It’s the first day of college, and the scene is picturesque: green lawns, Frisbees flying through
the air, and bustling crowds of students nervously finding their way to class. You do the same,
but as you’re walking down the hallway, you notice an inordinate amount of papers on the walls.
“Join our student society today,” they say, whether it’s for music, art, or the so-called best
sorority on campus. You finally get to class, but you’re still thinking about those flyers. What a
world of opportunity!
What is a student organization? In college, plenty of clubs and societies are run by the
students themselves, and they serve the interests, aspirations, and needs of your average
campus’s vast population. College organizations benefit students in a variety of ways, giving
them a chance to build skills, make friends, and pursue personal growth. In this article, let’s talk
about different types of organizations and how you can get involved.
To Start: Some Student Organizations Examples
Before we can get into the reasons for joining college clubs, we should probably go over
what they can look like in the first place. Knowing that they even exist is already beneficial to
students who are struggling with academic or personal problems; just anecdotally, I was about
ready to pay someone to do my homework for me before I found an academic club to help me
get my grades up.
But the rabbit hole goes much deeper than that. Large universities can have literally
hundreds of organizations serving tens of thousands of students, and sometimes they have
financial resources and leadership structures rivaling real-life professional companies. Say
goodbye to high school clubs that seemingly came and went with the wind; as a college student,
you’re operating at a much different, much grander scale than before. It might all seem
intimidating at first, but we’ll explain why it’s exciting, too!
Academic and Educational Clubs
Up first, we have a wide net of college clubs that serves to enhance students’ college
education. Academic clubs are not a chore to join, nor does it hurt your GPA if you decide one
of them is not for you; in this way, they’re almost like school without the pressure!
That said, academic clubs are a great way to meet other students who can help you in your
weak subjects. If you’re struggling with math, you can just join a math club for extra practice! If
you’re having trouble with English literature, you can join a writer’s circle to work on your
composition skills. Meanwhile, if you’re really passionate about a particular subject, educational
organizations are a fantastic means of honing your craft and exploring extracurricular
opportunities related to that field. Plus, you’ll find like-minded peers with whom you can
develop projects, work on homework, and talk about your mutual interests. If you enjoy your
actual classes, academic clubs can be fantastic complements to a formal education.
Cultural and International Clubs
College is where many students “discover themselves,” and sometimes that means
reconnecting with their culture or learning about new ones. Luckily, that’s exactly what culture
clubs allow students to do. Some of them are based in ethnicity, like Chinese or Egyptian, while
others revolve around strong cultural identifiers, like religion and language. In both cases,
cultural clubs can help new students feel welcome by introducing them to peers who come from
similar backgrounds.
Similarly, that’s why international clubs play such an important role in acclimating new
students to campus life. International students leave much behind, including family and friends,
when they choose to attend foreign universities. That’s why knowing that there’s a place
designed just for them, whether it revolves around cultural knowledge or the simple lack of a
language barrier, makes a huge difference in helping international students make college into
their second home. Even if they miss their family, they’ll at least have friends close by.
Service and Volunteer Organizations
Speaking of self-discovery, many students arrive at college seeking, and fully motivated, to
leave a positive impact on the world. But how can they do so? How can students translate their
moral aspirations into actionable charity work?
Here’s where service and volunteer organizations come in. With these structures in place,
civic-minded students can find productive ways to give back to their communities. Whether it’s
mentoring younger kids, volunteering at food drives, or spreading on-campus awareness about
certain issues, service clubs ensure that students “get more” out of their college education than a
simple credential and well-gowned photos at the end. They build communication skills, help
students practice the art of fundraising, and can even introduce students to causes that they
become especially, even life-alteringly, passionate about. Of course, while volunteering benefits
the volunteers themselves, it also, most importantly, leaves a positive mark on both campus
communities and those living in surrounding areas. In this way, service work empowers students,
even while in college, to break out of the campus “bubble” as well.
Greek Life
This one’s a classic. Yes, we’re talking about fraternities and sororities. The whole shebang
of big communal houses, rush week, pledges, and all that jazz. Sometimes Greek life gets a bad
rap, and we won’t deny that some who participate in its systems are, perhaps, worth avoiding.
However, the institution itself clearly has its benefits, chief among them the fact that, as part of a
sorority or frat, students instantly adopt, and are adopted by, a “family” that can help them
navigate the trials of college life.
Greek life is a great way to make friends, find love via mixers, and even identify future
roommates rather than go through the roulette of online searching. Students enjoy mentorship in
their early years before providing it in their later ones. Plus, many fraternities and sororities boast
nationwide “alumni networks” rivaling those offered by the universities they belong to. In other
words, Greek life gives when you’re in college and keeps on giving after you graduate.
Creative and Performing Arts Clubs
Do you paint, play an instrument, or just like to dance? Did you act in high school plays and
wonder whether you could keep acting in college? The good news is that many college clubs can
help artistic students stay involved in all kinds of creative pursuits alongside their formal
education; nobody has to choose one or the other.
This is because creative and performing arts clubs vary in levels of seriousness, so students
can tailor their membership to how much time they can commit. Some clubs serve as simple
rallying points for students who want to improve their crochet skills, practice improv comedy, or
talk about rock music. Others are more ambitious to the point of bordering on professionalism:
orchestras, jazz bands, theater groups, and competitive dance teams. Both types of performing
arts groups are valid, and they both allow students to indulge their passions in physically and
mentally healthy ways.
“Hobby” Clubs
Do you like board games? Are you really into gardening, or watching Game of Thrones? Do
you have some other niche hobby, especially one that’s hard to get your friends and family
excited about?
