Get Involved in College

One of the biggest pieces of advice I have for college students is to get involved.  It's important to become involved as soon as you  possibly can. Obviously take the time to figure out what organizations are best for you, but try to do so within the first few weeks of school.  It's never too late to get involved, but the earlier you do so the more benefits you will receive.  Being involved has a significant amount of positives. 

Meet New People

When you join a new organization you are able to branch out and meet new people you might not have encountered.  The people you will meet will provide you with multiple perspectives on things, which broadens your horizons.  Additionally, college is all about networking. The more people you make connections with the better. This will come in handy later on in life when you're searching for a job.  Also, meeting new people can lead to new friendships. 

Resume Builder

This is definitely an obvious reason to become involved. Going to college is all about working to better yourself in order to prepare for your future career. Sure a degree is great to have, but you definitely will need more than a bachelors degree on your resume. Getting involved will provide you with experience and skills that will help boost your resume. 

Leadership Experience

Every organization has some type of leadership because some body or several people have to run it to a certain degree.  The earlier you get involved in an organization, the more likely you will be to seek out leadership opportunities. Additionally, larger organizations like greek life will send you away for leadership training opportunities.  I am a huge fan of leadership. I think it teaches you a lot about yourself and how to cooperate with others. There are is a large range of leadership positions from small ones that require more behind the scenes work to larger ones such as President that require lots of behind the scenes work in addition to dealing with others and being the face of the organization.  You can never have too much leadership experience.

New Experiences

Part of college is breaking out of your comfort zone. Joining a new organization will definitely bring you out of your comfort zone at some point. It could be through having a difficult conversation, learning to get along with someone who has an opposite personality as you, going some place new, doing philanthropic work or learning a new skill.  You also could meet a new friend who might take you somewhere fascinating you've never been. Joining an organization will definitely provide you with these new experiences.

Budgeting Your Time Wisely
When you add an additional meeting or activity to your daily schedule your free time decreases. One of the great things about being involved is that it teaches you how to budget your time in order to balance the organizations your involved with, eating, studying, going to class, working out, and socializing.  Time management is a skill that will help you throughout the rest of life, so the earlier you can start mastering it the better.


During college I got pretty involved. My freshman year I played varsity field hockey and was an active member of Colleges Against Cancer. From sophomore through senior year of college I was involved with coaching field hockey, a founding member of my sorority, and a member of an honors society for education majors. I held numerous leadership positions during those four years and through my involvement I met friends I will have for a lifetime, attended four leadership conferences, countless hours of leadership training, travelled to three different states, learned how to have difficult conversation, gained knowledge on how to be an effective leader, had no choice but to be good with my time management skills, and created many memories.

As you head off to school this semester, think about getting involved!
If you're returning back to college, then I'd love to hear what your favorite part about being involved is.

XOXO