Should You Join Clubs In College?
College is a time for exploration, self-discovery, and growth, both academically and socially. One of the best ways to expand your social circle and pursue your interests outside of the classroom is by joining a club or organization on campus. Clubs in college can offer a range of benefits, from building friendships to developing leadership skills to exploring new hobbies.
What is the importance of joining clubs?
What is the importance of joining clubs? Firstly, clubs provide an opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals who share similar interests or passions. This is especially important in college, where students may feel overwhelmed by the new environment and a large number of people. By joining a club, students can find a community that provides support and a sense of belonging.
Clubs also provide opportunities for personal and professional development. Many clubs offer leadership positions, which can help students develop their leadership and management skills. Additionally, clubs often organize events, which can help students develop event planning, marketing, and communication skills.
Clubs can provide opportunities to give back to the community through volunteer work or fundraising activities. This can help students develop a sense of social responsibility and a desire to make a positive impact on the world.
Clubs in college can also offer valuable opportunities to develop leadership skills. Many clubs have elected positions, such as president, vice president, treasurer, and secretary. By running for one of these positions, you can gain experience in planning and leading events, managing finances, and communicating with a team. These skills can be valuable both in your personal life and in your future career.
In addition to social and leadership benefits, clubs can also be a great way to explore new hobbies and interests. Maybe you’ve always been interested in theater, but never had the opportunity to get involved in a production.
Joining a theater club could give you the chance to try acting, directing, or stage management. Perhaps you’re passionate about environmental sustainability and want to learn more about it. Joining an environmental club could provide you with opportunities to volunteer, participate in eco-friendly initiatives, and attend guest lectures.
What are the disadvantages of joining clubs?
What are the disadvantages of joining clubs? While joining clubs in college can offer many benefits, there can also be some potential disadvantages to consider. Here are a few:
Time commitment: Depending on the club, there may be a significant time commitment required. This can be challenging if you are already balancing a heavy academic workload, a job, or other extracurricular activities.
Cost: Some clubs may require membership fees or other costs, such as travel expenses or equipment. This can be a financial burden for students who are already struggling to make ends meet.
Social pressure: Depending on the club, there may be social pressure to conform to certain expectations or standards. This can be especially challenging if you are new to the club or feel like you don’t fit in.
Conflict with other commitments: Sometimes, club events or meetings may conflict with other important commitments, such as academic deadlines, work schedules, or family obligations. This can cause stress and anxiety and may require you to make difficult choices.
Burnout: Participating in too many clubs in college or taking on too many responsibilities within a single club can lead to burnout, which can negatively impact your mental and physical health.
It’s important to weigh these potential disadvantages against the potential benefits of joining a club. If you’re interested in joining a club, it may be helpful to talk to current members, attend a meeting or event, or consult with a campus advisor to learn more about the expectations and requirements of the club. This can help you make an informed decision about whether or not to join.
Different types of clubs in college
There is no “right” or “wrong” club to join at school, especially with the different types of clubs in college that are there. It all depends on what you want and what your goals are. Do you want to join a club mainly to add to your resume and grow your professional network? If so, you might want to join an academic or pre-professional student group, like a group for future marketers or a club for students studying science, technology, engineering, and math.
Employers today look at a person as a whole when deciding whether or not to hire them. You’ll need to bring more than just good grades to the table. Employers want to hire college graduates who really made the most of their time there.
What counts is how much you do! Most campuses have clubs and groups for every kind of interest. Most groups and clubs fall into one of the following categories:
Academic clubs
On campus, academic clubs are some of the most well-liked. Most of the time, they are based on a field of study. For example, if you are studying marketing, the business school on your campus may have an active marketing club. These clubs can be very helpful for people who want to get a degree because they let you meet other students in the same major and, often, even professionals in fields where you want to work after you graduate.
Especially on larger campuses, there is a club or student society for every major or degree program you can think of. Find yours and get the help you need to get your degree.
A preprofessional club is like a school club. Premed and prelaw students are the most likely to join clubs in those areas. Many national organizations have branches on college campuses that can help students find internships and volunteer opportunities that would be hard to get to otherwise. These clubs can also help you fill out your applications to medical school or law school. They also offer networking, mentoring, and career advice.
Political clubs
A political club can give you a place to talk about issues that matter to you, support a candidate who shares your political views, or meet other students and professors who think the same way you do. If you are studying political science or want to run for public office, these clubs can be very helpful.
Political clubs in college can help you get involved in your community, connect you with people who can help you organize projects, and put you in touch with party leaders at the local, state, and national levels. Politicians or other influential people in the community may be invited to speak at political clubs. This gives ambitious students a chance to meet and get to know influential people. These relationships can also help you get internships, work on your campaign, and even jobs in your party in the future.
Debate clubs are another direct way to talk about your political ideas, defend them, and improve them. Students who like to debate tend to be outspoken, up-to-date on current events, and passionate about the topic at hand. Participating in a debate club gives you the chance to lead thought-provoking discussions with your classmates.
