Back to school time usually means back to clubs and extracurriculars, or in other words, activities to make your week less boring and a little more full of purpose! Sometimes it can be hard to navigate the plethora of tables managed by different on campus clubs and organizations. Some people like to categorize the clubs so they visit what they're interested in. I went to my college's involvement fair last week and I made sure I got a peak at just about everything there! I noticed a few recurring themes between many of them and thus, this post was born! Here are the types of clubs that you'll see at your college involvement fair:
1. Greek Life
Greek life is popular among many, many, many college campuses. At my outdoor involvement fair, Greek Life tables were situated in a good chunk of outdoor plaza. The involvement fair is a fantastic way for them, like other organizations, to advertise and gain recruits. Just look for non-English alphabet and you've found your frats and sororities. In all seriousness, Greek Life helps you build a sense of community with the people around you. You build character and learn to trust your peers as if they were your brothers or sisters! Fraternities and Sororities also provide cool accommodations and events for their members. Confession time: I absolutely cannot tell you what each of the letters mean (I took Latin in high school) and which frat is a brother to which sorority!
2. Community Service Clubs
This kind of club was probably number one on my list of clubs to sign up for this semester. Community service clubs provide students with a great way to get involved on and off campus and they help students become aware of and get in touch with people from other organizations. A great example of a community service club would be your college Key Club or Kiwanis Club. They provide members with cool opportunities to get out into the neighborhood for good causes! These also look great on graduate school applications and on resumes!
3. Sports Clubs
These are kind of different from intramural sports since these clubs are actually declared clubs at your college. Intramural sports have multiple teams within the same school competing against each other whereas established sports clubs compete with those of other colleges. There would surely be a sports club for everyone interested - soccer, volleyball, tennis, basketball, badminton, QUIDDITCH! Yes, Quidditch is a sport! My college has a pretty popular Quidditch team! This year, I signed up for the Field Hockey club. I have never played field hockey before but the great thing about Sports clubs is that you don't need experience to be part of a cool team!
4. Pre-Professional Societies
I'm talking about Pre-Med, Pre-Dental, Pre-Vet, Pre-Law, Pre-anything! These societies are fantastic to join if you are on a certain pre-professional track. They give you insight into the field you want to go into, the professional school application process, some test prep, and other great resources that you might not be able to find completely on your own! I used to be part of the pre-Vet society at my school and during one meeting, an alumni from the society brought in a dog and taught us how to examine him for things like cancer! It was a great hands-on experience that pre-vet students wouldn't want to miss out on! These societies overall just help you get more acquainted with your field before you actually go to Med School or Dental School or whatever school!
5. Honor Societies
These are groups that honor students with top averages. Think of them as an exclusive reward for keeping your GPA above a 3.5! You get access to exclusive scholarships, professional conferences, exclusive study abroad opportunities, bragging rights, and, of course, an awesome Honor Society t-shirt! Did that seal the deal for you?
6. Hobby/Recreational Clubs
These are a big part of the involvement fair because they probably comprise the majority of the extracurricular body at your college. These kinds of clubs are great for you to take a load off one night a week and just have some fun and interact with people! Some "hobby" clubs my school offers include archery, fencing, snowboarding, anime, forensics, culinary club, and lots more! Maybe you're a pre-law student but you want some time to get your cook on - join the culinary club! Or maybe you're a Biochem and Engineering double major who enjoys making scarves and beanies in his or her free time - the fiber arts club at your college is just right for you! No matter what your major or what track you're on, you can never, ever go wrong with hobby-type extracurriculars!
7. Cultural Clubs
Are you looking to stay intact with your culture or immerse yourself in a different one? Culture clubs are probably what you're looking for! There is a variety of culture-oriented clubs at colleges that anyone can join! Indian, Caribbean, East Asian, Hispanic, and many of these other clubs are designed to let students travel to another country with ever leaving campus! Immerse yourself in food, art, dance, and wardrobe from other cultures with these clubs!
8. Dance Clubs
My college, like many others, has a lot of different kinds of dance clubs. Of course, there's the main team that performs at the football games but there are others such as ballroom dance, ballet, Bhangra, step, and other campus dance troupes. I definitely don't think that I'm a good enough dancer to even be considered for the main dance team at my college (or at any college!) but the campus dance troupe and ballroom dance clubs have peaked my interest a little more since I have ballroom dance experience. These kinds of clubs will educate on different styles of dance while giving you a great workout and toned legs!
9. Emergency Response Organizations
This kind of organization seems to be growing in popularity and availability on college campuses. My college has two - the volunteer ambulance corps and the community emergency response team (CERT for short). They are student run however they have overseers from the district. I am part of the community emergency response team, which has trained and educated me in disaster preparedness. These organizations are a great way for students to gain experience in a highly professional and fast paced environment - perfect application builder for students on the pre-med track! They require a lot of intense training but if you can persevere through it all, you'll be glad you applied!
10. Social Issues Clubs
There are growing numbers of on campus clubs that highlight aspects of society such as the LGBT community, feminism, discrimination, the environment, and many more. Okay, the environment isn't too much of a "social" issue but I decided to throw that one in there because it is a global issue. These clubs educate students on these aspects within society and you don't necessarily have to be gay to join the LGBT club or you don't have to be a full-fledged feminist to join the feminism club. Likewise, you don't need to be a super tree-hugger to join the environmental club - the point is to gain a new perspective and consider insight that you might not have previously considered.
There you have it - the types of clubs at your college involvement fair. No matter what the type, all clubs share a common goal - to get students connected with the university and with each other. So get out there and join something! Join something you didn't think you'd ever join; join a club to be educated; join a club for experience in your field; join something that lets you help others. Most importantly, have fun while doing it!
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