So are you working up the confidence to ask that special someone on a date, or just working up the savings? Dating costs a lot nowadays, and it’s easy to find yourself dropping some serious cash if you don’t spend wisely.

Dating on the cheap is quite possible and even shows that there was time and thought put into the outing. Why spend $20 on a movie where you don’t get to communicate when you can spend a quarter of the price getting to know all about your prospective partner?

Since you’re already spending your days or nights on campus, you should use the surroundings to your advantage. There are a multitude of date ideas for free or very cheap that can be planned using the UMASS Boston campus so you won’t have to fill the poor college student stereotype.

Here are five date ideas that you can try that won’t leave you broke.

John F. Kennedy Library and MuseumOn the north end of the campus you will find a very contemporary black and gray building jutting up from behind the archives building. This seldom-visited building is the JFK museum, and is my first choice for a talkative date on campus. When you enter, for free of course, you walk down a flight of stairs into a grandiose open room with glass walls and a spider web of metal beams.

Strewn throughout this museum are beautiful artifacts from JFK’s lifetime (including a marvelous chunk of the Berlin wall), quotes from JFK throughout his lifetime, and the ambient noise of videos and recordings playing in various wings. This glimpse into the life of John F. Kennedy is an excellent place to spend a few hours, and really learn about your date’s opinions and thoughts. Plus, if you check the board in the lobby there are special guests that visit the museum at times. For example, if your date is an art buff you may want to visit on October 27th where the president of the arts, Dana Gioia, will discuss the impact of the importance of art.

The HarborwalkMy personal favorite dating venue on campus, however, has got to be the harbor walk. Which stretches the border of the campus along the sea. This 1.5 mile walk from fox point basin to the JFK Museum is littered with beautiful sights, areas to sit and talk, and even a nice area to sit and have a picnic.

Starting from the JFK Museum, there is a pier to walk out onto and see Thompson Island, and sit and talk with your legs dangling from the edge. When you’re bored of the pier, you can continue your walk along the point, noting Boston’s first waste removal building (the dilapidated circular stone building on the point of the walk), and sit on one of the benches adjacent to the path to sit and gossip.

Coming up there are slightly sloped grassy areas where it would be a perfect place to picnic under one of the shady trees to the sound of the waves crashing on the rocks. You can finish up the harbor walk when you arrive at fox point pavilion. Here there a multiple harbor activities posted on a bulletin board outside, so you can plan your second date!

UMB GreenhouseIs your friend a nature buff? In the Science and Mathematics building take the elevator to the fourth floor, and you may be surprised to find that UMASS Boston does have a greenhouse. Follow the signs and you’ll be led around a corner into a world of botany and zoology. There is a plethora of different species of plants as well as a good amount of chatty animals.

The greenhouse is a good place to evoke conversation and maybe find some spark among the sprawling vegetation. The greenhouse is separated into 3 different zones, with plants from different climates in each zone. This ranges from a humid, wet, jungle atmosphere to a dry, cool desert climate. When you’re done gazing at the plant life you can make friends with the African clawed frog, various types of fish, the colorful cockatiels, or even the gargantuan Iguana.

Harbor Art GalleryIn the first floor of McCormick you may be surprised to find that there’s actually an art gallery next to the giant pillar of advertisements in front of the entrance. Enter this white room and sit and gaze at the art that is laid out across the walls. Maybe you can even impress your date with your knowledge of Monet or Vangough. This is a small room; so don’t ready yourself for a long date. Use this venue as a place to get to know someone shortly, maybe if you have time between classes!

Clark Athletic Center Ice RinkIt is getting cold outside, so you must be getting used to the frigid temperatures and the raw weather. So why not take your companion to the Ice rink and learn to ice skate? In the athletic center, you will find a usually desolate skating rink which can be used from 11:00pm-1:00pm from Mondays through Fridays. Show your date how to skate, or maybe learn how to skate while being able to laugh at yourself slipping and sliding all over the ice. This is a free activity, but you do need to bring your own skates!

So what are you waiting for? Now that you don’t have to wait for your check to come, you can get on that date immediately. Use the campus to your advantage and make the best out of your situation; UMASS Boston could even become the catalyst for your new relationship.