Student organizations are a key part of college that can help students make friends and venture outside their comfort zone. But with more than 500 options, the perfect fit can be challenging to find.
Student organizations like club sports, cultural organizations and pre-professional groups all utilize an online platform called Engage, which helps students navigate organizations and get frequent updates on University-wide events. Before you head to the latest org fair or find yourself scrolling through Engage, this match-making guide will help you narrow down your selections of who to join.
These are the student organizations that we think will fit you most, based on your interests and passions:
Civic engagement, international affairs: GW International Affairs Society
Attending school in D.C. is already a hint about your potential interests in extracurriculars. If you were involved in Model United Nations and other debate-oriented activities in high school, GW is the perfect place to continue exploring that passion. The GW International Affairs Society keeps students up to date with events and recruitment information from international affairs organizations like GW Model UN, the George Washington University Program on International Education and The Globe – GW’s undergraduate international affairs journal. GW IAS even connects students to the Greater Washington Conference on International Affairs and the Washington Area Model United Nations Conference on the regional level. Organizations under the GW International Affairs Society invite speakers in the professional field, host debates or discussions about current events and hold social events that can help you meet other students.
Outdoor activity: Trails, DC Through A Lens, GW Club Climbing
Need a break from campus and the city bustle? Sign up for a hiking trip with GW Trails, which offers student-led day, overnight and weeklong trips throughout the school year. A photography day excursion with DC Through A Lens can also turn into a slightly more urban outdoor adventure. Practice your photography skills or try out a modeling career. These opportunities provide a more relaxed, small-group setting with space and time to get to know other students and their interests on a closer, more personal level.
Visual and performing arts: GW Jazz Orchestra, Tiny Dorm Concerts, GW POP!
If you like jazz music, check out the GW Jazz Orchestra for information about their latest performances and upcoming recruitment. GW Jazz usually hosts one public performance at Kogan Plaza and another at Jack Morton Auditorium each semester.
If you are into indie music and would like to support student artists, Tiny Dorm Concerts provide an intimate and relaxed setting for just that, modeled off of NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert series. The student organization originated in a small dorm room in Francis Scott Key Hall, but since rising in popularity it has graduated to more popular venues, like the Elliott City View Room, which can fit more than 100 people with ease.
If you are interested in fashion and thrifting, be sure to check out GW POP! on Instagram, which offers second-hand, affordable and fashionable clothing. Keep an eye out for their fashion shows and clothing swaps around campus.
Multicultural: District K, GW Tango
GW is a hub for various multicultural organizations, specifically, multicultural dance groups. Dance and learn about Korean culture with District K with no required experience in the past. If you’re a more competitive and committed dancer, District K holds auditions every semester to be featured in their dance covers, which can be found on their Instagram @gwu_districtk.
Another option is GW Tango, which has a low-stress, yet educational environment that strives to make Argentine tango accessible to the GW community. GW Tango usually hosts practice on Friday at 7:30 p.m. or Saturday at 2:30 p.m.
Advocacy, Community Garden: GW Red Cross, GW GroW Community Garden, Camp Kesem
From sustainable gardening, volunteering or community outreach, there is no shortage of volunteering on GW’s campus in the heart of the nation’s capital. Located on H Street across from Amsterdam Hall, fresh produce at the GroW Garden become food donations that GW community members bring to Miriam’s Kitchen, a nonprofit organization that supports the local unhoused community in the area. For more information about GroW Community Garden and its local partners, check out @thegrowgarden on Instagram. If you’re interested in on-campus blood drives, GW Red Cross is the place to try. Subscribe to the group’s newsletter for the latest information and volunteer opportunities. If you like working with children and are interested in enhancing your skills in community outreach, Camp Kesem can do just that! For more information, email [email protected].
