Whether you're a doe-eyed freshman or a seasoned transfer student, starting a year at a new college can be difficult. You have to find all of your classes, feed yourself three times a day, manage your time, and more. However, sometimes it's nice to have someone to go grab lunch with or to study with on a Wednesday night, and there's no better way to find like-minded people than by joining a student organization! Below are some of my top reasons for joining a club (literally any club or student organization will do, I promise):
1. You Can Make Friends
It's hard to make friends in college, especially with online learning and mask mandates! However, if you join a college organization (or five) then your circle of friends is bound to grow. Think of it this way: you and all of the other students in the club already have one thing in common, right? Chances are you all will be able to bond over that and get to know each other better! All you have to do is make a suggestion to grab some food after a meeting/practice and next thing you know you'll have everyone's Snapchats.
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2. You Can Expand Your Professional Network
Sure, friends are great, but professional connections can be even better (I'm joking... kind of). If you're in a professional organization that pertains to your field of study, then you're sure to make plenty of helpful connections. Between your faculty advisor, your peers, and the special guests that will come in to talk during meetings - there's no way that you'll end the year without any new contacts.
3. It Looks Good On A Resume
Whatever you're applying for - whether it's a job, an internship, or a scholarship - you'll most likely need a resume for it. However, if all your resume has on it is the babysitting gig you had in 8th grade and the one club you joined in high school, you're going to need to start beefing it up. Joining a low-maintenance student organization will be a great way to start expanding your skill-set, and it'll be an even better way to hype yourself up on your resume.
4. It Might Even Be Fun
Gasp! I know, that's a pretty crazy claim to throw around, but I promise there's a pretty good chance that you're going to end up enjoying yourself if you join a club in college. The whole point of a club is to surround yourself with an activity that you enjoy. As long as you're not attending a club that you have no interest in, I'd say your chances of having a good time are pretty high. Of course, if all else fails you could just start your own club. But, I'd say you should start small by trying to have a good time at the next Anime Club meeting, or whatever you're into if that's not your thing.
