Don’t chase people or feel like you have to walk around in a group. Trust me, it will just degrade your self confidence over time because you will be consistently disappointed. I’m a junior and have only made a couple friends in college and now they have become simply acquaintances.
Those people who think that social popularity and social “fun” is important are usually the people who party heavily and therefore aren’t doing college the right way. They might be popular now but this is their prime. When they leave college and enter the real world, they’re going to be hit hard.
Everyone wants to have friends and have fun when they first start college, but most of that is social pressure because we are indoctrinated to believe that partying and having a big social life is what makes people successful. But it’s not. And the quicker you accept this, the more you can focus on doing YOU and focusing on your career path and what you want to contribute to the world in your life.
You will make the right friends over time through your academic work. It’s hard to see that, and even I get depressed as a junior (because I have literally next to no friends), but it’s true…just stay focused on your work and things will align in a way that you’ll be happy with over time.