Navigating Student Clubs at Tufts
Welcome back to school, seasoned Jumbos, and a big welcome to our new ones! I hope everyone’s had a great start to the semester and is settling into their routine. With the excitement of the Club Fair behind us and GIMs (General Interest Meetings) in full swing, you might be feeling a bit overwhelmed by all the options. You might be finding it hard to navigate, inundated by emails from several e-list newsletters and a lot of information. Don’t worry—I’m here to guide you through the process and help you figure out which clubs are the best fit for you! Here are some ways I think you can decide and be more active in campus life at Tufts!
Advice #1 – Be Practical
This might sound like a basic one, but I think it’s the most important one especially for first year/ transfer students who have just got to Tufts and sophomores who are looking to be more involved on campus. Don’t overcommit yourself because clubs and organizations in college have more of a serious commitment and might be different from what you have done in high school. These clubs often have weekly meetings, events, etc. which take up a decent amount of your time and it is always better to choose 2-3 clubs that you can be actively involved, get to know the executive board members of the clubs you are in and maybe later even lead the club. Balancing and prioritizing your academics with your extracurricular activities is important because at the end of the day school is more important.
Advice #2 – Figure out your options and trim down the list
This is the second step once you have attended all the GIMs of all the different clubs and maybe an event or two if they have hosted some already. There are broadly 10 categories that the 350 Student Clubs and Organizations at Tufts fall into namely, arts and performances, SMFA Fenway campus organizations, publications and media, pre-professional and academic, student government, recreation/athletics, culture and identity, fraternity and sorority life, religious and philosophical, and advocacy. My advice would be to join an organization in 2-3 of these areas because you'll get a balanced experience, explore diverse interests, and make connections across campus and be able to interact with individuals from different class years and interests. Here’s my story on why I recommend this….
180 Degrees Consulting Tufts is my academic and pre-professional club on campus and I have had so many opportunities to grow through this club, whether it is interacting with alumni and professors, or even doing research on a completely new industry for a project, I have continued to learn but most importantly create a tangible social impact and learn about consulting as an industry. Joining this club has offered me a great way to learn outside a classroom from people, non-profits and startups from all over the world and explore my career choices. After being a student consultant for three semesters, I have also become a project lead or team leader and I am now on the executive board as the Director of Business Development, so I find the clients we work with every semester. There are so many leadership opportunities through this organization once you are a part of it!
I joined Tufts Association of South Asians to be closer to my roots and to find a community that felt like home since I am South Asian and international. I have found great people through this organization who are now friends, and we celebrate all important festivals together, but being on the e-board of this organization, we also plan them together. This is a great way to meet people socially from the South Asian community, but we also have events with other Asian clubs so you can meet people from those clubs as well. Being on the e-board of a culture club like this truly brings you closer to people who are like-minded, motivated people and makes campus feel a lot more like home.
Having an active social life in college is super important and getting involved in clubs is a great way to do that! It’s crucial to find something that you are passionate about and stay engaged with it through your time at Tufts and there are so many opportunities for that—if you can’t find a club that interests you, you could always start your very own unique club after talking with the Tufts Community Union. Good luck exploring the many opportunities that come your way!