College campuses, like Oregon State University’s, offer a vibrant glimpse into the fashion choices and preferences of college students today. 

Fashion dictates so much of what people perceive of you and, as a college student, that’s an important aspect of landing interviews, securing connections and making lifelong friends. With the diverse blends of cultures and lifestyles on campus, OSU has so many eclectic groups of fashion-forward individuals walking around campus every day. 

Fashion in college can be difficult, between dressing to impress your fellow classmates and professors and finding something you can stand to wear for a whole day of classes. To complicate matters even further, clothing is expensive. A trip up to the bins in Portland can be pricey, and sometimes even items at your local Goodwill end up being more than you can afford. 

Students on the Corvallis campus spoke about how they choose to express their identities through their clothes and style of fashion. 

Meghan Sedarski, second-year mechanical engineer major: 

“I think what influences (my style), a lot of it is just the people around me and what I see and what people wear, and I’m like, ‘That looks cool, I want to try that out,’” Sedarski said.

“It’s a lot easier to express myself with clothing,” Sedarski said.

“I feel like gender has always been a big topic in society and I feel more gender-neutral, ‘cause I like to go by they/she pronouns. And so sometimes I want to go more masculine with my style or I want to go more feminine with my style, and that very heavily influences what I wear on a daily (basis),” Sedarski said.  

Charlie Nys, first-year student in the University Exploratory Studies Program: 

“I have a lot of different aesthetics,” Nys said. “I have a bunch of band t-shirts that I got from my mom mostly, a bunch of thrifted stuff, stuff from my old job … I worked at Marine Layer, which is  a nice, high-end kind of store.” 

When asked how she would describe her style, Nys said, “Like a potpourri, a little mix of everything, the best of all the worlds.” 

Koda Holden, second-year fisheries, wildlife and conservation sciences major: 

“I work in agriculture and so I go between work and school, so just kind of whatever will withstand the wear and tear,” Holden said. “I’m not a big fashion person, I mean, I kind of just wear what’s comfortable and what’s gonna sustain.” 

Dhaya Raja, third-year computer science major: 

“I think it’s very up to whatever Tiktok shows me, to be honest. It’s like ‘Oh, parachute pants?’ I try it out, but then I’m like ‘Oh, actually this is not part of my normal style,’” Raja said. 

“I find the trends, but then I always apply whichever I think fits my personal style and then I build up my wardrobe,” Raja said. 

When asked about how fashion plays a role in her cultural or personal identity, Raja said, “I’m Indian, so attire is a big deal to us. From the different styles to the different tops, skirts and everything,” Raja said. 

Raja also explained that fashion is a way for her to express herself. 

“I like putting together fits, putting together different styles for different days, so it’s an everyday lifestyle thing for me,” Raja said. 

Austen Utterback, first-year apparel design major: 

“I really like clothes that are themed around things that I like, movies and music and stuff,” Utterback said.  

Utterback explained his style is incredibly important to him. “The way you present yourself is the way that others perceive you and the way you’re thought about,” Utterback said. 

Wade Weinger, first-year psychology major: 

“A lot of my influence was my mom, (who) worked as a costume designer on movies and TV for a really long time in LA, so … whenever I wanted to work on my style or anything, I just asked for advice from my mom,” Weinger said.  

“I’d spend an hour with my mom the day before preparing my outfit for school, and I think just doing that a lot helped me develop my style a little bit,” Weinger said.

When asked about how fashion affects his identity, Weinger said, “It just makes me feel good about myself. I like when I have a good outfit, I feel more confident.”