My Fellow Students:
After my last letter, a student named Rob came into the Student Government Office in the Woodbury Campus Center looking for me. He read my article and told me he appreciated it, but expressed doubt that the majority of USM students would be stirred by it. He said (and I’m paraphrasing) “what’s really going to grab the attention of people out there is if you put it in terms of dollars and jobs. Their getting involved is going to have to benefit them somehow.”
He has since began the process of joining the Student Senate, and will likely be appointed to one of the many seats which have become empty over the last year. His remarks got me thinking, and no matter how I look at it, getting involved will benefit everyone at USM, and will translate to dollars and jobs after graduation.
I have become extremely familiar with student government over the last school year, so I will use it as my primary example, but I assure you this is true of all USM’s student organizations, clubs, groups and associations.
The experience you can obtain from becoming a student leader in the SGA can be transferred to a variety of real world applications in a variety of fields.
Let’s say you are a finance major, and you need experience with financing and budgets. The SGA has an operating budget of over $500,000 in student activity fees, which is then allocated to about 50 entities, groups and organizations. As the treasurer of a student group you can have experience with finance on a small scale, or as treasurer of the senate you can become familiar with the financing of a $500 grand non-profit business.
Imagine how either of those gives you an advantage in the eyes of perspective employers; dollars and jobs.
Say you are a political science major (like yours truly), politics is your thing, and you love debating about important issues that have a profound effect on the environment in which you live. The experience you would have as a Student Senator or as the Student Body President would be unparalleled during your undergraduate education.
You can talk with and meet people at the university you would normally not have the chance of getting to know, and the things you will learn and the connections you will make will be invaluable to your future.
I can tell you that my experience as a member of the Presidential Search Committee for USM has pretty much changed my life, and I would never have had the opportunity if I had not got involved with the SGA.
As I will be getting ready to fill out my law school applications, I can’t tell you how proud I am to be able to write that I had the privilege to be your Student Body President, and I feel confident submitting my application with such an honor on my resume; dollars and jobs.
There are so many practical experiences that you can have as a member of the Student Government Association, that you can even get up to 6 credit hours for it. It’s possible to earn those credits by becoming a student senator for 2 years and by assembling a portfolio documenting your experiences.
The Senate is also a great way to supplement your education in a way that is practical and applicable to many things you will likely be exposed to after graduating from USM. That reality is not lost on the faculty as is evident with the possibility of earning those 6 credits, and again will in turn help you to earn better dollars and jobs.
Look at the larger picture. If we can build a community of active and engaged students here at USM, we can start to change the image of USM being a student’s last resort to being their first choice of schools.
As our standing and reputation grows in the community, in New England and across the nation, our degrees which we have worked so hard for will appreciate in value, and future employers who look at a resume that has a degree from the University of Southern Maine on it will look more favorably upon that applicant.
This is not only plausible, but I can assure you it is a trend which has been increasing across Southern Maine, and if we not only continue this trend, but intensify it, we as USM graduate will be in a much better position to earn much better dollars and jobs.
Yes, it’s true. You can better serve yourself by serving your community. The opportunities to gain these experiences are not exclusive to student government, but you have to take the effort to go out there and find them.
A college education does not begin and end with the classes you read, the books you read, the papers you write and the tests you take. The best way to get the most out of your time in college is to get involved outside of your regular curricular activities.
So what are you waiting for? Get out there and do something!!!!
All the best,
AJ Chalifour
Student Body President