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Discovering new clubs is made easy thanks to events like Calapalooza and the CalLink website, and with over 1,500 clubs to choose from, there is no shortage of options and possibilities. And, getting involved in clubs is easier than you think. Transfer student Nancy Duong explained that getting involved “turned out to be easier than I had thought: while I still had to put myself out there, I found out that there will always be groups that welcome new people.”
The Blue Heart Initiative makes finding these kinds of clubs a breeze! The initiative is a feature on CalLink identifying registered student organizations that are classified as “open membership,” meaning all clubs with a blue heart [💙] next to their name on Callink do not have formal application processes.
Nancy discovered some of these clubs for herself—here is her advice for making the club process even easier!
Start Where You Are
I began with familiar ground, my own college department. After dropping by the Berkeley English Department’s website, I was surprised to find two undergraduate student organizations dedicated solely to the major. Knowing there was not one, but two student orgs that would welcome me (and maybe help me navigate English at Berkeley), was comforting.
Even better, all their social media contacts were on display, so I could keep up with each organization’s events and meeting times. These clubs also connected me to related opportunities, helping to keep me in the loop of what was going on at Berkeley in general.
English merch laid out at a department welcome event. Photo by Maya Jimenez, English Undergraduate Association.
Reach Out
I also found it useful to just reach out to people, even if I was intimidated. I was really drawn to BARE Magazine, which covers fashion, arts, and lifestyle. On their website, I came face-to-face with a glossy homepage and tons of articles from really fresh and interesting perspectives. They weren’t hosting any info sessions that I could find, but after emailing the editor-in-chief, I was relieved to receive a warm reply explaining they were looking to hold some in the next coming weeks, and encouraging me to attend. Looking back, I feel a bit silly for being surprised at this: obviously clubs would want to recruit new people!
SASC event from 2019
Keep Your Options Open
Sometimes you won’t even have to search, and you’ll stumble upon something new or interesting completely by accident — so keep your eyes peeled!
One organization I discovered accidentally rather than by actively seeking it out was the Southeast Asian Student Coalition Summer Institute (SASC). I found out about an application for coordinator positions through a post about SASC’s Summer Institute on the club’s Instagram page. A lot of clubs share important information on events and applications on their respective social media pages, so make sure to follow them to keep in touch. Despite my lack of experience, I figured it couldn’t hurt to apply and try to get involved, especially in something that centers community so much. The Summer Institute specifically works with Southeast Asian high school students, giving me a way to both build community on campus and make connections outside of it.
Build Community
There’s so much going on here at Berkeley that you’ll always find your place amongst the hundreds of clubs and organizations waiting for you. You can delve deeper into something you already love or experiment with something new. What are the different student spaces and communities you’ve settled into, and how did you come across them?
Revised and updated in 2024 by Melissa Mora-Gonzalez, Class of 2025, majoring in English and minoring in conservation and resource studies. This blog post was first published in 2020 by Nancy Duong, a Vietnamese-American first-generation transfer student who majored in English.
Want More?
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