Did you know that many college students are looking for much more than just leaving school with but a degree alone? I know it sounds a little crazy, but today's crop of college students are not really content with obtaining a learning experience that is simply geared toward either academic or professional goals. Something on the level of personal accomplishment is also necessary. Although the school system provides the apparatus in the form of career centers that focus on both professional and academic development, students are typically left on her own if they wish to infuse a great deal of personalization during their college years.
 

Service Above Self

One of the best ways for students at any college or university to find a way to give back is participating in a service-based organization. Many college sororities and fraternities provide these opportunities and in actuality have sometimes adopted a specific cause or non-profit organization that they sponsor. There are many students attending college today who have developed a feeling that they would like to get involved in something that is greater than themselves. Actually, fraternities and sororities have been the vehicle for getting back to the community for quite some time. Some of these groups are strictly service-oriented while others incorporate aspects of cultural, social, academic and professional concepts.

Organizations Help Channel Efforts

Yes, I know, it is an old cliché but, "Why go about re-inventing the wheel?" Sororities and fraternities are great places for helping students fulfill their desire to give back to the community since they can help channel individual efforts into one large group activity that can have a great deal of impact. Sometimes, that drive to volunteer time is deeply rooted in personal choice. For example, students may be the southern daughter of a breast cancer survivor. This drives the passion to help an organization such as the American Cancer Society in its search for a cure. Some service-oriented college organizations are involved in the annual Relay For Life that is designed as a fundraiser and a vehicle for educating the public about breast cancer. Some very ambitious students take upon themselves the task for forming their own organizations aimed at attracting people to a specific cause. If this is the route that a student wishes to take, I believe success is dependent upon creating an intentional and well thought-out operating plan.  I do not believe that a student can simply open up a Facebook page and expect to attract other students on the campus to come together in a unified effort. People exploring digital implementation should consider the following aspects of participation in an established service organization:

• Develop Life Skills - Service projects sponsored by sororities and fraternities offer great opportunities for teaching participants valuable life lessons while building welcomed and transferable skills that enable students to give back confidently

• Exposure To Real-World Situations -Participants managing complicated and complex projects, discovering different ways to contribute, working with volunteers or high-level donors or coming in contact with people from a variety of different backgrounds will be exposed to many real-world situations for which they will develop valuable skills that will be quite usable upon graduation. Potential employers see student volunteer activity as a form of job preparation that gives the participant the ability to connect with teams, accept and welcome new challenges while being an excellent representative of the company

• Lifelong Connections - Membership and service organizations typically help students develop lifelong associations and are the beginnings of effective networking that will be of great benefit to participants for the rest of their lives.

So, for students who are seeking more than just a diploma, participation in service-based organizations during the college career will expose individuals to many new concepts, develop many new skills and discover many new paths in order to fulfill the desire to give back to the community. Volunteering helps individuals develop incredible friendships while receiving the opportunity to acquire life and leadership skills that are not necessarily taught in the classroom.  The benefits are life-transforming and out of this world!