Schools romances teaching professional dating

Robin Coates, 45, of Mobile, Alabama, found starting a relationship with her boyfriend, Sam, a 39-year-old who installs floors, to be tricky.

Coates works as a creative director and has a college degree.

"The pool of college educated men isn't growing as rapidly as it is for women." There is also a gender shift in the realm of education. Researchers have found educational attainment to be a higher priority among couples than ever.

She said the differences can work if the couple has similar goals and values. "It can open your world and make you become a better-rounded person." EDITOR'S NOTE: A previous version of this story included examples that have been removed because they contained errors.

Sometimes they break up with a romantic attachment to find that while they were all dreamy-eyed and in love, their other friendships cooled for lack of attention, leaving them “lost” in the social landscape.

Having a girlfriend makes you feel older and cooler.

Instead, people are intrigued by his dog-walking job.

"It doesn't bother me one bit that she makes more money," said her husband one morning as he was gearing up to walk 15 dogs.