Harvard senior Sam Thatcher and his roommate, The Lippencott, have been planning to go to Russia together after graduation because they think that the economic situation in the United States is too severe. Unknown to The Lippincott, Sam has been seeing New England College for Women student Alexandra Benson, and is having a difficult time chossing between "Alex" and Russia. Meanwhile, on the train home from Easter vacation, Alex's friends try to convince her to have Sam come up to their Spring dance, especially after one of them, Frances, who is The Lippencott's cousin, tells them about the planned trip to Russia. Sam receives Alex's invitation to the dance on the same day that The Lippencott discovers that the only boat they can take to Russia is leaving two weeks before graduation and the night before the dance. Even though Sam tells his roommate to meet him in New York with their passports and writes Alex a note saying "impossible to make dance," The Lippencott is certain that Sam will be at the dance instead of New York and follows him to the college. Sam tells Alex that he loves her but thinks that marriage is a futile gesture in hard economic times. Though Alex bravely pretends to agree, she is shattered and rushes back to her sorority house to sob. The next day, Alex's friends mobilize to help her. Mady Platt calls her newspaper publisher father and asks him to make a job to offer Sam, who edited the Harvard student newspaper. Next, Sally works out a secret arrangement with the police chief and Kate talks their young professor, Walter Beckett into feigning a romance with Alex. Finally, just as Frances tells Sam that Alex and Beckett are having a romance, Sam receives the telegram from Mr. Platt about the job offer. Suddenly confused and jealous, Sam goes to the sorority house to see Alex, followed by The Lippencott, who suspects that the telegram is too much of a coincidence. Through Sally's prior arrangement with the chief of police, the boys are arrested and thrown into jail, then released just prior to the dance. Sam then tries again to see Alex and leaves The Lippencott with his car. Sally has arranged for her friends Buck and Doc, both Yale men, to destroy Sam's car, after which they stuff The Lippencott in the rumble seat. In a confusion of people coming and going, Sam doesn't get to talk with Alex and instead sees her leave for the dance with Becket. Now fuming with rage, Sam punches The Lippencott and blames him for all his romantic troubles. He then drives his wrecked jalopy to the dance with The Lippencott back in the rumble seat. At the dance, when Sam sees Alex dancing with Beckett, he grabs her away and tells her that he can't live without her. Finally resolved to Sam's inevitable fate, The Lippencott then throws their passports into the punchbowl.