What do Virginia Tech students on Date Drop have in common? A lot of them like sarcasm, would rather skip an early-morning date, and think adults should be sillier.
We looked at anonymized, aggregated questionnaire data from Virginia Tech users who had completed Date Drop’s dating questionnaire. No names, contact details, or individual answers are included. This is a snapshot of our community, not a survey of the whole university. Here are some things they told us.
85% think adults should be sillier
This was one of the clearest points of agreement: 85% leaned toward agreeing that adults should be more silly. And 45% chose “silly” as one of the five traits their friends would use to describe them. If you were worried you needed to act perfectly serious on a first date, there’s a good chance your match would prefer otherwise.
Night owls outnumber morning people by more than two to one
55% leaned toward being night owls, compared with 25% who leaned toward being morning people. The remaining 20% picked the middle. An early coffee date will work for some people, but it’s worth asking before suggesting 8 a.m.
Percentages may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
An unusual first date has plenty of fans
61% leaned toward preferring weird or unconventional first dates, while 13% leaned toward classic ones. That doesn’t tell us which specific activity they want, but it does suggest you can ask about something beyond the usual coffee or dinner.
Nearly two-thirds like going with the flow
65% leaned toward embracing spontaneity, compared with 19% who leaned toward planning things out. You can still make a plan; just leave a little room for a detour.
Percentages may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
Sarcasm is common here
67% leaned toward describing their humor as sarcastic. That’s about two in three respondents. It’s something you might have in common, though getting to know someone is still easier when they can tell whether you’re joking.
Kindness leads the traits people value in others
Asked to choose five traits they value most in others, 59% selected kindness, making it the most-selected trait. Loyalty came next at 53%, followed by adventurousness at 46%, ambition at 46%, and intelligence at 43%.
Picked as one of their five
There’s some overlap between what people want and how they see themselves: kindness and loyalty were also the two most-selected traits in the question about how friends would describe them.
Your major probably isn’t the deciding factor
79% said they had no preference about their match’s field of study. Mechanical engineering and computer science were the two most-represented majors in this group, but most respondents weren’t asking us to keep their matches in the same field.
Most are looking for something long-term
74% selected a life partner or a long-term relationship, including those who wanted something long-term but were open to short-term. That’s what people say they’re looking for, rather than a prediction about what any particular match will become.
You don’t need to be the most outgoing person in the room
The answers about social energy were fairly balanced: 42% leaned toward recharging around other people, 37% leaned toward the introvert end, and 21% chose the middle. There’s room here for people who love a busy room and people who would rather get to know someone one-on-one.
Percentages may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
These answers won’t tell you everything about a person. But they can give you a few things to ask about when you meet: how they spend their evenings, what makes them laugh, and whether they’d be up for a first date neither of you has tried before.
What is Date Drop?
Date Drop helps college students meet people for dates and friendship, without swiping. You answer a matching questionnaire, then choose each week whether you’d like a match. We use your values and preferences to look for someone you might connect with.
Get matchedAbout the numbers: This snapshot uses current saved answers as of October 15, 2026. Percentages describe Virginia Tech Date Drop users who completed the dating questionnaire and answered each question. For seven-point scales, “leaned toward” groups the three answers on that side of the midpoint. Answers are self-reported, and this group does not represent all Virginia Tech students.