Do you actively seek love or do you wait patiently for it to find you?

This is a question almost every romantic comedy answers for us. We should wait for love to find us. Our soulmate, catching us completely off-guard, will approach us in a coffee shop and make a witty comment about the book we are reading or better yet, we will be running frantic in the city streets to catch the bus and so *clumsily* ram into our perfect match. Just like that! A love that knocks the wind out of us so unexpectedly, time freezes and we no longer care about that bus anymore. What a concept!

It is the year 2018. We still witness these love-at-first-sight interactions in movies and TV shows (formally known as a “meet cute”), yet it is not something that tends to happen in the real world.

In fact, it is more difficult now than ever to initially meet that special someone face-to-face. Why is that?

Well again, it is the year 2018 — the year of the Yodeling Walmart Boy; the year Kanye West goes MAGA; the year we believe women; the year of chaos. Chaos distracts. This distraction is typically routed from our phones and has a tendency to take us away from what is in front of us.

And this brings us to the year of... BUM. BUM. BUM... dating apps. Dating apps have become a growing phenomenon in recent years and more young people between the ages of 18-29 have been using them as an easier way to get themselves into the dating pool.

In fact, Match Group, the internet company that owns dating sites like Match.com and OkCupid, found that 10 years ago only 3 percent of relationships began through online dating services and now it has reached above 30 percent.

That’s right. Whether young people are using these apps trying to find love, when they are bored, or as a bird troll account, they are nonetheless using them. And the stats show the love option is really working out for those folks.

According to The Knot’s 2017 Jewelry and Engagement Study, 19 percent of engaged or recently married Americans met their partner through an online dating service or app. This percentage has now surpassed traditional ways of meeting, including through friends (17 percent), during college (15 percent) or at work (12 percent). This means the more modern meet cute might be a “super like” or a witty direct message on Tinder.

Sorry rom com lovers.

Despite if you use them or not, these apps are relevant and happenin’ in today’s sphere — especially on campus — and it seems as if everyone has an opinion about them.