Music blasted from speakers set up by a DJ throughout PCC’s quad Thursday afternoon. Tables were lined up from end to end decorated with vibrant posters and flyers promoting themselves to the students who wandered through, eager to see what the next table had to offer.
Club rush is a time for students to venture out and search for a group that shares similar interests, or maybe find a club that is out of their comfort zone. Each club sat out on Tuesday and Thursday in hopes of attracting new people to take part in their activities.
Even with a quad filled with different communities, some students still find no interest in any of them.
Among the shuffling crowd of students was Bryce Carter, an undeclared first-year student here at PCC. He walked past many of the clubs, some of which were enticing Carter with cookies and free pens.
“I’m not sure if any of these clubs interest me to be honest,” Carter said, looking around at the clubs. “Some of these clubs are more about your major, and none of them stand out to me.”
One such club that Carter walked passed that did not peak his interest was the “Astronomy and Physics Club.” The club focuses on what one would expect from a club with that name.
“Right now we are in the process of gathering guest speakers who work in this field,” said Aung Zin, a secretary in the club. “We want to get speakers from Caltech, graduate students and professors to explain what they do and how they broke into the industry.”
The club also participates in competitions where they create projects and show them off to guest speakers. Last year the club made a tesla coil, and are already in the midst of planning for their next competition.
“The club is really fun and it is not rigorous at all,” Zin said. “We not only welcome the STEM students, but also students who might be a little curious about physics and astronomy. You don’t even have to build anything, if you want to just come and hang out and learn, that is totally fine.”
Even as Carter left club rush without a club to call his new home, more students kept piling into the aisles, gandering and listening to each clubs pitch. Lisa Keppler was one of the students who was excited to see everything that was offered.
“I’m super excited to find a club where I can find like-minded people,” Kepler said. “Last year I didn’t join a club, and I regret it. I want to meet new people and make new friends. When I was in high-school I was in a women’s celebration club. I still keep in touch with the people I met through it and I want to experience that in college.”
A club that peaked Kepler’s interest was the “Women for Coding Club.” The club has been around for five years now, and spreads positivity for women in the tech field.
“Our message is that we try to encourage women to go into careers in technology,” said Pavan Kaur, the president of the club. “We want to end the stereotype that these jobs aren’t for women. We want to help our community.”
The club collaborates with many other clubs such as “CS Club” and “Leadership in Technology.” Kaur and her club compete in hackathons and welcomes anyone into the club, even those who have no experience in coding.
As the event died down, the clubs packed up their things and a ghost town of empty tables and umbrellas were left. Many of the clubs left with a full sign up sheet of new people, and a lot of students left excited to start with their new community.
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