Head's Up!!

Networking 301

Making Campus groups work for you

“Getting involved with student clubs and groups is a good way to meet people and make connections at your new school.”

-- First Generation PSU student

There are opportunities to “get involved” at the university, but as a transfer student, you need to think about what kinds of “involvement” are going to help you realize your goals – both while you’re at PSU and after you graduate. Whether it makes more sense to get involved in a social club or a discipline-specific professional society may depend upon whether the your goal is to have an active social life while at college, or to network with future colleagues and potential employers as a step towards employment. This does not have to be an “either / or” choice: it is possible to realize both goals but it takes some planning.

If you are interested in networking with other students who have similar interests, here are some tips:

1. talk to other students who share your interest or major

2. if your major department has a student group, join it. Ask the department advisor or office manager whether your major has a student club and, if so, who is the faculty advisor?

3. find out if there is a PSU student group organized around your interest (e.g. disk golf), and if so, join it. Check with the Student Activities & Leadership Programs (SALP) - SMSU 119 or look up your interest on the SALP website < http://web.pdx.edu/~salp/>.

Make a point of talking with the club’s faculty advisor prior to the first meeting you plan to attend. That way the advisor will make sure you get introduced to other group members

3. participate in group activities. Once you’ve shown up at a couple of meetings, don’t stop there. If there is a group activity, try to make sure you are part of it – particularly in the early stages of connecting to a group. Having fun together and sharing common experiences are both ways to developing deeper relationships with others in groups.

4. take responsibility. Groups are always looking for people to volunteer to lead a committee, organize an activity, or hold office in the club or group. A good strategy is to first join a group and participate in several different group activities before considering volunteering or agreeing to take on a leadership role. Once you have decide that this is a group that you enjoy and are interested in being part of, then, by taking on more responsibility within the group, you can build even stronger connections to the group