Greek life

Greek life carries a certain stigma with it, yes — but skeptics, don’t count it out just yet. If you aren’t part of or planning to be part of any other groups, Greek life can be a great way to get involved in a group at school.

“It is a wonderful way to meet people,” says Kris Bridges, a member of the National Panhellenic Conference Executive Committee and chairman of the College Panhellenics. “It makes the college campus seem a lot smaller to make those connections and get to know people.”

The thing to keep in mind is that the experience differs greatly depending on the school. Greek life certainly may not be for everyone. If you detest being surrounded by large groups of girls on a regular basis, for example, joining a sorority might not be your first choice.

Here are a few general recruitment tips for incoming freshmen from thesororitylife.com, a Web site powered by the NPC, though these tips also apply to guys and fraternities as well:

• Be yourself.

• Have genuine and honest conversations.

• Spend time really getting to know the members.

• Look for the group where you feel the most comfortable.

• Keep an open mind.

Intramural sports

If you love sports, but you are not exactly a Division I (or II or III) athlete, that’s no reason to give up your athletic lifestyle.

Intramural sports programs offer a terrific way to meet people, stay in shape and have a great time all in one.

And even though fun is the first reason to join an intramural sports team, being involved in one also can provide broader benefits, even helping to improve your overall satisfaction with college life.

According to “The Value of Recreational Sports in Higher Education,” a study conducted by the National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association (NIRSA), involvement in recreational sports provides a wide range of benefits for students, such as:

• Improving emotional well-being

• Reducing stress

• Improving happiness

• Improving self-confidence

• Building character

• Aiding in time management skills

• Improving leadership skills

… just to name a few.

Student government

For aspiring politicos, student government is a logical choice, and chances are there’s one at your school.

Butch Oxendine, executive director of the American Student Government Association, says his organization tracks about 5,000 institutions — about 4,500 of which have student governments.

College students often complain that student government has little ability to change the school, but Oxendine says the key is to have realistic goals.

“Can they build a new parking garage tomorrow? No,” he said. But the government might be able to make smaller changes like adding a copying machine or extending library hours, he says.

If you want to get a taste of student government before running for office, you may be able to fill an unelected position — as a committee or cabinet member, for example.

Time commitments vary widely, Oxendine said. A student government president at a large school may spend 40 hours per week on the position and may receive monetary compensation. Meanwhile, senators can put in just a few hours a week.

Clubs, special interest groups

If Greek life is not for you, you don’t like sports or have no big dreams for your student political career, don’t worry — you have not exhausted all your options.

Special interest groups and student clubs are a great way to meet people that share your interests that you might not otherwise run into.

“The best thing to do is to go to a student org fair at the beginning of the year,” says Tatum Enslin, a junior at the George Washington University and student employee for undergraduate admissions.

There you can find anything from chess club to various religious groups to ballroom dancing societies–the bigger the school, the more groups they are likely to have.

“The first week or two of freshman year just go to the first meeting of any and all clubs that you might be interested in, then choose the ones you really want once you experience it all,” Enslin says.

And if somehow you are the only one brilliant enough to realize that what your school really needs is a cheese-tasting club or a bird-watching group, then you can always take control and start your own.

— McClatchy Newspapers