Explaining College to my Grandpa
Why listening across the generational gap still matters.
BY Sadie Goldberg ★ November 6th 2025
Design by: Sadie Goldberg
Over fall break, I found myself sitting across from my grandfather in his Florida living room, trying to explain college. Not just the classes, but the culture. The boys. The buzzwords. The haircuts. The trends. He was curious and wanted to know how much had changed since he had been a student.
The main thing that threw him was dating culture. He kept asking me typical grandpa questions about boys and dates I've been on, but when I told him that today, most romantic interactions start with a DM and rarely involve flowers, he looked personally offended. To him, dating meant showing up with intention, holding doors, planning dinners, maybe even ironing a shirt. But in 2025, it’s more commonly a blurry mix of texting, “talking,” and hoping someone doesn’t ghost you after three weeks of sending memes back and forth. He couldn’t believe that dates are now the exception, not the rule. And honestly, sometimes neither can I.
Then came drinking culture. He told me stories of jukeboxes and cheap beer. I told him about themed frat parties, dorm room pre-games, and the delicate balance of drinking socially without spiraling. Gen Z’s relationship with alcohol is more complicated—there’s more awareness around mental health, more talk about boundaries, and more people choosing sobriety or moderation. But there’s still plenty of chaos—we just dress it up in glitter and call it a theme.
When I mentioned using AI to brainstorm essays or troubleshoot code, he paused like I’d confessed to cheating. To him, learning meant flashcards and library stacks. For me, it’s knowing how to use tech without outsourcing my brain. We talked about how professors are adapting, how AI is both a tool and a test and how the real challenge is learning to think critically in a world that automates everything.
Another key difference we talked about was the difference in how we dress, not just how the physical clothing trends have adapted, but also the purpose. Now, we dress for a vibe and not necessarily an occasion. It’s less about formality and more about mood—whether that’s “I’m feeling like a Pinterest board today” or “I rolled out of bed but still want to look ironically put-together.” My grandpa couldn’t wrap his head around the idea that sweatpants could be styled intentionally, or that mixing vintage with fast fashion was a form of self-expression. To him, clothes were about respectability. To us, they’re about identity, comfort, and sometimes, just chaos with confidence.
One night we watched Dancing with the Stars together, and he was surprised by how well my sister and I knew the cast, their families, and their stories. We talked about how media shapes our generation—how we binge, scroll and meme our way through pop culture. He still reads the newspaper. I read comment sections. But we both love a good story, even if mine comes with a TikTok recap.
College today looks nothing like it did for my grandpa, and that’s exactly why the conversation was important. It reminded me that generational gaps aren’t just about trends or tech—they’re about perspective. The way we date, learn, dress, and even consume media reflects the world we’ve grown up in. But those differences don’t have to divide us. What was most meaningful for me wasn’t how much had changed, but how willing he was to listen—and how much I learned by explaining. When we take the time to share our experiences, to ask questions without judgment, and to stay open to answers that surprise us, those gaps start to feel less like divides and more like invitations. We don’t have to agree on everything, but we do have to try to understand. That’s how we learn from each other, and how we keep the conversation going; across generations, across cultures, and across time.
Edited by: Eliza Brown