oExtracurriculars
“Be intentional with your activities. Think about why you want to participate and make sure that it’s not because of any external or internal expectations that you don’t wish to adhere to. For example, I felt that as a black engineer I should be in NSBE. It was an unnecessary internal expectation.
Your time is valuable. Participate in activities that benefit you, by say providing you with a skill. I did publicity for SBSE, built a website for the Black House, but didn’t gain much. Don’t do tedious things that just take up your time. With SBSE I decided I’d either become meaningfully involved by assuming more responsibility or quit.
Make classes the priority. That’s not in bold, but classes should not fall below number two on your priority list when it comes to things you do at Stanford. Sometimes you ask people what they’re doing and they respond with student groups x, y, and z. They have to keep in mind that they also have classes.
You don’t have to be involved in a million activities.” Phil
“You don’t need to join any student groups to have friends. Just go to dorm events.” Tony
“I came in freshman year completely worn out from high school clubs. I had participated in a lot of them with the goal of getting into top colleges in the back of my mind. I wanted the freedom to not participate. I wanted to focus on my academic and social life and so didn’t join any clubs initially. I realized later that I had lacked information. College clubs are very different from those in high school. In college, clubs are actually a great way to be social. I participated in club ultimate frisbee this past fall. We had so many parties together.” Yaya
“It’s really easy to focus on academics and ignore extracurriculars. I should’ve gotten active in extracurriculars as soon as I got here. Stanford clubs have awesome, real impact." Mark
"Know that clubs are open to beginners. Try things and try them soon. Frosh year is a great time. FYI, it’s easier to join clubs at the beginning of the year rather than the middle." Mark
"Extracurriculars gave me an excuse to meet influential people. I would say, ‘Hi I would love for you to speak at a conference for Stanford Students in Biodesign and Biopharmaceuticals. Let’s meet to talk about it.’ If you’re affiliated with a Stanford club, people take you seriously.” Mark
“You gain a lot of organizational skills in clubs. You learn how to run a meeting. How to get people to do as you wish. How to work on a team. I have friends who don’t know how to do those things because they’re focused on GPAs. Those are valuable skills that are under-emphasized; skills that’ll help in the workplace. Michael Tubbs mentioned that he learned how to perform as City Council-member, how to write an agenda, how to ensure that people do as they say they will, while at Stanford.” Karl
“Tutoring helps you understand how people learn. For those who wish to become professors, it's a great way to see if you actually enjoy teaching.
Volunteer tutoring in some areas allows you to witness discrepancies in education prevalent in society.” OT
“I would recommend involvement that gives you a broader, fuller perspective of Stanford. School president. Serve as a student representative on the Advisory Panel on Investment Responsibility & Licensing.” Yaya
“Your junior year, you may want to look around and think about what opportunities you may not have noticed yet.” Jordan
Specific Stanford Clubs
“Mayfield Fellows Program – form great bonds with the other fellows.
ASSU – learn about people and social dynamics.
Frosh council – best thing I did frosh year. Frosh council doesn’t do substantive things, but it allowed me to build a great social network. I got to meet the 2 representatives of every other frosh dorm. It was also a stepping stone for later involvement with ASSU.
Camp Kessem – unique atmosphere. Brings gratuity to the forefront. People really care about other people. They keep it real. Kessem get togethers during the year allow me to step away from Stanford.” Jordan
“Be intentional with your activities. Think about why you want to participate and make sure that it’s not because of any external or internal expectations that you don’t wish to adhere to. For example, I felt that as a black engineer I should be in NSBE. It was an unnecessary internal expectation.
Your time is valuable. Participate in activities that benefit you, by say providing you with a skill. I did publicity for SBSE, built a website for the Black House, but didn’t gain much. Don’t do tedious things that just take up your time. With SBSE I decided I’d either become meaningfully involved by assuming more responsibility or quit.
Make classes the priority. That’s not in bold, but classes should not fall below number two on your priority list when it comes to things you do at Stanford. Sometimes you ask people what they’re doing and they respond with student groups x, y, and z. They have to keep in mind that they also have classes.
You don’t have to be involved in a million activities.” Phil
“You don’t need to join any student groups to have friends. Just go to dorm events.” Tony
“I came in freshman year completely worn out from high school clubs. I had participated in a lot of them with the goal of getting into top colleges in the back of my mind. I wanted the freedom to not participate. I wanted to focus on my academic and social life and so didn’t join any clubs initially. I realized later that I had lacked information. College clubs are very different from those in high school. In college, clubs are actually a great way to be social. I participated in club ultimate frisbee this past fall. We had so many parties together.” Yaya
“It’s really easy to focus on academics and ignore extracurriculars. I should’ve gotten active in extracurriculars as soon as I got here. Stanford clubs have awesome, real impact." Mark
"Know that clubs are open to beginners. Try things and try them soon. Frosh year is a great time. FYI, it’s easier to join clubs at the beginning of the year rather than the middle." Mark
"Extracurriculars gave me an excuse to meet influential people. I would say, ‘Hi I would love for you to speak at a conference for Stanford Students in Biodesign and Biopharmaceuticals. Let’s meet to talk about it.’ If you’re affiliated with a Stanford club, people take you seriously.” Mark
“You gain a lot of organizational skills in clubs. You learn how to run a meeting. How to get people to do as you wish. How to work on a team. I have friends who don’t know how to do those things because they’re focused on GPAs. Those are valuable skills that are under-emphasized; skills that’ll help in the workplace. Michael Tubbs mentioned that he learned how to perform as City Council-member, how to write an agenda, how to ensure that people do as they say they will, while at Stanford.” Karl
“Tutoring helps you understand how people learn. For those who wish to become professors, it's a great way to see if you actually enjoy teaching.
Volunteer tutoring in some areas allows you to witness discrepancies in education prevalent in society.” OT
“I would recommend involvement that gives you a broader, fuller perspective of Stanford. School president. Serve as a student representative on the Advisory Panel on Investment Responsibility & Licensing.” Yaya
“Your junior year, you may want to look around and think about what opportunities you may not have noticed yet.” Jordan
Specific Stanford Clubs
“Mayfield Fellows Program – form great bonds with the other fellows.
ASSU – learn about people and social dynamics.
Frosh council – best thing I did frosh year. Frosh council doesn’t do substantive things, but it allowed me to build a great social network. I got to meet the 2 representatives of every other frosh dorm. It was also a stepping stone for later involvement with ASSU.
Camp Kessem – unique atmosphere. Brings gratuity to the forefront. People really care about other people. They keep it real. Kessem get togethers during the year allow me to step away from Stanford.” Jordan