Hello everyone!
If you want to make the most out of your university experience, you should definitely try to get involved in different activities as much as you can. Luckily, Surrey offers many different activities!
SPORTS AND SOCIETIES
The university offers more than 160 sport clubs and societies, so for sure, you will be able to find something that interests you. At Fresher’s Fair, you can find the stands of many societies and you can talk to the current members to see if the commitment and the environment is the right fit for you! If you missed Fresher’s Fair don’t worry though, you can join a society or a team at any time during the year. Usually, societies have a commitment of 1 or 2 hours a week, while sports might require more commitment. Although, sports usually offer both social teams which require less training and do not play leagues as well as teams that train multiple times a week and play in the BUCS leagues. Sports also usually organise socials on a Wednesday night, which are fun nights to hang out with your team. Societies and sports also could interest you if you would like to take a leading position in the committee of the society, being the president, vice-president, treasures etc.
VOLUNTEER
If you are interested in volunteering the best way to find opportunities is to look on the website of SurreyVolunteering. Volunteering could be a great opportunity to meet up with people that have similar passions and make good actions towards the world. It is also great to enrich your CV!
https://www.surreyvolunteering.com/
JOB
Getting a job alongside your studies can help improve your CV and gain experience but also helps on the economical side. Unitemps can help you to find a job that meets your needs and any visa restriction. Moreover, many companies offer jobs for students in town. If you want to be highly connected with students and future students, I suggest trying and becoming part of the student ambassadors. It is an amazing opportunity to connect with new people and meet future students, while having a flexible job that does not interfere with your studies.
STUDENT UNION
If you are interested in representing the university, you might like to become a part of the student sabbatical officers or a part-time officer at the student union. “The Students’ Union is led by a team of 21 part-time and 5 full-time Officers who together organise events/campaigns, voice student opinion, and work to create the changes that you want to see at Surrey. Our elections for the Officer team are called Surrey Decides and are the biggest democratic event that we have at the University, with thousands of students voting for the Officer team that they believe can make the right impact.” (From the union website).
GGA
Global Graduate Award are extracurricular courses that you can take alongside your studies, and these can be in either Languages or Global Citizenship. I have taken a language course in my second and third year of university and I loved it. They offer 6 levels for each language, to give everyone, at any level, the possibility to improve.
https://study.surrey.ac.uk/extracurricular-study
COURSE REP
If you feel extremely passionate about your course, you might want to become a course rep. The three core responsibilities of course reps are Research student opinion, Represent students and Report back. You will be able to improve your course and connect with your course mates.
I hope this post has been useful,
Carola
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