Moreover, it also helps you become a better speaker in the classroom and the workplace, and it can even prepare you for a run for public office. Even though a lot has changed in the way people talk about politics today, a debate is still an important part of the election process.
Publication and media groups
There are as many reasons to join a media or publication club as there are things that these clubs can do. A media or publication club puts out a campus newspaper, makes a website, writes ads, or puts on a radio, TV, or movie broadcast on campus.
There are so many different kinds of skills that are needed to make media today. You may be very interested in writing. You might be interested in graphic design, photography, or digital media. No matter what, you are likely to find your place on campus in a media or publication club.
Newspaper or magazine clubs in college might be a good fit for you if you want to be a reporter, videographer, designer, or even a social media expert. Almost every campus has one, and some are run by students only. Many student-run newspapers have a big impact on campus and in the community, with circulations of more than 10,000. Some of them have been printed for more than a century.
Some of the best student publications combine fashion, art, politics, and issues that affect campus life. This is done to spark conversation and give aspiring journalists a chance to show what they can do.
Employers are happy to see that you joined a media or publication club, whether you did it just for fun or because it fits in with your career goals. It shows that you are motivated, can work well with others, and are willing to give your time and energy to something important every day.
Community service and social justice
If you want to make a difference on your campus, in your neighborhood or city, or even around the world, you might be a good fit for clubs in college that focus on helping other people. There are service clubs for kids, seniors, people who don’t get enough help, animals, the environment, nature, and so on. If you want to help, chances are there are ways to do so on your campus. Several national service groups have chapters on college campuses.
Theater and art
Do you think of yourself as a performer? Or at least one who wants to be? Are you a big fan of Shakespeare or Arthur Miller? If the idea of being on Broadway makes your skin crawl, you might want to join a club for the arts. Do you have a creative side that goes beyond the stage? You might like to paint, sculpt, take pictures, make music, or do something else creative. Most likely, there’s a club for that.
There are theater groups on many college campuses, which can be fun for people who like theater. Most campuses will have a wide range of things to do, like experimental performance art, Broadway musicals, and plays from Shakespeare. If theater is important to you in college, find out what kinds of performances you can do before you commit.
On many campuses, it’s also easy to find groups that play music. You might love the piccolo, but you might not want to be a musician. Your school might have a woodwind group that would let you tweet along with them. If you want to work in the arts as a career, joining a group related to your degree can help you make more professional contacts and improve your skills in a field you care about.
Cultural clubs
In high school, you might try to fit in, but in college, you can embrace and celebrate what makes you different.
There are many ways to join groups that honor different racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds. On a lot of college campuses, there are clubs in college for African Americans, Asian Americans, Latinos, American Indian/Indigenous students, and other groups. If you are an international student who wants to meet other students who speak your language or understand your culture, there is a good chance that your campus has such a club.
Spiritual and religious groups
Students from many different cultures and faiths come together on college campuses that are very diverse. They also usually give you a lot of chances to learn about other religions or grow on your own through study and interaction with others. Different campuses have different religious and spiritual clubs, but larger schools usually have options for students who are Christian, Catholic, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, or of another faith. There may be a multicultural aspect to some groups.
Clubs for sports and recreation
On many campuses, college sports are a big deal. Students who join recreation or sports clubs probably love the sport they’re doing, but they probably aren’t good enough to play at the NCAA level.
Campuses have a huge range of sports clubs and intramural activities. Most of the time, the NCAA doesn’t have rules for club sports, but you might be able to compete at other colleges. The gap between NCAA and intramural sports can be “bridged” by club sports.
Most of the time, the level of competition at the intramural level is not as high. Intramural sports are a very popular choice for people who just want to play for fun. Most of the time, you’ll only meet and play on your campus, and your activities won’t be official.
Traditional sports like soccer, baseball, and volleyball are fun, but what if you want to try something different? There are Ultimate Frisbee clubs in college. Quidditch, the game that made Harry Potter a hero at Hogwarts, is an actual sport that is played on college campuses. It looks like a mix of rugby, dodgeball, and tag. There are more than 200 Quidditch teams across the country, so there may be one on your campus.
If sports aren’t your thing, you might be able to find something else to do for fun. There are many ways to dance, play games against other people, and use your technical skills on a college campus. If you are the second type, look for a school that has a cool computer science club or robotics lab.
The truth is that this is only the tip of the iceberg. College gives you the chance to try new things, meet new people, learn new things, push yourself, get out of your comfort zone, and prepare for “adulthood” and a career.
Learn more about how to best prepare for your college life by consulting with college admissions specialists like the ones found here in AdmissionSight. At AdmissionSight, we have over 10 years of experience guiding students through the competitive admissions process to get accepted to the top universities in the world. Feel free to set up an appointment today to book your initial consultation.
