i live and study in a place l hate. l love what l study though, thats what kinda keeps me going. but the absence of a social life and a love live, due to legitimate reasons - also l dont like to lower my standards - leaves me miserable. now the drinking myself happy may affect my studies at some point, but fortunately not so far. besides, l dont wanna keep drinking.
any experiences/suggestions?

You need to meet you some friends and keep your thoughts positive you will eventually be through this phase in your life and into the next one best wishes ...

According to the Paulo Coelho, Happiness is a quest. You have a choice to be happy.

You might just be an Introvert, who naturally have crappy social lives.
Meet others like yourself. No point in being in a society where you would not belong. Learn more interesting shit. Watch funny movies. Develope a fake ass personality so you can socialize, no matter how degrading it is. Its worth it, when your bangin some hotties. Just be chill.

Studying can be a nightmare sometimes. So it forms part of the sacrifice. The absence of distractions will improve your grades. Once studying is over, you will feel free to move and live your life!

If u can not find anyone in ur community or school who meets ur standards, maybe it is not them. Maybe it is ur standards. Have u given the people there a chance or r u just judging them without really getting to know them? If u think u r better than those around you, l am not surprised you're lonely. Try learning to appreciate people who r different than you. You might find that they can be funny, caring, & interesting. You might even make some of the best friends of ur life. Do not get stuck on outward appearances.