If you were to walk along the streets in UTown, the NUS equivalent to the Vern at GW, on any given day, you will find dozens of table stalls with students promoting their clubs by selling trinkets, snacks, and handing out pamphlets. Sometimes, if you're lucky, the university will give clubs the opportunity to advertise their club by hosting games such as darts, ring toss, and more. For every stall visited, students receive a sticker on a business card sized tracker sheet and after collecting six or more stickers, students can redeem the sheet and collect an additional prize.
There's almost never a reason to be bored at NUS. In addition to the weekly club fairs, the residence halls at UTown also host student friendly events each month. One such event that a fellow GW friend and I attended was called ArtJam. As we walked out of our dorm, we could hear pop music blasting in the air and dozens of people lined up to collect blank canvases and painting supplies. The purpose of the event was to relieve any stress and anxiety due to midterm exams that were happening that week. While I was fortunate to not have any midterms this semester, ArtJam provided me with an outlet to express my creativity. I designed a t-shirt for myself using green and black fabric pens and paint. I enjoyed creating my shirt so much I asked the staff hosting the event if I could have a canvas to make another painting. The staff was incredibly friendly and even offered me some snacks to eat while I painted. Despite being artistically challenged, I painted the silhouette of two women dancing against a red and gold background (see picture). NUS students, on the other hand, are talented painters who perfectly captured scenes from nature and human life. In addition to the ArtJam, the UTown Residence Hall Staff also host music jams and personal effectiveness seminars. One seminar that I attended taught public speaking skills by the Singapore World Champion of Public Speaking from the Toastmasters Competition in 2016. Throughout the session, I learned valuable skills to improve my presentation and speaking ability and had the opportunity to meet local students who live in the same hall as me. Another event held by NUS was a health screening that allowed students to get a free checkup on their body weight, blood pressure, fat percentage, and more. This information helps me to understand how healthy my body is and if there are any health areas of concern.
So how does one find out about these events? Like GW, NUS uses OrgSync to advertise events held throughout campus. All one simply has to do is sign up by clicking "I will attend" and a reminder email will be sent to the student on the day of the event. NUS also does a good job of advertising these events by putting posters up around residence hall elevators and cafeterias. The turnout for these events is quite impressive and the organization of each event is incredible. NUS boasts the best campus life and it has rightly earned that title. Next week, NUS is hosting wellness series that include activities such as terrarium making, yoga sessions, and even pet therapy. I look forward to attending these sessions as I know I will gain new skills, friends, and memories!
