Top Student Orgs to Join at the University of Denver

How involved are you at your school? How involved would you like to be? Something that characterizes University of Denver students is our involvement in student organizations. Are you a Pioneer looking to get involved? There are over 100 student orgs on campus to choose from – here are my picks for the top 5 student orgs you’ll want to join at DU!

Broomball Open Play Night drew DU students from all over campus to Joy Burns Arena for a friendly match. Image via DU Club & IM Sports Facebook page.

5. Intramural Sports

Do you love playing sports? Muster floormates, friends and classmates together onto a team in fun-spirited competition against other DU students. For a small fee (if you split it 5-ways), you and your friends can DU it like the pros in sports from dodgeball to volleyball, from broomball (which I highly recommend, by the way) to ultimate frisbee. Nothing bonds people together like garnering bruises together! Sign-ups are every quarter via imleagues.com.

4. DUPB

The DU Programming Board is responsible for putting on a bunch of the free events available to DU students, which include showing the free Thursday films in Sturm, offering Late Night trivia and open mic nights, throwing concerts and celebrating DU traditions like Homecoming, Winter Carnival and May Days. If event-planning and programming is something that you love to do, DUPB is a great way to get involved and engage the entire student body.

3. Alpine Club

A lot of people come to Denver for its proximity to the mountains and thus, skiing, snowboarding, hiking, rock climbing, camping and more. With so many outdoorsy folk at DU, it’s no wonder that the Alpine Club is DU’s single largest student org on campus. University funding and a small membership fee subsidizes the cost of adventures like ski trips, hiking trips and ice climbing. In addition, the membership fee gets you discounts with sponsors and lets you borrow gear for trips. Whether you’re a beginner looking to try something new or a pro skier looking to hit the mountains as much as possible this year, Alpine Club gives everyone the chance to explore the outdoors safely and cheaply.

Your school newspaper is written by students for students. Is a part-time career in student journalism for you? Image via Flickr user lichfieldlive.

2. Student Journalism

Like to write? Want to earn some money? The Clarion is DU’s official student-run newspaper, “The Voice of the Pioneers” and is a great way to get published as a burgeoning journalist or to just have something fun and rewarding to do during the week. Journalism isn’t boring at all – as a writer, you attend events, review movies, meet tons of students and faculty and connect with the campus. The Clarion works on a strict schedule, publishing weekly on Tuesdays, so writing can get a bit stressful sometimes, but it’s worth the work to see your article in print. They publish 8 weeks out of DU’s 10-week quarter, with the last week given to DUCK, the DU Comedy Club, to publish a comedy newspaper. The Pioneer Business Review also is a student-run newspaper which focuses on business and international news. If you want to have your writing read by a possible readership of over 1300 and have fun while doing so, pick up a notepad and get going!

1. Student Alliances

Many DU student organizations deal with issues of diversity, social justice and identity. DU has Latino, Asian, Black and Vietnamese Student Alliances and a Queer-Straight Alliance, in addition to other student organizations dedicated to other communities as well. These student orgs focus on advocacy, raising cultural awareness, socializing and much more. There’s a general misconception that to be part of a Student Alliance you have to identify as a member of that group, but that’s definitely not the case. The word “alliance” means that allies to a community are embraced and welcomed. If you are interested in meeting new people and learning more about others, joining a student alliance is a great way to get involved.

These are just a few ways to get involved – there are over 100 student orgs to choose from, so don’t worry if you don’t know which org to choose. Attend several meetings and talk to some people. Attend events and ask yourself if planning that event would be something you would enjoy. Read newspapers and flyers to see what’s going on in the community. Eventually, you should be able to find at least one organization that you enjoy!

Do you have a student org you think should be on this list? How do you get involved on campus? Let me know in the comments below!