We’re calling these “hobby clubs” just because they apply to such a broad spectrum of
specific interests, but that’s really all there is to it. Universities are great at bringing students
together over shared hobbies; in fact, a lot of student organization in college, besides those
academic or career-building clubs, boils down to students seeking peers with whom to hang out
over ping pong, bubble tea, books, or whatever else fills your schedule. Whenever college life
seems too serious, to a point where any leisure time feels like an unproductive waste, it’s healthy
to take a step back and remember that hobbies are important, and that hobby clubs are a great,
social way to maintain them!
Student Government
While colleges have plenty of clubs dedicated to promoting specific political parties or
ideologies, we’re talking here about student government: a chance to build your leadership skills
and facilitate better outcomes for hundreds, if not thousands, of your peers.
Sometimes student governance organizations are university-wide, like your basic “Graduate
Council,” while others are dedicated to administering specific college programs, like medical
schools or business schools. Either way, student government leaders play a critical role in
representing students’ voices at the university as well as organizing academic and social
programs for their scholarly community. What’s exciting is that joining student government
gives students, often for the first time, the chance to exercise real power in order to improve their
own college experience. It’s great for natural leaders, effective organizers, passionate advocates,
and anyone else seeking, paraphrasing Gandhi, to be the change they want to see. Plus, it looks
great on a résumé.
Intramural Sports Clubs
Lastly, we have sports. And we can already hear you wondering: Why those? Everyone
knows about sports, don’t they? And aren’t college sports basically one step below the pros?
These are all valid questions, but we should clarify that we’re really talking about intramural
leagues. Have you ever wanted to try a sport but were afraid of foundering next to more
experienced players? Do you love sports but don’t have the time nor inclination to play them
competitively at a collegiate level?
Universities recognize the demand for the chance to play sports just for fun, no matter how
bad you may be. That’s why recreational sports clubs are a fantastic way to play games and be
active with your friends. The stakes are much lower, and so is the barrier to entry–no tryouts
necessary! You can just rally a group of friends, or make new ones along the way, and go play
soccer, volleyball, or whatever else tickles your fancy.
The Overall Benefits of Participating in Student Society
Consider that a brief recap of just some of the types of organizations students can join while
at university. If I could do over my own stint, perhaps I’d have someone else do my college
homework for me just so I could try them all. But that’s just a daydream, not to mention a
discussion for another day.
For now, let’s flesh out in more detail the exact benefits of participating in extracurricular
student life. Sure, academics are the main selling point of any university, but they aren’t the only
things students experience while there. College is also about growing up quickly, experiencing
independence, and discovering what your fully cultivated self looks like. We can’t stress enough
the importance of enjoying those three or four years, not just because of the cliché that they
won’t last, but because doing so will help you learn as much about your adult personality as
possible.
Discovering Your Full Slate of Interests
On that note, let’s dive right into the first benefit of college organization. Imagine yourself
twenty year in the future and showing off to colleagues that–surprise!–you’re a master gardener.
Or that you can speak Japanese. Or something else that you just can’t do right now.
The cliché that you “don’t know what you don’t know” really does apply to hobbies, and we
fail to see the use in spending your college career doing exactly the same things that you did in
high school. That’s why joining clubs and organizations is the first step in finding and falling in
love with new things!
Building Upon Your Leadership Skills
Even if you don’t literally join a student governance council, though that’s still a great idea,
almost every college club and organization has a leadership structure in which students can
experience real responsibility for others’ extracurriculars. Whether it’s organizing events,
managing funds, or promoting the club to non-members, serving on the leadership board of your
favorite organization is a great way to develop communications skills that will help you pursue
and obtain tons of professional opportunities in the future. Plus, your passionate dedication will
ensure that your club can grow, maintain revenue, and be enjoyed by students who follow in your
footsteps!
Diversifying and Forming New Social Circles
Friends are critical to a healthy college experience, and having a strong diversity of friend
groups, especially those associated with different activities, can help students build a strong
social life. Therefore, college groups are a helpful way to broaden your horizons and ensure that
you have company, if you want it, in each aspect of your academic and extracurricular activities.
Plus, though we hate to say it, forming different social circles also protects your sanity should
one of them dissolve; even if some of your friends bicker or grow apart, you can turn to others
and not feel like you’re utterly alone.
Leaving a Positive Impact on Communities
Joining a student organization inside school, for the purposes of school or in conjunction
with school, is a wonderful experience. What’s also fantastic is when such an organization
empowers students to leave positive impacts on people living in and around their university, even
if they themselves aren’t students.
Many service and volunteer organizations are designed to do this, performing charity work
or promoting mentorship, but others can, too! Students who are in performing arts club can give
their communities, in the form of symphonies or theater productions, a valuable night of cultural
appreciation. Though not a requirement, students should feel proud when their work transcends
the campus bubble.
Making and Maintaining Healthy Support Systems
College is an exciting time, but it’s also nerve-wracking. Those first breaths of independence
are fresh air for some and panic-inducing for others; living alone hits them hard, and suddenly it
becomes very easy to feel invisible, become reclusive, slip through the cracks.
When you join a club or organization, you make its responsibilities part of your identity.
That’s a powerful thing. Having people around you to support you, talk to you, even just see you
once a week, is key to maintaining a healthy adult life. It may require some proactivity and
socializing at first, but support systems are well worth whatever awkwardness comes first.
The Importance of Extracurriculars
This breakdown of student organizations examples is meant to do a few things: inspire,
excite, even reassure students who are overwhelmed by their choices. If we ran an online
assignment writing service, we might tell you to sketch a game plan before diving right into
action.
In college, time is valuable, and you won’t be able to join every club that sounds mildly
interesting. So here’s our advice: start. Just start. Go to at least one meeting and see how you like
it. Go to meetings until you decide to come back a second time. Trust your adult self: the rest
will follow.