Purdue University Family Guide
Getting Involved at Purdue
Purdue students are extremely active on our campus and in our community. They recognize that this is a point in their lives during which they can explore new interests; make new friends; and grow personally, professionally, socially, spiritually, and culturally. Some of our students’ most memorable campus experiences are the things they do after class.
By getting involved on campus, students gain skills that will benefit them in college and throughout their lives – skills such as communication, time management, organization, teamwork, conflict management, leadership, and many others. Student Activities and Organizations (SAO) oversees more than 900 student clubs and hosts an “e-sidewalk” through which students can easily identify available clubs and upcoming callouts for new members. With so many student organizations, there literally is something for everyone. But there also is a well-defined process for creating new organizations, which students do every year.
Purdue’s philosophy is that leaders are made, not born, and that all students have the capacity to lead. To that end, SAO sponsors programs that allow students to:
- Learn to lead a student organization
- Enroll in a leadership course
- Participate in a leadership conference
- Engage in a personalized leadership consultation with staff
- Utilize our Leadership Resource Center and our Facilitators student consultants
