It can be a flash of color on the wrist or an expansive piece of artwork spanning the width of the shoulder blades - whatever it is, for many college students with tattoos, body art is both a form of self-expression and autonomy.

According to a June 2006 article in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, 36 percent of Americans between the ages of 18 and 29 have tattoos. Additionally, the March 2009 issue of College Magazine reported the most popular locations for males to get inked are the shoulders and upper arms while females prefer to ornate their wrists and torsos.

While tattoos may be a permanent life decision, for five Miami University students, the ink is both personal and meaningful.

Jake Miller, junior, accountant major

"Veritas," the Latin word for truth, is scrawled across Miami junior Jake Miller's back. For Miller, the tattoo is more than just decorative.

"I got this tattoo because it always reminds me that no matter what, the truth will always be with me," Miller said. "I have a responsibility to carry the truth with me wherever I go."

In addition to the ink on his back, Miller has a quarter sleeve on his left arm, which he had touched up at Panama Red's, one of three tattoo parlors in Oxford.

"Panama was the best in town, and the only artist I felt comfortable with working on my arm," Miller said. "He did extensive touch-up work."

Miller's quarter sleeve is composed of many elements that have an emotional meaning.

"My mother passed away in August last year and this is kind of a tribute to her," Miller said. "The first thing people see is the giant figure of Christ on the cross. He is holding a shepherd's hook and is looking to the left at my mother's initials. This symbolizes that God is looking over her now."

Miller's father's initials, lightning bolts, storm clouds and additional text also complete the design.

To Miller, college students get tattoos as part of the process of self-discovery, although he said not all tattoos inked during college may have as much significance as his.

"Some probably get tattoos to look cool or because their friends are doing it, but I think that people for the most part are trying to find themselves," Miller said. "Since so much is changing while they are in college, something permanent like a tattoo gives them something to hold on to."

Miller said he is very open to having more tattoo work done.

"With products that can safely and painlessly remove tattoos nowadays, getting a tattoo has lost some of the dreaded feeling that I might not like what I have in 10 years."

Kate Segraves, junior, creative writing major

For bubbly, effervescent Miami junior Kate Segraves, a quote from One Tree Hill summarizes her thoughts on tattoo work during college.

"As far as tattoos go, I feel like Haley James-Scott said it best," Segraves said. "'If I look back on this tattoo in 20 years and it reminds me of how I'm feeling this very moment, then yeah I'd say it's worth it.'"

Segraves has three tattoos on her back, wrist and inner ankle. She said she always wanted a tattoo but never had a significant reason to get one until she was 16.

"When I was 16 my best friend passed away in an accident, and the day after he died he was supposed to get his first tattoo, but instead, I got the tattoo," Segraves said.

Segraves said although the tattoo, a cross with wings, a halo and her friend's initials in script, is on her lower back, "there's nothing trampy about it."

Segraves' second tattoo came after her 18th birthday as she celebrated a right of passage.

"I had just started school at Miami, and I was so excited about my change of life," Segraves said. "I wanted to always remember this time in my life so I got a tattoo on my wrist of 'LiveLaughLove.'"

While in Dublin in June, Segraves got her third tattoo of a Picasso peace dove surrounded by the words, "Blessed are the peacemakers."

"The trip really changed my outlook on many things and brought me a sort of peace to my life," Segraves said. "The people I was traveling with have become some of my best friends."

While Segraves said her tattoos remind her of unique life moments, she said she has heard of less-than meaningful tattoo experiences.

"Of course some college kids just get wasted and end up in the basement of some bar with a tattoo on their a** for the hell of it," Segraves said.

Adam Orengia, first-year, microbiology major

First-year Adam Orengia arrived in Oxford with two tattoos, but said he is considering getting another once he has reviewed the work of nearby tattoo artists. With a cross on his left arm and his last name across his ribs, Orengia has had a major role in designing his tattoos.

"I actually drew the design of the cross myself in memory of my grandfather," Orengia said.

Orengia said whatever the reason for a tattoo, it's an important decision.

"Sometimes I think people get tattoos as a sign of rebellion, but others get some with great meaning," Orengia said. "It's something they will have for the rest of their lives."

Chelsea Allen, senior, health studies major

Senior Chelsea Allen had both of her two tattoos done at Panama Red's and said she is open to the idea of more.

With the word "Believe" on her right foot and the symbol for love, life and loyalty on her lower back, Allen said her tattoos are a form of self-expression.

"My 'Believe' tattoo is motivational for me," Allen said. "It means that you have to believe in something in order to accomplish anything. If you don't believe in yourself, who will?"

For Allen, getting a tattoo is not an act of rebellion but rather an appreciation of the body art.

"A lot of my friends who have tattoos simply like the artwork," Allen said.

Kevin Nitsche, junior, management major

Like Orengia, junior Kevin Nitsche has had a role in designing his own tattoos. Nitsche said he helped design a phoenix tattooed on his left bicep.

"I had a vision and worked on it with the artist," Nitsche said. "I used a picture from a Web site and am extremely proud of the end result."

In addition to the phoenix, Nitsche has a customized cross on his back featuring a shamrock and two roses on the side of his ribcage.

Each of Nitsche's tattoos has a unique meaning.

"The cross on my back is from my experience growing up going to Catholic schools," Nitsche said. "It is also in remembrance of my best friend in high school who died a few weeks before I got the tattoo."

The phoenix, the tattoo Nitsche is most proud of, tells the story of his childhood.

"I've been through a lot growing up, but I've grown into my own," Nitsche said. "I got the phoenix for its historic symbolism in the Egyptian and Roman cultures, being invincible and rising above problems."

The rose tattoo has a family significance for Nitsche.

"My mom has a rose tattoo," Nitsche said. "My mom and my grandma are both the strongest women I know, and the tattoo brings me closer to them."

For Nitsche, college is the perfect time for young adults to get tattoos.

"A lot of the time, college is the first experience away from overshadowing parents," Nitsche said. "It's the first time students really start to express who they really are."