The beautiful smorgasbord that defines your complete experience on the Illinois campus will be hosted Aug. 25. Set one day before classes begin in the fall semester, Quad Day is an exciting opportunity to find out more about what this campus has to offer other than classes.

In similarity to the Taste of Chicago, an annual food festival that showcases the best eats the Chicagoland area has to offer, Quad Day is the taste of what the University has to offer you.

The University boasts of over 1,000 Registered Student Organizations. On Quad Day, an overwhelming majority of these organizations set up an area in an exciting jostle to display what its organization has to offer you, and how it can help shape your collegiate experience. 

The idea of several people waving fliers in your face on the unbelievably jam-packed Quad might seem like a daunting task, but you will go back to your dorm that day glad that you chose to participate.

The organizations that appear at this event range from any one of the school’s 95 fraternities and sororities, to professionally motivated groups, student government and intramural sports teams. It doesn’t matter what you are looking for, you’ll find your niche here. The groups that you will meet here help you create an even tighter support community than the one the University offers you. You get to network with like-minded individuals and build a web of colleagues and friends mutually invested in each other’s success.

In my experience, I’ve found some pretty incredible organizations on Quad Day. In the fall of my freshman year, I was able to locate the African Cultural Association on Quad Day. As an immigrant student, the association has been integral to me finding a footing and a voice on campus. It has opened up to me a network of students in different majors, chasing different goals but all with similar backgrounds. In some instances, it has helped me relive some nostalgic moments of my childhood and also reminded me of my focus. The ACA has helped me create a solid foundation in my college experience.

I found another avenue to build on my collegiate experience in my second Quad Day — the Society of Professional Journalists. The SPJ has provided opportunities for me to meet and network with professionals in my desired career path. Most importantly, finding the SPJ also led to my current position at The Daily Illini. That chance stumbling has provided this marvelous experience to practice what I hope to do in the future. 

The ACA or SPJ might not be the defining organizations in your college career, but I guarantee that Quad Day will present you with something that will. With 1,144 options, the possibilities seem endless, but you don’t know how you can possibly be impacted until you step out there. Quad Day is the perfect way to kick-start your college career and a way to figure out interesting things. You can either find something serious and intellectually challenging, something that aids your unwinding and leisure time or a combination of the two in one organization. Both avenues lead to endless opportunities, and let me tell you — it is worth it.

Quad Day provides you with organizations that not only help you get where you want to through your college travels, but it helps you appreciate every step of the journey. The path to unforeseen friendships and memorable experiences begins before your first class. Come out, see what the school has to offer, and follow up on it. Attend meetings, settle into the organizations and enjoy your time here. You never know where it leads, but you can fully experience the ride.

Lanre is a sophomore in Media . He can be reached at [email protected].