The time you will spend in college will have one of the biggest influences on your life. Your time in the university will tell how you would do in the real world. Being by yourself and sticking with your books is not a horrible idea. In fact, that will help you get by. However, life is also about meeting people, building relationships, maintaining them, and also figuring out the extent of your abilities. You will not be able to do those if you choose to be a lone wolf in the university. College is not just about graduating, it is also about learning your capabilities as a young student while being a part of a unit.
Students have different reasons for not being active in college activities and organizations. Some find it a bit childish, and others don’t like having responsibilities that an organization brings. Lastly, some (working students) do have responsibilities outside the university to take care of.
There is nothing about these reasons. However, wouldn’t you want to experience the fun that is in college organizations? Don’t you want to have a cause to fight for? Don’t you want to go to different places and bond with your college family in your cheap but cozy student accommodation? Aren’t you even feeling a little FOMO? If you find this familiar, here are the following reasons why you should give organizations and clubs a chance:
Being Part of an Organization Will Give You a Purpose
If you are a student who has nothing going on right after classes, being part of a student organization will change that. Perhaps you like the free time on your hand to do your work requirements at a slow pace, but sooner or later, all the studying will consume you. You have got to do something aside from studying, or you will find yourself hating the subjects sooner.
Joining a student organization can be that needed break while giving you a new purpose. A new idea that your mind can focus on that would allow your brain a break from all the information you are trying to memorize. Or a cause that can transform you into an even better student.
For example, you chose to join the student librarian organization, and you were tasked to manage the library from time to time. The role will provide you with opportunities to learn new things, giving you a life outside the classroom.
When you get used to a new routine of being part of something, you would realize that you actually needed it. After all, belongingness is a part of the human’s hierarchy of needs.
You Will Make New Friends
Following the point about belongingness, being part of a student club means you will have org mates—friends. To be building friendships that will last a lifetime, perhaps, is the best part of the experience of college in general.
An important part of the article’s subject is also choosing your student organization. Your individualism will not change when you join a club, but you will be sharing the things that make you you with other people. So, it is important to choose wisely. Are you going to join the school paper? Are you going with the acapella guys? Or are you going to be part of a social injustice warrior club? Whatever your choice will be, make sure that it will be about something that you can be passionate about. That is important if you were to make long-lasting friends.
It Will Prepare You for the Real World
It is not wrong to perform alone, but the point is you cannot do everything together. Once you graduate, you will realize that you have to work with colleagues, managers, and executives. You would even have to deal with people with different views and opinions, and how will you do that if you refuse to be part of something bigger than yourself in college?
Being a team player is an asset. However, did you know that collaborative skills are now becoming more and more popular with employers too? Yes, being skilled and talented is amazing, but interpersonal skills simply cannot be taught.
By being part of an organization while you are still a student will prepare you by setting your expectations. You will realize that people would not function and react the way you are expecting and that it is a two-person responsibility to meet halfway. That is just one of the many things that you will figure out and learn when you choose to be part of a unit.
Being a student seems hard because it is. So, why not find a tribe that you think and feel you will belong with to make your school works easier too? After all, two is always better than one.