Get Out There

Sydney Morning Herald

Friday February 1, 2008

Rachel Olding, Nick Perry

University has so much more to offer than a degree, writes Rachel Olding.

It's a generational cliche: young people don't care about the world. They're materialistic, optimistic, self-involved, apolitical and untroubled by ideas. According to a 2006 study, Fearless And Flexible: Views Of Gen Y, even university students are neither "intellectuals nor contemplative".

Every wave of the adult population seems to lament the decline of younger generations but with so many avenues for involvement during your time at university you need not be just another of these supposedly comatose Gen Ys.

CLUBS AND SOCIETIES

Every university has a range of clubs and societies that encompass political, artistic, creative, dramatic, musical, sporting, religious, academic, cultural and recreational interests.

Orientation Week is a great time to join groups that take your fancy but most are open to new members throughout the year either via your university's website or by attending a club meeting. It's easy to join a club - you don't even have to be Vietnamese to join the University of Sydney's Vietnamese Students' Association. However, not all are free.

Jo Quinn, events and recreation co-ordinator for the University of Western Sydney's sports and leisure body, UWSConnect, believes participation in club activities helps you make the most of your time at university. "The time students remember at uni is the time they have with their friends and the activities they were involved in more so than time spent studying in the library," she says.

Clubs are a great opportunity to broaden your horizons, gain some valuable organisational and people skills, and indulge in whatever interests you may have.

At the University of Sydney, these interests are sure to be covered by the university's 230 clubs and societies: from the Sydney University Dramatic Society - the oldest continuous theatre company in Australia - to the Chocolate Society, the Linguistics Society, Party for Poverty, the Captain Planet Appreciation Society, Hillsong Campus, Hip Hop Club, Sydney Uni Bushwalkers, Inner Child Society and the Liberal and ALP clubs.

EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES

You don't need to be a member of clubs and societies to enjoy many events and activities on campus.

University offers a constant schedule of open lectures, parties, public debates, sports events and performances open to all students. University Games is one of the largest organised events and students can represent their universities in everything from swimming to ultimate frisbie and lawn bowls.

Alistair Cowie, director of student programs at the University of Sydney, says political involvement and awareness is very accessible, with a host of student-run events every week, including speeches by members of political parties and public issues forums in the pub. And political rallies are almost as common as lazy arts students and pub crawls.

"We believe it's important that students get involved beyond the classroom," Cowie says.

"You meet different sorts of people, you broaden your horizons and you can put into practice what you are learning in the classroom."

Quinn says the plethora of lunchtime events at the University of Western Sydney allows students "to sit back in a relaxed atmosphere, meet up with friends and enjoy entertainment or participate in activities".

Have a look at student noticeboards and the university website, keep an eye out for flyers and posters and, above all, have an open mind about being educated, activated and involved.

OUTSIDE UNIVERSITY

If campus life is not captivating, it's still easy to get involved. Hannah Ware, 21, admits to doing little more than signing a petition here and there on campus while completing her arts/law degree at the University of Sydney but she is somewhat of a politico-pro outside.

After getting involved in numerous public-speaking and charity events, she joined the team behind a youth-run charity in 2006 and founded her own public-speaking competition, Speak Up, for students to talk about social-justice issues. After hearing Maxine McKew was running for the seat of Bennelong last year, Ware says she was "excited by what she was trying to do so I just rang up the office and said I wanted to be involved".

She believes getting involved is the responsibility of all members of society.

Celebrity parade

You never know where university club can take you.

* Gai Waterhouse, horse trainer Former member of the University of NSW Sports Association - Equestrian.

* John Howard, former prime minister Passed through the University of Sydney's debating club.

* Jason King, Manly Sea Eagles Represented Macquarie University at Australian University Games.

* Mark Taylor, cricket Former member of the University of NSW Sports Association - Cricket.

* Adam Spencer, ABC radio presenter Passed through the University of Sydney's debating club.

* Grant Brits, world record holder for 4x200m freestyle relay Represented Macquarie University at Australian University Games.

* Gough Whitlam, former prime minister Passed through Sydney University Dramatic Society.

* Johnny Warren, football Former member of the University of NSW Sports Association - Soccer.

Ten tips for surviving first year

1 Freebies University art-show openings are a fantastic source of free wine. Turn up for the opening, grab a glass of red and support your fellow students at the same time.

2 Classes It is true that you don't need to attend every class in order to pass but your tutors will notice if you skip too many.

3 Presentations Be wary about the overuse of PowerPoint, particularly when it is substituted for actual research. You get more marks for substance than style.

4 Group work Don't boss people around. Telling people what they are doing is not getting people organised. Tutors can detect a group that hasn't worked together, or someone showing off, and mark everybody down for it. A happy group is a highly graded group.

5 Fashion Although you may be tempted, university isn't an opportunity to wear your trendiest new clothing constantly. Older students can pick first years a mile off because of this.

6 Tutors It pays to get on well with tutors. This doesn't mean sucking up because they're pretty tuned in to sensing that. Turning up on time, contributing and handing work in all bode well.

7 Lectures If you're going to talk all the way through a lecture, don't bother going. Your lecturer doesn't really care if you're not there but does care if you talk ceaselessly.

8 Library There are many benefits in these book-filled temples. Take some books to a work desk in a quiet area and have a nap. Oh, and use their treasuries to pass your exams and assessments.

9 Textbooks They can be damned expensive, especially considering some hardly ever get used. Try to tee up someone to buy them from second-hand and someone to sell them to next year.

10 Reputation Try not to earn a bad reputation in your faculty, say by hitting on everyone, getting embarrassingly drunk (regularly) or by being rude. One of the people around you could one day be your boss, or the person across from you in a job interview.

Nick Perry

© 2008 Sydney Morning Herald

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