You know it’s zero week when the Enormous Activities Fair is in full swing and students are walking around with bunches of flyers in their hands. The obvious thought on these Bruins’ minds: So many clubs, so little time.
Each year, UCLA hosts the EAF to give students an important first glance of student life at the university by providing them with information and access to more than 800 student groups and campus departments.
EAF, however, only happens once a year – and on the first week of fall quarter. It happens days before school starts, and is heavily emphasized as being for incoming students and those who’ll be living on campus.
But so far, that seems to set students up for failure. EAF disregards commuters and international students. And it encourages students to sign up for clubs without taking into consideration all the other commitments they’ll have made: namely things they’ll have happening: namely, classes and coursework. Juggling extracurricular activities and school in a fast-paced environment doesn’t come naturally to everyone, so some students are bound to drop a couple of balls.
UCLA needs to encourage student club involvement beyond zero week. More activities fairs should be created and spread out throughout the academic year. And with fairs later in the year, students will be more aware of club sign-ups and be able to schedule their time around it.
The mad rush to join UCLA clubs only seems to happen in the first couple of weeks of the school year. During the first couple weeks of school, students more thoroughly showcase academic and social life – but it never goes beyond that. Club involvement isn’t as emphasized throughout the rest of the academic year.
Moreover, EAF happens too early in the academic year to be effective in increasing student involvement. New students haven’t taken courses outside their comfort zones, so they are unable to form new interests. And, while clubs can be a great way to meet new people, the fair is sprung on some students too soon for it to be of much use.
Lindsey Lill, a third-year biology student, said in her first year she didn’t participate in many groups and activities until winter quarter.
“You don’t necessarily know what you want your first quarter,” Lill said, “There should be more activities fairs throughout the year, especially because when you’re a freshman or new transfer you need a quarter to get adjusted to campus.”
Additional club fairs throughout the year can cater to students, as well as help clubs recruit past the first week of fall quarter.
Pashmeen Kaur, a fourth year applied mathematics and economics student, said the Undergraduate Mathematics Student Association gets the most new members in fall, due to EAF. Kaur added, however, that having more such events would be beneficial for clubs seeking to recruit members throughout the year.
Students would be able to see there’s a community out there with the same interests as them by having multiple activities fairs. More fairs can introduce Bruins to new ideas while supplying others with more clubs associated with their interests. It would also emphasize that joining clubs via fairs is an important part of the college experience – beyond just a zero-week activity of searching for free swag.
Of course, there are reasons for keeping EAF earlier in the school year. Luke Apodaca, an EAF coordinator and member of the Cultural Affairs Commission, said the fair is early because of UCLA’s freshman welcome week.
“We want students to be exposed to the vibrant and diverse community laid out before them by attending UCLA as fast as possible,” he said.
However, “as fast as possible” isn’t always the most effective. Having the fair so early on can leave students missing out. Some might just be trickling into dorms right before classes start. And students living off campus might not be able to attend because of the long commute. Creating additional fairs allows for those students who may have missed out to experience club sign-ups.
And while EAF might seem daunting and too time-consuming to put together every quarter, it doesn’t have to be of that magnitude every quarter. The clubs that participate can vary throughout the year, depending on whether they’re looking to recruit.
Being a student at UCLA can be intimidating enough without the extracurriculars piled onto it. Encouraging students to become involved in clubs and groups through multiple fairs is the way to ensure not only clubs have members, but also that Bruins have clubs to take part in.
Or, at the very least, it ensures less students walk out of EAF with a stack of flyers and a lot of fear of missing out.