To all Brandeis students, incoming and returning, we encourage you to do something new as the fall semester descends upon us. A feat that may seem terrifying but assuringly well worth it in the future. College is meant to be a time where we can explore our passions—and find new ones—surrounded by like-minded people our age. So, we at The Brandeis Hoot encourage you to get out there and enjoy every little bit of what Brandeis has to offer. Be up for anything. Incoming first-years, you’ll be exposed to your classmates in your first week at orientation. Those icebreaker games will feel like torture in the moment but will become some of the funniest moments to look back on. And one day you will see your OL in the Stein at 2 a.m. and you will laugh and think, “Wow that’s the person who led ships and sailors slumped over that booth in the corner.” You never know who you will meet, and you might just end up living with them for the next four years. So enjoy it, savor every second because you will meet your people. Even if you don’t find your people right away, don’t worry: they will find you in their own time.
If you’re up for it—and even if you’re not—join a few student organizations, attend a few meetings and see what you like. Joining a new group of people who you may not know much about is scary. But trying out a new club for one or two meetings could provide you with some of the best experiences and friends you’ll ever have at Brandeis. At worst, you spent an hour trying something that you ended up not liking. At best, you’ve just discovered a wonderful group of people and a meeting you look forward to from the moment you leave it.
One of the greatest things about Brandeis is the variety of extracurricular activities it offers for students to pursue. The university has so many unique clubs that are always looking for members. Brandeis has service organizations that do good for the community like Brandeis 6Talk, professional organizations like the Pre-Health Society, and clubs with incredible acronyms like the Brandeis Initiative for Technology, Machines, Apps and Programming (BITMAP). There are also countless performance clubs, cultural clubs and activist groups.
These groups are an integral part of Brandeis’ DNA. They add a sense of community, a feeling of belonging and an incredible way to connect with your peers in a way that a classroom simply can’t supply.
There are many other groups on campus that students can connect with too; in fact, there are more than 200 of them, and nearly all of them will have a spot at the involvement fair on August 28th. We’ll be there too, and we’d love it if you could check our booth out. If you’re reading this, The Brandeis Hoot is your community newspaper. We’re a small team of undergraduate students who are passionate about writing, journalism and Brandeis.
We may be biased regarding our own club, but we’d love to have you at The Hoot. We’ve got a wonderful group of people with diverse interests who are passionate about writing here. Every member of The Hoot, from the Editors-in-Chief to our greenest staff writers, has had the chance to contribute immense value to the Brandeis community through distinct writing and honest reporting. We welcome you to join our Hoot family, and we look forward to seeing you at the involvement fair later this month. Even if you don’t join us, you can pick up a copy and read about what’s going on on campus!
If you decide to take your talents elsewhere, that’s fine with us. We want every Brandeis student to find their calling within the university. Here’s to the start of a new semester, we can’t wait for what’s in store.
