Wow, you are really hard on yourself. A guy is out with you because he considers you attractive, there is no reason to try to hide yourself. I am concerned that because you are so self-effacing you will end up with the wrong type of guy if you get into a relationship right now. I think you should focus on different ways to improve your confidence before you continue in the dating world. Good luck.

do you have a lot of guy friends? if not, maybe you should work on maing some guy friends first. that way you will be more comfortable around guys in general. if you do have guy friends you are ok with, but its the dating part that isn't working, then consider treating dates as guys that you can be friends with. don't get yourself over anxious about will it work out as a relationship- but approach it as hanging out with a guy to see if he could become a good friend.

but do remember- the guy wouldn't have asked you out if he didn't see something in you that interested him- so sit up, look him in the eye, and have fun! what is the worst that can happen- he decides he's not interested? ok then you move on to the next one- at a predominantly male college (lucky you!)you should do just fine.

Oh honey... At an predominately male school is where you should be the most confident. There's fewer females and more men! That should make dating a lot easier. And, I agree with Janine22 above when she says, "A guy is out with you because he considers you attractive..."

You should take advantage of your situation. And realize that if it doesn't work out with one guy from your school, there are many others there to try dating.

I used to be a really shy person so I understand. And I think "faking" it for a little bit is a good way to start. I think it's great that you want to put yourself in situations that make you feel uncomfortable because that's the only way you're going to "come out of your shell." Before you know it, you're not faking it anymore - you'll be really doing it.

Try this: you say you are completely yourself when you're with your close friends. When you are with those people, try to really remember how it feels to be carefree, open, charming, and yourself. Hold on that feeling and try to take it with you even when your friends are gone. And when you go on a date, I understand you can't be as free and open, but try to incorporate some of that feeling into how you act on a date. Think of the guy as a friend (this might sound counterintuitive haha) and you might feel more comfortable.

Wow - I could have written this.
I have never been diagnosed, but I feel that I have at least a mild form of Social Anxiety Disorder. If I am not comfortable around someone, I keep quiet, avoid eye contact, and try not to draw attention to myself, just like the author of this post. Something as simple as a stranger asking me for the time can cause me to turn bright red and want to hide. It does not matter how many times your friends or family members tell you just be yourself, get over it - it's just not that easy. You can't just snap out of it.

I have found that dates - especially the first date - is much more relaxing if we go to a place where the lighting is low. For example, on my first date with my boyfriend, we went to a restaurant and sat outside - it was dark out, and there were candles on the tables and some soft lights overhead. The lack of light let me relax a little bit and open up more. I wasn't as paranoid about him seeing how nervous I was. This really helped me become more comfortable, and date was very outgoing and carried the conversation the entire night, which also helped.

My advice is to pick a few places where you feel comfortable (maybe somewhere that you know will have low lighting) and if your date asks you where you would like to go, speak up.

Have you considered double dating? Maybe if you have friends there that you are comfortable with, it will help ease the tension. And your friend could help fill in the gaps in conversation...

I think gooniette is right, a double date could be a really great idea for you, but be careful who you ask to go with you. I'm terribly shy aswell, and my two best friends are very loud, sociable girls, which I really like as they can distract everyones attention. But on a double date once I was really nervous and barely spoke a word because I was really shy and also because my friend was talking the whole time.

Oh and I love Linb's suggestion. You could try going somewhere where you can't talk very much, like the cinema, you don't even have to look at each other and after you have the entire topic of the film to discuss if you aren't sure what to talk about. Or a museum or gallery, you have to keep sort of quiet and you have subject matter to work with.

Good luck! you're still young, so theres a lot of time to get your dating style sorted and to become more confident.

Like linb, I clicked on this because I feel like I could have written it. I feel like I have all these opinions and ideas and I have such trouble getting up the courage to get them out! I, too, have never been diagnosed, but I have a serious problem with social anxiety disorder- not that that is what you have. What I've kind of learned from life is that the more you try to make yourself comfortable in whatever insecurities you have, a lot of the times the more attention you draw to how insecure you are. Someone said to "fake it" like you are more confident, and easier said than done, but that would probably be best. Or try small steps. Maybe one night try to at least look up more, and then once you can do that concentrate on speaking up more.