This week all of us VSAs will be discussing our favorite student involvements here at USC. Although I am involved with many orgs (HKN, Freshman Academy Coach, Engineering 101 TA, Tau Kappa Epsilon (Social Fraternity), USC Gamers Network, and many more), the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (or IEEE for short) is definitely my favorite student involvement.
I first became involved with IEEE during my Sophomore year by attending some of their corporate and social events. At these events I got a good feel for what IEEE and what they do as a student org, in addition to all the benefits being a member provides. After having a good experience overall with these events and the people at them, I applied and successfully won a position on the IEEE Executive Board for the 2010-2011 academic year as Social Events Chair.
During my Junior year I then served as Social Events Chair for IEEE. Although most people would assume a group of electrical engineers don’t hold many social events, we do!!! During the course of the year I planned multiple fun events (many of which are pictured below) such as a Beach Bonfire conjointly with ACM and ASBME; IEEE USC vs. IEEE UCLA Broomball; Movie Night; Bowling Night; the IEEE Soccer Tournament; and more. These events provide a great way for EEs to get away from the stress and work from school and instead relax doing fun activities.
After a good year as Social Events Chair, I applied and successfully won the position of President for the 2011-2012 Academic year. This is the position I hold currently during my Senior year. Not having been President of a student org before I had no idea how much work being President entails — you have to be involved in the planning and execution of all events, you are the point of correspondance for your org so you have to answer mounds of emails, and, additionally, you have to manage the other members of your executive board.
While being President is hard work, it is also very rewarding. Being able to say you contributed to a multitude of social, corporate, philanthropic, and academic events held throughout the year is a big deal. Additionally, being President of IEEE provides multiple opportunities for networking.
As a whole, I love IEEE because of the events it provides and the opportunities provided inherently within the events. Whether it be a night out bowling or an academic talk by a professor or a tech talk by a corporation, IEEE strives to provide all attendees with a good time and the opportunity for networking. This fun, above all, makes IEEE worth it being on E-Board or even just being an active member. As for networking, these opportunities provide a way for students to meet employers, fellow students, and professors to help themselves in finding study buddies, research/help opportunities, and job opportunities, respectively. It is, without a doubt, the premier society for EEs to get involved in and get something back out of.
If you have any questions about IEEE feel free to send an email or post a comment below.
