On Saturday, at Real Simple’s Beauty & Balance Botanical Cocktail in New York City, PEOPLE got a chance to chat with Emmy Rossum, 27, and she shared some very good dating advice for all of the women out there … “STOP dating bad boys!”

Rossum’s characters tend to be attracted to the hot bad guys, however she admits that they really aren’t her type in real life. “I’m kinda more attracted to the nerd,” the Shameless star said. “I’m really into guys who are super smart and funny and can teach me something I don’t know about.”

Rossum is a firm believer that it is what is inside that counts, and attraction is more than just looks. “Girls, and guys too, are so shallow that we don’t give a chance to the good guy who’s maybe not as cute,” she explained. “They’re kinda like a fixer-upper apartment.”

Emmy encourages women to step out of their comfort zones, and try dating someone that they never would have before. She explains that you can’t change a person’s character, but you can give them a makeover, and nerds need love too. “You need to pick the guy who’s really good inside and then give him a makeover,” she said. “Turn him into the perfect version of himself. You can never change what’s inside, that’s the problem. You can change their jacket and their hairstyle, and buy them a Clarisonic.”

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