Dating at Speed - The Time-Conscious UNISA Students Answer to Dating

The past few months had been long and lonely. A series of romantic misadventures had left me a little worse for ware. Eager to regain my former prowess I was willing to try just about anything.

How it works 

Speed dating seems an unlikely concept. Yet to many young men and women it is a welcome alternative, an easy way to meet new people. The name sounds daring. Dating can be nerve wracking enough - but to do it at speed is all the more exhilarating.

A group of people meet at a predetermined venue. The women are then positioned at tables. The men then go from one woman to the next with only a matter of minutes to impress them.

Every participant is given a scorecard, on which they indicate the few or many people that they would like to see again. At the end of the evening these are given to the organisers. It is then there duty to ensure that daters are informed of their matches.

The Advantages 

For the rational minds of men the advantages of speed dating are clear. A number of variables are to their advantage. Firstly, the male to female ratio is even. This it seems to me is often far from true in many clubs especially in Johannesburg. Less competition means greater chances of success.

Apart from this the women at a speed dating event are single and eager to meet men. This too is often not the case at other events. This is probably the single most important factor in improving the chances of a man’s success.

For women Speed dating means that they can have the best of both worlds. Unlike in clubs or other social situations they will not wait in vain for men to approach them. Instead they are able to wait confidently and then make their decisions in an unpressurised manner.

Irritating drunks are also kept to a minimum. Regardless of how uncomfortable a date is solace can always be found in the fact that it will not last longer than five minutes.

The dates themselves usually follow a pattern. What’s your name, followed by what do you do are the most common openers. Occasionally, however, usually towards the end of the evening someone decides to be different.

What type of people speed date 

All kinds of people speed date. There is no single type of person that you are likely to find at a speed dating event. Many claim that they were dragged along by a friend in need of emotional support. Others openly admit to searching for a serious relationship.

The assumption that only unattractive, socially-inept people speed date is simply not true. While every event is different it is my experience that the women are above average looking. Some have been ridiculously attractive. The men too are not ugly – I’m told.

Time-saving alternatives for very busy UNISA students

At best speed dating could lead to the start of something amazing. At worst it will be entertaining evening spent meeting new and interesting people. If, however, you are too busy study, and completing UNISA assignments to attend a speed dating event you could always try Internet dating. This will at least save even more time in the initial stages of dating. Now that Internet dating has passed out of its infancy in the mid nineties it is now in it adolescence and has shed the image of only being for the socially inept.

Below is a link to one of South Africa's most popular online dating services.



Please Comment On This Article: 

We would love to know what you think about this article please leave a comment by clicking the comments link below this article.

Related Articles: 


The similarities between long distance study through Unisa and long distance relationships