Married in College 

by Britnee Fear 

Seniors Janelle and Alex List, Kaila and Jacob Lodwig, and Junior Matty Smith are among many on our campus who decided to get married while in college. Following the Concordia stereotype of “ring by spring” is not what any of them had in mind when planning their marriages. 

“We both knew we were ready to make the next step and we thought and prayed a lot about it.” Janelle List said. 

Being married changes perspectives of college. Before, the couples were able to have a looser social life and college life, but now they have to balance between the two along with married life, which can be difficult at times. The biggest thing to help with adjusting is prioritizing God and their spouses before all else. 

“I like to keep the weekends as a sacred one-on-one time for us, so I try to be very diligent about my homework during the week.” Smith said. 

Married life does not necessarily mean having no social life, but at times it is hard to connect with your friends like before. 

“I have had to shift my priorities a lot. In the past, I have always had a big focus on my friend groups, but now I have to plan out when I am going to see them.” Jacob Lodwig said. 

Being engaged and living on-campus transforms into being married and becoming a non-traditional student, living off-campus. All of the couples said the transition is nice because instead of being stuck on-campus where all of your school work happens, you get to go home, shut the door, and be with your spouse. 

“It’s nice getting away from the noisiness of campus. We come to campus and interact with peers and friends and go home to a nice, quiet apartment, where it’s just the two of us. Having the added perspective of where my life is going is great.” Janelle List said. 

The Lists and Lodwigs both agreed that being married while inside college is easier than they expected, because both couples were both ready to start their married lives together. 

“Both of us knew it was going to happen, so it was easier because we both wanted it so badly.” Kaila Lodwig said. 

“We have been together for so long that we were already spending all of our time together. It hasn’t been anything other than enjoyable, despite the ups and downs.” Janelle List said. 

Matty Smith, on the other hand, is a non-traditional, married college student because her husband lives two hours away in her hometown where he teaches. 

“At the beginning of the semester, it was awful, but once I got into the bulk of the semester, seeing him became more routine. It has had a lot of ups and downs, because we have to constantly say good-bye, but ultimately, it’s worth it.” Smith said. 

 Traditionally, people wait to get married until they are out of college and have a full-time job, but all of the couples strongly suggest getting married if you know that you’re ready.

“If you are trying to decide, pray about it. You are never going to do anything wrong if you keep God in the loop. Do what is good for you and not according to anyone else.” Janelle List said. 

“Don’t be afraid to get married because you’re young. A lot of people will say a lot of things, but ultimately, you know your significant other more than anyone else. If you know it’s the person you want to be with, don’t hold back,” The Lodwigs said.