“Get
involved.” Any new college student has probably been told this about a thousand
times—from family members, friends, older college students, tour guides for
college students, and now me. One of the best things you can do during your
freshman year of college is getting involved.
Why
get involved?
- You
will meet people who are involved in or interested in similar things as you
(and let’s face it—as a freshman in college, you will need to make friends and
meet new people). I am involved with two different clubs on campus, and I have
met some of my closest friends in college through these clubs and the various
activities we have done together.
- You
can do really fun stuff with clubs! For example—I myself am a member of the
Society of Women Engineers, and one of my favorite memories of my freshman year
of college was an event I did through SWE. I was a part of the planning
committee that organized the event, and I got to participate in it as well. The
event: Mr. Engineer, a beauty pageant for male engineers. This event was fun to
plan, absolutely hysterical, and also helped to raise money for THON! It was
honestly one of the most fun and entertaining things I participated in as a freshman,
and I would not have known about the event unless I had joined SWE.
- It
keeps you busy! And it can help you
de-stress! I know college is already busy with homework and studying and
jobs and everything. But honestly, do you want to be BORED in college? I
thought not.
- Resume-builders
and leadership experience. Employers look for people who have been involved in
their college lives, and participating in a club (or three) is a great way to
boost your resume! Just don’t join clubs solely for the purpose of a better
resume.
- Memories.
You’ll
make some great memories through clubs and just being involved during college.
I personally remember the specific fun things I did in my various clubs more
than I remember the days I watched Netflix all day (not that Netflix or other
down-time activities are bad- they are a great way to de-stress! It is just
important to find a balance between leisure and work and clubs. You don’t want
your only memories from college to be those Netflix marathons).
So hopefully I have established why it is
so important to get involved in college. But how exactly do you get involved?
There are almost a thousand clubs at Penn State—that is pretty intimidating.
Finding
the right clubs/things to be involved with:
- Talk
to people! During WEPO as a freshman, I talked to a lot of older girls,
and one of the things I asked each of them was what clubs they joined. Because
of this, I heard about On My Honor—the on-campus Girl Scout volunteering
organization—a really small club I wouldn’t have heard about otherwise!
- Actually
read your WEPO activities sheet! This packet lists all of the organizations
(by category) that WEPO people are involved with, along with descriptions of
these clubs, contact information, and more. That way, if you hear about a club
from a mentor or fellow WEPO-teer, you can look at who (from WEPO) is involved
with that specific organization and contact them! There are so many different
clubs listed there, and you can read about all of them to see what interests
you.
- Go to
the activities fair in the fall! In the HUB during the first week of
classes, there will be a fair with people from a variety of clubs. Go for a
while, talk to people, and see what clubs interest you. And don’t hesitate to
sign up for the email listings of a bunch of clubs-I signed up for almost 10
clubs at the fall involvement fair my first year! Once I started receiving
emails from those clubs, I was able to attend a meeting for the clubs, and
decide which clubs I really wanted to join, and which clubs fit my schedule.
Don’t feel bad about signing up for a club, and not actually joining, either!
- Look
Online. https://studentaffairs.psu.edu/hub/studentorgs/orgdirectory/ So many different
clubs are listed here, and you can look through this whole list if you want to
(it may take a while) and see what piques your interest.
Other
club-joining tips:
- Don’t
be afraid to try something new or different!
- If
you are shy, see if a friend or roommate will go to the first club meeting with
you.
- Don’t
stop looking for clubs to join! Many clubs will let people join
mid-semester or at the start of the second semester of the year!
- Don’t
go overboard! Engineering is a tough discipline, but you can do it!
However, you will (probably) not be successful as an engineer if you join and
are actively involved with 15 different clubs. My advice is to join between 1
and 3 clubs that fit your schedule, and see what you can handle. If you are in
over your head, don’t hesitate to dial back your participation in a club or
two.
- Being
dedicated and actively involved with just one club is better than being only
kind of involved with 7 clubs!
- Find
what clubs YOU want to join. Not what your mom wants you to join, or what
your roommate wants you to join. If you really want to join a club, do not
hesitate, even if you are the only person you know in that club! And if you are
pressured into joining a club and you don’t want to, then DON’T join it. Do
what YOU want.
Good luck finding the perfect way for you
to be involved on campus and throughout college! Don’t stress or worry about
it- you will find the right club for you.
Emma Clement is a sophomore in Civil and Environmental Engineering, and is a Rover for WEPO 2015!
