This Is How You Can Get Involved With Arab Organizations at Your University
By: Sophia Segal/Arab America Contributing Writer
The years you spend at university are great times to create memories while discovering what your true passions are in life. It’s also a place to make friends and find where you fit. All universities have organizations/clubs that you can join. They are open to everyone who wants to be a part of a group. The most common places to get in touch with these organizations are usually on the website of your university, or they have days in the semester for learning and meeting other people who run the clubs. Another source is approaching the International Student’s office where you may be connected with ethnic clubs.
However, like many of us feel when entering a new environment, it can be intimidating to join a club when you don’t know anyone. Your first tip is to become friends with the people in your department. You can see and learn from them what they do in order to stay active with school clubs. Make sure to also keep track of all your emails from school, as they usually inform you of upcoming events and club meetings. The last thing you should keep in mind is that you don’t always have to wait for that perfect club. If there is one that you want to be a part of and your university doesn’t have its own chapter, you can be that person to bring it to campus.
Here are some great organizations and clubs especially geared for Arab Americans that you may be interested in getting involved with at your university.
Model Arab League (MAL) is the National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations, and it gives students a chance to learn about politics and history of the Arab world, including diplomacy and public speaking. It’s also a great source to learn about Middle Eastern foreign policy and politics behind the Arab world. Basically, it’s a model version of Model United Nations (MUN), where it represents all 193 countries that are member states of the United Nations. Still, an important thing to remember is that MAL only focuses on the 22 member states of the Arab League. Although MAL is only represented in about 31 states in the US, if you are interested in joining but your state/university isn’t on the list of states, it would be a great idea to get not only your university but also your state involved. Once you’re in the program, you can submit your university to compete in conferences all over the country, and you’ll then be qualified to work as an intern for the National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations in DC. It opens doors for people who want to pursue this type of career and gives you great working skills.
Another organization is the Stevens Initiative. If you don’t already know, U.S. Ambassador J Christopher Stevens was the Ambassador to Libya in 2012 but got killed during the Benghazi attacks. Being who he was and how he lived his life, his family and other partnerships created an organization to bring together students from the U.S., the Middle East, and North Africa (MENA). The idea was to bring the barrier down between these countries and for students to meet and interact with other people worldwide. Arab students studying abroad in the U.S. are great advocates to the Stevens Initiative because they can tell their stories and experiences living and learning in the U.S. This gives an opportunity to understand all sides. If your university doesn’t have this program, it is a great way to get both professors and students working together to bring it to campus.
In addition, learning Arabic is a great way to get involved with organizations because you’ll meet native Arabic speakers. However, if you are at a university that doesn’t provide the Arabic language, go to the language department chairperson or the International Studies/Relations department and work towards bringing the language program to your school. You can also make it a project for the students by creating an Arabic language club, or maybe something as simple as an after-class meeting to learn and teach Arabic.
Moreover, almost every big university has clubs that are related to the country of origin, like Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, North Africa, and Saudi Arabis. Also, you can hardly find any university that doesn’t have an association for Muslim students.
Finally, many students now are attracted to Arab America’s “Rising Leaders.” Through this subcommittee, a student becomes aware of many opportunities as internships, scholarships, mentorships, initiatives, and invitations to hear resourceful and excelling young people. For more information, visit www.arabamerica.com and www.arabamericafoundation.org. You may express your interest by writing to info@arabamerica.com.
Don’t forget that getting involved with your university through extracurricular activities look great on resumes, and employers will look at what students have accomplished other than the classes they take. Building your resume is something that should be a priority, and having diversity is even more desirable.
Check out Arab America’s blog here!
