Birds of a Feather Flock Together

Picture this, you are freshman in a small college with no friends yet, and you are overwhelmed with the common new kid scenario: Where am I going to sit in the cafeteria?  Does where I sit determine how my peers will see me for the next four years?

The organization of a school cafeteria might seem random, but in fact, the circulation of people through a college cafeteria is more complex than one might presume.  Tables that are next to the paths leading from the entrance of the cafeteria to deli-wraps, pizza and corndogs, tend to get a lot of foot traffic.  For example, while entering the cafeteria a student sees a friend sitting at a nearby table.  Rather than keeping the same course, this person takes the minimal detour to greet this friend.  This would be an unlikely situation had the detour been more of an inconvenience.  This scenario describes why social organizations in high social standing such as Greek life and athletic teams tend to sit in the center or near the frequent paths of incoming hungry students.

Music students and members of academic organizations tend to sit out of the way of these intimidating, high standing groups.  These social groups are commonly using their time to multitask in talking, eating, and bragging recent scholastic achievements instead of flashing their pearly whites and summarizing the weekend shenanigans on frat row.  These seats are often times less appealing although can seem welcoming to anyone who is eating alone. The lack of open seats at the socialites' center tables, where membership is exclusive through tryouts or presented in the form of a bid in return for payment, can be spare.

While one person's observation might be that the college cafeteria is a place where social hierarchy determines the seating arrangement, others might argue that the placement is random and groups tend to simply look for a vacant table. Sociologist Herbert Blumer supports this statement with the idea that while social structures do exist as "social roles, status positions, rank orders, and bureaucratic organizations," they do not govern behavior. Blumer elaborates on his perspective by explaining connections are between different people, not between different statuses. This results in men and women forming the direction and substance of their conversations. 

Although I agree with Blumer that in other non-academic institutions this may be true, I believe that students in college are too self aware about their social status and have a desire to be socially accepted much like students in high school. Being an active member of a social organization on my own campus, I have personally witnessed the exclusivity of sitting with the social elite.  I have also experienced life of the other side, as an outsider to these social groups before receive my own invitation to join this union of students.  My insight into the complex structures of a college cafeteria might come as a shock to anyone who has never experienced this, but I am sure that most of my fellow students would agree with me.

The saying "Birds of a feather flock together" rings true not only on college campuses, but in the hustle and bustle of everyday life. Your post college career might not include social organizations, but social hierarchy goes far beyond your early twenties.  Being seen with the "right" people might not come with an invitation anymore, but is equally as hard to become affiliated.  People see you as a person based upon the people that you associate with, even in cafeterias.