7 Benefits of Joining a Club in College
- Joining an on-campus club can provide personal, social, and professional benefits.
- Clubs can help you find community, make friends, network, and have fun.
- In most cases, you should join 1-2 on-campus clubs and make real commitments.
Joining an on-campus club or organization often comes with an array of personal and professional benefits for college students. Many students participate in extracurricular activities.
Joining or starting a club can provide you with a sense of community, soft skills, networking opportunities, and just a good way to spend your free time. Discover the benefits of joining clubs in college and the different types of clubs you can participate in.
What Types of College Clubs and Organizations Are There?
A good way to get a sense of the breadth and depth of on-campus clubs and organizations at your school is to attend the club fair. Most schools offer this event during the first week of classes, usually at a central campus location like the student union or the quad.
Each group usually sets up a booth or table, and you can stop by and talk to leadership to ask about what the group does and how often they meet.
There are many different types of clubs and organizations, including club sports, academic groups, and fraternities and sororities. No matter what you’re interested in, you should be able to find some sort of fit at the club fair.
7 Reasons to Join a Club or Organization in College
There are personal, professional, and social reasons to participate in campus life. Below are seven benefits of joining a club or organization.
1. It Can Help Boost Your Resume
In “The Defining Decade,” author Meg Jay writes about identity capital — or the currency we use to pursue jobs and relationships.
When she was interviewing for jobs a few years after college, employers rarely asked her about her education. Instead, they asked her about her time working for Outward Bound, leading high school students on trips into the backcountry.
The lesson? Extracurriculars like clubs are a great way to make your resume pop. Most employers want to see you’re involved in campus life beyond your classes.
2. You’ll Get to Meet New People
Clubs and organizations offer you the opportunity to meet new people. While it’s easier to connect with the people who live around you in your dorm, it can be tough to strike up conversations with other students in your classes.
If you join a club, you already share an interest or passion with other members. This makes it easier to form a friendship and find new people to spend time with.
3. You Can Find or Build a Community
When you join a club or organization, you often join a community built around a shared interest or passion. For example, you all may love Ultimate Frisbee, or cup stacking, or business.
You will have practices, meetings, or other sessions where you gather together. You will have shared experiences. Especially if you are new to campus, joining a club or organization can provide you with an instant community and friend group.
4. You’ll Develop New Skills
By joining a club, you can develop both hard and soft skills. You’ll develop the hard skills that the club centers around — throwing a frisbee or salsa dancing, for example. You can also develop collaboration and communication skills, both of which many employers want to see in job candidates.
If you have the chance to eventually serve in a leadership position with the club, you can hone your leadership and managerial skills.
5. You’ll Get to Work With Diverse Groups of People
In many cases, clubs are made up of diverse groups of students who happen to share a common interest. You can meet different types of people through clubs and organizations, perhaps even a more diverse set of people than you encounter in your dorm or your classes.
6. You Can Build a Network
By joining a club or organization, you can gain access to a new network of people, which can benefit you both personally and professionally. In addition to making friends, you can meet people who will go on to work in a variety of industries.
You can call upon them for connections, job opportunities, and other networking benefits after you all graduate.
7. It’s Fun!
The main reason to join a club or organization? It’s fun! In an ideal world, college isn’t all about business. It’s a time to explore, meet people, and try new things. Clubs and organizations can provide you with those opportunities.
How Many Clubs and Organizations Should You Join in College?
In most cases, when joining an on-campus club or organization, you should prioritize depth over breadth. Don’t join seven clubs and never show up at any meetings.
Instead, join one or two clubs that truly interest you and that you can commit to over an extended period of time.
Furthermore, keep in mind that you still have to go to classes, do your homework, and keep up with your major. You don’t want to spread yourself too thin or overload yourself with clubs and organizations, leaving no time for your studies.