Five Ways to Get Involved this Semester

Perhaps you’re a freshman who feels like getting out of the dorms to make some new friends. Maybe you’re a sophomore who maybe has an idea what you want to major in and want to explore it more outside of the classroom. Or maybe you’re a junior or a senior and you realize you have absolutely nothing on your resume and the only friends you have are your roommates and the cat who lurks around the back stairs. If you fit any of these identities, it sounds like you want to get involved.

Getting involved on a campus as big as UW-Madison is daunting but is the best way to make this place seem a little more cozy. A great thing about this huge university is the plethora of activities available to you if you choose. There is literally a club or organization for anything you might be interested in, and if there isn’t, you can make one. Think you don’t have time? Think you’re too busy with classes? No excuse! That annoying girl who sits in the front row of every lecture and asks questions every three minutes is involved in seven organizations and takes 18 credits and still breaks the curve. It turns out that students who are involved actually get better grades! So find something you’re interested in, and get out there. Here are some options for all of your involvement needs.

1. Join a sports team: UW Rec Sports is the place to consult is you want to get active in any way. They hold classes at the Serf and the Nat on anything from weightlifting to Zumba. There are intramural teams for frisbee, soccer, and more. We have tons of club teams including sports like water polo, rugby, cheerleading, and Eagle Claw Kung Fu (no joke).You can also just hit up the gym for some pick up basketball where people are always playing and looking for teammates.

2. Join an academic organization: If you’re still thinking of exploring majors, joining a club in your prospective area may help you out. It gives you a better perspective on what a career in that field actually entails. It will give you networking opportunities for professionals in the field, help you get to know professors and give you the opportunity to meet other people with similar interests.

3. Volunteer: Check out the Morgridge Center for options. There are plenty. You can volunteer in any area that interests you, and you might find yourself having fun while giving back to your community. Volunteer service also looks great on a resume; it may just be the thing that sets you apart from other applicants when the job hunt comes around.

4. Go to Union events: The Union offers all sorts of activities for people to get out of their house and come together. Hit up Open Mic night on the terrace if you feel like making friends with questionable musicians. Go to Free Craft Friday to meet some fellow cost-savvy crafty kids. There are also tons of lectures, movies, performances and art displays to keep you interested and off of Facebook for the weekend.

Revelry Music and Arts Festival

5. Join Hoofers: If you didn’t know that Wisconsin was ranked in the 18th in the nation for outdoor clubs, you gotta get out of the house. Hoofers is UW’s stellar outdoor program offering activities like canoeing, kayaking, rock climbing, scuba diving, horseback riding, sailing, skiing and snowboarding. You’ll work up some adrenaline with other adventurous students and appreciate the beauty off campus.

No excuses left my friends. I’ve given you all you need to know, so get out there and just pick one. Or two. Or (you’re probably a person I’d hate if you did it because you’re a conniving overachieving teacher’s pet) three. You can even search student organizations by name or keyword in the Wisconsin Involvement Network (WIN) through the Center for Leadership and Involvement in the Red Gym. (Confession: I work here, so this is self-marketing.) You can create an interest profile and have a record of all your involvement if you want to pursue the Leadership Certificate, which basically means you’re a successful badass who gets to wear gold cords when you graduate.

In conclusion, you’re going to learn much more by getting involved out of the classroom than you will in it. That’s what makes college special: thousands of other active and passionate students who want to be your friend. So in the words of my dear father, and probably somehow else because he rarely comes up with anything original, don’t let school get in the way of your education.