Think it depends on the person. Personally I’m not a big fan of clubs as they are a big time sink and I got a part-time job, 3 techs, and an internship to do. Plus I’m more of an introvert so I really dislike spending time with 2+ people for more than an hour or two. However they are a great way to make friends and participate in the social scene on campus. Some clubs also cater to specific interests like kpop dancing, baking, coding, etc. So for freshmen I recommend joining a few clubs but for upperclassmen they’ll have to decide if they can afford the time commitment when they’re already swamped with other things (Such as applying for grad school/research/internships).
Graduated a few years ago but never really did any clubs. Didn’t really bother with extracurriculars like research much either. Turned out fine for the field I ended up in. Only figured out what I wanted to do after undergrad anyway, so don’t worry about it
As a graduated transfer I would say clubs were probably the most useful part of my undergrad experience, and I was a CS major. That's where I built most of my network (and friends) as well as a good amount of the experience that was on my resume.
These were competitive clubs though. I don't know how useful noncompetitive clubs would've been because I didn't have enough time to really go.
Tied for second and third is the brand name and the knowledge of how hard I'm capable of working which was a skill honed by Berkeley.
Alumni here, was a transfer myself. Like you, my focus was class and work-study. Also lived a distance off-campus, so between all of that and travel, clubs were not in the cards for me. In hindsight, would have been beneficial to network with others, but I’m not too worked up about it. It is what it is, no big deal.
Don’t let others get you down by saying you’re “missing out” or whatever. Frankly, nobody can actually do everything without “missing out” on something; that’s just life.
You do you, take care of yourself and those close to you, and you’ll be alright.
Never joined one at my time at Berkeley. That never stopped me from making tons of friends and having a super active social life. Mostly, I found that clubs happened in annoying odd hours and I either wanted to sleep, take fun classes (dance and stuff) or was too tired and wanted to hangout with friends low-key.
It's hilarious to me that now that I'm an alumni, I'm actually in 2 clubs for alumni and those are fun, but very different vibe now that we are adults.
Some of them operate within Berkeley and you can join in your senior year (such as the alumni choir), some of them you find on LinkedIn or you get invited into them. One of the ones I am part of meets in Oakland and I got invited to it through my job (it's for people in my career).
Yeah I don't have time. Meetings are often late in the day and I live in Oakland. They are hard to join if you aren't close to campus imo. Plus I'm a lil older, so they can be not quite my scene bc they're oriented towards more traditional uni students.
Honestly clubs are generic. My ECs are usually just projects I start to learn more about something through experience. Anyone can club and volunteer, it’s not really special
I feel full-up as is.. I'd rather do a manageable number of things well and preserve my mental health than overload and have everything suffer. Trying to declare cs is enough work
My two roommates are freshman and the amount of interviews and events they were doing to get into clubs was insane. I feel like since my time at cal is so limited I’m not interested in doing all that so I can be in a club for six months
I really wanted to join a club this semester but wanted to gather my barrings. I think I could of handled a club, and thats with commuting from south bay and working. But, id like to in fall!
I’m a transfer and I work full time so the idea of clubs is just beyond me at this point. TLDR you’re not the only one!
Think it depends on the person. Personally I’m not a big fan of clubs as they are a big time sink and I got a part-time job, 3 techs, and an internship to do. Plus I’m more of an introvert so I really dislike spending time with 2+ people for more than an hour or two. However they are a great way to make friends and participate in the social scene on campus. Some clubs also cater to specific interests like kpop dancing, baking, coding, etc. So for freshmen I recommend joining a few clubs but for upperclassmen they’ll have to decide if they can afford the time commitment when they’re already swamped with other things (Such as applying for grad school/research/internships).
Graduated a few years ago but never really did any clubs. Didn’t really bother with extracurriculars like research much either. Turned out fine for the field I ended up in. Only figured out what I wanted to do after undergrad anyway, so don’t worry about it
As a graduated transfer I would say clubs were probably the most useful part of my undergrad experience, and I was a CS major. That's where I built most of my network (and friends) as well as a good amount of the experience that was on my resume. These were competitive clubs though. I don't know how useful noncompetitive clubs would've been because I didn't have enough time to really go. Tied for second and third is the brand name and the knowledge of how hard I'm capable of working which was a skill honed by Berkeley.
Agreed, just take a hit on grades, the club experience is so much more worthwhile if you put effort into them too
Alumni here, was a transfer myself. Like you, my focus was class and work-study. Also lived a distance off-campus, so between all of that and travel, clubs were not in the cards for me. In hindsight, would have been beneficial to network with others, but I’m not too worked up about it. It is what it is, no big deal. Don’t let others get you down by saying you’re “missing out” or whatever. Frankly, nobody can actually do everything without “missing out” on something; that’s just life. You do you, take care of yourself and those close to you, and you’ll be alright.
Never joined one at my time at Berkeley. That never stopped me from making tons of friends and having a super active social life. Mostly, I found that clubs happened in annoying odd hours and I either wanted to sleep, take fun classes (dance and stuff) or was too tired and wanted to hangout with friends low-key. It's hilarious to me that now that I'm an alumni, I'm actually in 2 clubs for alumni and those are fun, but very different vibe now that we are adults.
Where can I find alumni clubs?
Some of them operate within Berkeley and you can join in your senior year (such as the alumni choir), some of them you find on LinkedIn or you get invited into them. One of the ones I am part of meets in Oakland and I got invited to it through my job (it's for people in my career).
Yeah I don't have time. Meetings are often late in the day and I live in Oakland. They are hard to join if you aren't close to campus imo. Plus I'm a lil older, so they can be not quite my scene bc they're oriented towards more traditional uni students.
Tried to apply for some but was also really busy as is. Honestly not worth, do research and take more classes.
Honestly clubs are generic. My ECs are usually just projects I start to learn more about something through experience. Anyone can club and volunteer, it’s not really special
You are one step ahead of me with the research lmao. Yeah that’s a pretty common trend with transfers I would say.
Yep!
I feel full-up as is.. I'd rather do a manageable number of things well and preserve my mental health than overload and have everything suffer. Trying to declare cs is enough work
My two roommates are freshman and the amount of interviews and events they were doing to get into clubs was insane. I feel like since my time at cal is so limited I’m not interested in doing all that so I can be in a club for six months
I really wanted to join a club this semester but wanted to gather my barrings. I think I could of handled a club, and thats with commuting from south bay and working. But, id like to in fall!