that this fixation on sex comes from one’s peers, advertisements and even from campus organizations. When a group gives out condoms to promote safe sex, she said, students may get the impression that ‘people must be having sex,’ and therefore they should be, too.

However, despite the popular obsession with sex, there are some who have no difficulty practicing abstinence.

The stigma of virginity in college may have been what prompted several students to remain anonymous. A male sophomore, who is a virgin at Binghamton University, said he felt that most people treat the subject of sex too casually.

‘I take it very seriously,’ the student, who we’ll call ‘Christopher,’ said, adding that he doesn’t just want to have sex for the sake of it.

Christopher said he does not feel pressured by his friends, yet he admits that he is very shy when it comes to talking about intimacy and sex.

‘[Sex] is a personal thing,’ he said. ‘People get their social standing from it. A lot of people have the wrong idea about identifying themselves as a sexual person.’

Other students have chosen abstinence because it is a mandate of their religion.

A senior biology major, ‘Rose,’ observes Orthodox Judaism.

‘I follow Jewish law very strictly,’ she said. ‘Jewish law prohibits pre-marital sex.’

Rose said she does not regard sex as something that should be looked down upon.

‘Judaism considers sex to be a good thing ‘ within a proper context,’ she said. ‘You need to be married. You can’t have sex with multiple partners.’

She feels no discomfort discussing the topic with others. She put it simply: ‘It’s against the rules ‘ well, at least my rules.’

Eugene Bai, a senior mathematics major, is refraining from sex because it goes against his Christian beliefs.

‘Having sex before marriage is adultery,’ he said.

The desire to have sex is natural and Bai believes some people partake in intercourse due to the intensity of their emotions.

‘People need to have control of their feelings,’ he said.

David Mayner, head of the Campus Bible Fellowship, said a key reason for many students to remain virgins in college is that it’s ‘the only way to prevent STDs.’

According to the American Social Health Association (ASHA), more than half of all people will have an STD (sexually transmitted disease) or STI (sexually transmitted infection) at some point in their life. One in two sexually active persons will get an STD or STI by the age of 25.

‘People don’t want to take that chance,’ Orden said.