Societies can change your life

[dropcap]E[/dropcap]ven if you didn’t think about joining any societies at Warwick, at least consider it; you have little to lose and so, so much to gain. From finding friends with similar interests and having fun, to developing useful skills and having a CV that doesn’t say “all I did was study in my room”, joining a society is something that can make your university life truly excellent.

Employers constantly stress that they care more about well-rounded applicants than those with marginally higher marks, and blowing off some steam is often a requirement to doing well anyway. But let’s say you want to join a society – most students do. How should you navigate through the 250+ Warwick societies to find the one(s) you’ll truly enjoy and benefit
from? For starters, head to the SU website and take a look through what there is! Sometimes, all it takes is finding out that your specialty or interest is already shared by many others – be it Harry Potter, poker, juggling, or public policy.

Soon, you’ll look forward to that next talk, social, or meeting – and that’s when you know you’ve found the right one.

Go to the Societies’ Fair in week1, and look around – everyone there will be explaining what they do, and why you should join. Listen to what they say, take their flyers, then go home and think about it – and even if some remain ‘maybes’, join them, and go to their taster sessions/socials. Soon, you’ll look forward to that next talk, social, or meeting – and that’s when you know you’ve found the right one. For me, that society was Debating. A shy, foreign student, I used to turn all red and shaky when I had to present in front of class, but soon couldn’t wait until I next gave a speech.

Unlike my initial expectations, it wasn’t just politics nerds – mathematicians and literature geeks were everywhere, the president studied MORSE, and everyone was really fun. On topof that, I got to travel to compete, paying next to nothing and getting free accommodation and pizza. I also got to learn about all sorts of things whilst having fun, some of which, helped me achieve good marks in my essays and exams – it’s a good deal. But that wasn’t really what made me stay – it was the people that did. At the end of the day, what makes the biggest difference is whether the people you’ll be spending several hours with makeit more or less fun. In my case, they really made every good thing greater.

So, go and find your own debating society. Read descriptions online, visit Socs Fair, and go to taster sessions. It can genuinely change your life.

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Photo: flickr/gsreynolds