The modern world and the influences of technology (social media in particular) have shifted expectations and norms when it comes to dating. Awin. And while this has improved the dating lives of many, it seems that heterosexual, well-educated women are one of the losers when it comes to finding love today.
For many women who are educated to degree level and beyond, finding a partner with similar educational credentials is important. However, men don’t share the same expectations.
Women look for men who have shared similar experiences and have a similar knowledge base; men show greater flexibility and are more content with people who are different.
In other words, women are pickier than men.
It’s a no-brainer that most women will tick this box when searching for Mr Right – even though the pool of candidates may look less than inspiring.
The problem is that the ratio of educated men to women in life (and on dating sites) just doesn’t stack up. This means that for many women there just aren’t enough educated men to go around.
Fewer Men are Educated to Degree Level
The problem at a pure maths level is that more women are highly educated than ever before. The numbers across most countries in the western world tell the same story.
In the US, for example, you have 4 women attending college for every 3 men. This 33% uplift causes a significant problem when it comes to the dating market.
It follows that there are going to be well-educated women who can’t find a partner with similar qualifications because they simply don’t exist.
Men Don’t Value Education as Highly in a Partner
Anecdotally, it seems men value educational levels less highly than women when it comes to finding a mate. This may be due to traditional ideas about gender roles or simply that education doesn’t register as high on their radar.
Bluntly, fewer men say that education level matters when it comes to meeting their perfect match. This mismatch of ideals means highly-educated men may date women with less academic experience, reducing the pool of eligible well-educated men even further.
Education Matters More Online
When we meet someone in real life, education is rarely one of the first things to come up. In fact, it’s usually only unearthed after a connection has been formed (or not) and at that stage has little impact.
The tick box nature of online dating has inflated the importance of education as a metric for choosing a partner. This is true of many aspects of online dating and a too stringent checklist of requirements can make it much more difficult to find someone to build a relationship with.
The lesson here? Perhaps we all need to pay less attention to education levels and look a little more closely at the person underneath. By opening ourselves up to the potential of a partner who does not fit our usual ‘type’ we might just be pleasantly surprised.
Sign up to our over 40 dating service today and start to connect with men and women in your area. And why not look a little outside of your comfort zone?
You could meet someone who transforms your expectations.