When girls talk about fashion in class, they usually discuss finding the perfect dress to wear to the bar. But Kyla Bell came to her university English lecture to tell all her girlfriends about the gorgeous wedding dress she had purchased.

Although statistics show people are waiting until later in life to tie the knot, there are still many couples who meet, fall in love and get married all before they receive their diploma.

“We fell in love, we moved in together and now we are ready to start our life,” Bell said, about her and her fiancé Nik Shultz, both 21 years old.

The couple met when they were 16. They will be married Thanksgiving weekend 2011, right in the middle of midterms during their final year of university.

“Although it’ll be a stressful month, I wouldn’t change it for the world,” Bell said.

Due to their busy school schedule, the honeymoon will be put on hold until Christmas break.

Even though the wedding is still over a year away, the stress begins now, as Bell continues to work part-time, plan a wedding and study.

Fortunately she says her family has been very supportive throughout the whole process — financially and through preparing the guest list, booking a DJ and choosing the flowers.

Jordan Friesen said he has also found family to be important during his wedding planning.

Friesen, 20, a former Carleton student, transferred back home last fall to finish his studies at the University of Manitoba to be closer to his loved ones, including his girlfriend Chelsea Vandenberg, a student and hairdresser from out West.

“Being so far away from her, I realized how much I really wanted to be with her from then on,” Friesen said.

The two had known each other for just over two years, but had only dated for five months before they got engaged.

Shortly after Friesen moved home, his mother encouraged him to buy the ring. On the night of Dec. 19, Vandenberg said she found Friesen standing under the pagoda in his backyard, Christmas lights covering the trees, with a ring in hand.

Although the two have faced many skeptics for getting engaged so young and so soon into their relationship, Friesen said, “for every person that has been skeptical, there have been twice as many people who have supported us.”

Vandenberg said the choice didn’t seem rushed at all. She said the question isn’t so much “why not wait?” as “why wait?”

Although the statistics disagree with these young couples, they both said they feel they’ve been given the words of wisdom needed from family and friends to stay in for the long haul.

For Shultz and Bell, who are currently living together with their cats Wally and River, the process has already begun.

“Not only do you go through the ups and downs as a couple and as roommates, you know this is going to be the person you’re going to spend your life with,” Bell said.

“The girl who isn’t helping with the dishes very much isn’t just your roommate, she’s your future wife, who’s not pulling her weight,” Shultz said.

“As mundane as these things seem, you really think about, 'How are these issues going to affect us when he’s my husband?' ” Bell added.

“As soon as you commit [through marriage] everything is in a new light,” Shultz said. “You need to tackle everything in the mindset that you're going to be with this person for the rest of your life.”

“You can’t just walk away,” Bell added.

Freisen and Vandenberg are tackling marriage with the same mindset and expect to face the small struggles as well.

“Apparently when I boil water I put too much water in the pot, which really bothers her – and I don’t put the lid back on the shampoo!” he joked.

But marriage is about compromise, said Freisen and Vandenberg, and those things mean so little when you are married with the love of your life.

“We have a rule, never go to bed angry,” explained Vandenberg – not while they live thirty minutes away, and not when they move in together.

They agree that the key to a strong relationship will always be tackling the issues at hand with patience and respect.