The new school year means a fresh start for everyone on campus. Whether that means joining a Greek organization or trying out for a club sport, here are the five easy ways to get involved on campus this year.
- Student Organizations
Joining a student organization is a great way to get involved on campus and with over a hundred established groups, it is certainly one of the most popular options.
Mercer has an expansive inventory of student organizations with new groups added every year ranging from academic clubs like the Latin Club to student organizations like Mercer’s International Affairs Organization. Mercer’s website has cataloged all of the official student organizations with contact emails so you can inquire about meeting times, club activities and more.
If you would rather meet with clubs and organizations in person, the annual Bear Fair is a great way to meet face-to-face with representatives from the organization. The event is held in the University Center before the start of the fall semester every year.
- Club and Recreation Sports
If you’re looking to be more active this year, there are plenty of groups on campus dedicated to the same goal.
The University Center will continue its summer fitness schedule through Aug 25. The classes offered include yoga, body sculpt, low impact and more.
If you’re looking for something a little more involved, both intramural and club sports will be picking back up at the start of the semester. Club sports usually require tryouts but to join an intramural sport, all you have to do is sign up online. Representatives from club sports will also be available to answer questions at the Bear Fair.
- Greek Life
If a new school year means being more social, joining Greek Life is a great way to meet people on campus. According to the University’s annual review of Greek Life, a little over 20 percent of campus was involved with Greek Life last fall. More information about individual organizations is available online.
Mercer has a total of eight sororities and 12 fraternities. However, the process for joining one of these organizations will be different this year. Mercer will now be practicing delayed recruitment. There are significant differences between the old recruitment process and delayed recruitment.
Instead of recruiting the first week of the fall semester, recruitment will start mid-September. The delay recruitment process comes with new contact rules for both current Greek students as well as any interested students. More details on delayed recruitment and the contact rules are available on Mercer’s Greek Life website.
- On-Campus Jobs
There are several opportunities to be involved on campus and get paid while doing it.
The University’s Office of Student Employment has an online listing of jobs available. Some of the more recent listings include positions in the library, Bursar’s office, and Learning Technology Center. The University’s Admissions team, BearForce and Quadworks also hire at the beginning of each year.
There will also be representatives from those offices available at Bear Fair to answer any questions you may have about the positions. So whether you’re looking for a heavy workload or just occasional hours, there are plenty of jobs available on campus.
- Volunteer Opportunities
If you’re interested in service, there are opportunities to make a difference on and off campus.
A great way to learn about Mercer’s service projects is through the Center for Community Engagement’s Volunteer Fair at Cruz Plaza on Sept 29. The Fair will provide more information about volunteer opportunities throughout the year like Be a Good NeighBEAR and Service Saturdays.
The student organization, MerServe, will also pick back up in the fall with new volunteer opportunities. They will be available at Bear Fair to provide more information about their service projects.
Take advantage of this new school year. Whether that means joining a new club or trying to meet new people, don’t let this year pass by without finding a way to get involved on campus.
