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Don't expect to make many friends in classes. Making friends in college is really about the extracurriculars. Join some clubs. Personally, I'm involved (on different levels) with the Planned Parenthood organization in my community, the College Democrats, and plan on joining the Unitarian Universalist fellowship group next week for their game night. In the past, I've been involved with residential life groups, the Campus Crusade for Christ, English Students Association, and Alpha Phi Omega (a community service fraternity).
Interested in community service? Find out if there is an APO chapter on your campus, or look up Circle K International (the college branch of Kiwanis). Looking for something more in your field? There are probably extracurricular groups related to your profession--and these can range from casual student groups to pre-professional fraternities and sororities. Religious? Seek out a group related to your spirituality. Interested in social activism? Almost every political party in the United States has some kind of college-age organization. Find out what the ones on your campus are.
Here at Oregon State University we have a great resource on campus in the way of our Office of Student Involvement. Find out if your university has a similar office. This office will be able to answer your questions about student involvement and direct you to meetings, people to talk to, etc.
It's so easy to take that step of attending an extra meeting a week or so, depending on how often a group meets. I've made a lot of lasting and enduring friendships through my campus involvement.
A resource we have at my college that you might or might not have at yours is the Non-Traditional Student Affairs Taskforce, part of our student government that addresses issues concerning older students. The NTSAT on our campus has its own lounge, just for students over 25. It's really a rather nice room in our student union, so it's kind of a nice perk for having stayed around this long.
Furthermore, when you can, attend lectures and programs on campus. Who knows? Someone might recognize you from a class, or a meeting, and strike up a conversation, or vice versa.
Good luck.
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If I am not better, at least I am different. --Jean-Jacques Rousseau
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