Students schedule classes around them. Some depend on them. The dedicated shed tears for them. And the embarrassed watch them behind locked doors.

What are they?

They're daytime soaps.

Whether it's "Days of Our Lives," "Guiding Light," or "All My Children" --in just about every dorm across campus, TVs are tuned in and eyes are glued to the screen.

Although some call soaps stupid or even comical, fans see the daytime dramas in a different light.

"It's all make-believe," said Jennifer Petrucci (freshman-division of undergraduate studies). "It just depends on how you look at it."

While watching her soap, Petrucci sat with her eyes fixed on the screen. During a commercial, she explained that she has been a soap addict for years. Her mother got her hooked at the age of 5 --"GL" is her favorite.

For most, the stereotypical image of the soap watcher is the lonely housewife. But soap addiction knows no boundaries -- not even the door of male dorms.

In Geary Hall, Lamar Kukuk switched on the TV at 3 p.m. as usual.

"You have the picture of the obsessed housewife who thinks the characters are real and people don't want to be associated with that. It's not terribly macho," said Kukuk (sophomore-communications), a dedicated "Santa Barbara" fan.

Another man unfortunately can't watch his favorite soap this semester. At 3 p.m., Brian Weber would love to catch "Guiding Light." Instead he's stuck in class or at work.

"To me it's hysterical. I'll admit that they're addictive," said Weber (freshman-animal bioscience), whose friends got him hooked. "Everyone's been married to everyone else, and sleeping with each other behind everyone's back. It's funny."

Weber said he looks forward to spring break when he will talk to his friends at home and get caught up on a semester's worth of "GL."

Though plots of soaps like "Guiding Light" may border on the ridiculous, some students would still choose daytime soaps over prime time sitcoms.

"Prime time has deteriorated to such an extent over the past few years," Kukuk said. "The only places you can find interesting characters anymore are places like daytime and syndication."

The popularity of daytime dramas reaches far beyond TV rooms on campus. Countless magazines, award shows, trading cards, exercise videos, fan clubs, 900 numbers -- just about everything imaginable -- are based on them.

With award shows featuring categories like best love story, critics have raised questions about the amount of sex permissible on daytime television.

But in the overall media spectrum, soaps probably have less sex than the average PG movie, said Patrick Trimble, instructor of integrative arts.

"There is just as much sex on nighttime as there is on the soaps," agreed Michelle Liput (sophomore-history).

To keep the sex to a minumum, daytime soaps are censored, Trimble said. Recently, when "Days" aired a prime time special, the difference between what was allowed at 8 p.m. and what is normally shown was barely noticable.

"There is probably more sexuality in a show like 'Roseanne' than there is on 'The Young and The Restless,' " Trimble said.

And as for the danger of avid fans confusing life in Port Charles with that in State College, Trimble said it doesn't happen.

"People who believe these characters are real don't really exist. Soap operas are just the ultimate emotional escape," Trimble said.

As far as the addiction goes, the key is moderation.

"College students, especially, have a rough time of it," Trimble said. "Soap operas are so simple and mindless that after a couple of classes it's OK to sit down and and watch for a half hour or an hour. The problem is when you watch for three or four hours everyday."

But that could be difficult for some.

"It's addictive. Once you start, you just can't stop," Liput said.