About Us
The activities fair is coming, the activities fair is coming! Specifically, on Friday, September 6, the Boston College Student Involvement Fair will take over Linden Lane, the long driveway in between Bapst Library and St. Mary's Hall. Rain or shine, upperclassmen will try to lure students to sign up for their e-mail lists with tempting baked goods and promises of epic Mod parties. Never fear, freshmen; we at The Gavel are here to guide you through the craziness that is the BC Activities Fair.
Image via Facebook.
Rule Number 1: Actually go to the activities fair. Even if you think it will be lame, or have absolutely no interest in signing up for any new clubs, it's kind of its own type of social event. You're guaranteed to run into some of the people that you met during your first week, and it's interesting to see what other people are looking to be involved in during their time at BC. Plus, it's a great way to peruse the full offering of student organizations at BC, as well as get a feel from the students working the tables about whether you'd like to be a part of their group or not.
Rule Number 2: You don't have to sign up for every e-mail listserv that gets put under your nose. Definitely sign up for the groups you want to join, but if you are legitimately not interested, politely say "no thanks" and walk away. Otherwise, you'll get thousands of emails from groups you aren't a part of for the next four years.
Image via Boston College.
Rule Number 3: Try to do some research beforehand. If you have a good sense of what sort of activities you'd like to join, look online to see which groups appeal to you most, and then go find them at the actual fair to talk to the group members and sign up for their e-mails. This will cut down the time you have to spend at the fair, and gives you some direction when you're walking around so you don't have to
wander aimlessly and try to read the sign on every single table.
Rule Number 4: Go with a friend, but don't be afraid to break away to go talk to a specific group or spend more time at the fair. You need more then one group of friends to lean on during your time at BC, and joining a few student organizations will help you make those friends.
Rule Number 5: Don't worry if you miss a table you wanted to stop by or can't find something that sparked your interest online. The activities fair is the first of many opportunities to join student groups throughout the school year. You can look online and e-mail group leaders if you find 
something later on you want to get involved in; many groups, depending on the activity, will even let you just start showing up at meetings in the middle of the school year. So don't stress about talking to every single group at the fair and just try to absorb as much as possible.
Rule Number 6: Make sure to look for the Gavel’s table. Whether you’re interested in writing, photography, video, design or business there’s a place for everyone in the Gavel family.
Featured image courtesy of Alex Krowiak/Gavel MediaLike what you see? Join The Gavel here!
Name: Jillian Timko
School, major and year: Arts and Sciences, International Studies, 2014
Hometown: Basking Ridge, NJ
What makes the Gavel so BANGin’? I love the Gavel because it’s so new. We are still figuring out who we are as an organization and how far we can go. While this presents us with a clear set of challenges, it’s really fun to try different things and build our own identity.
You have 24 hours to give prospective students a tour of BC and convince them to enroll. How do you spend the day?
First, I would take them on an actual tour of the campus—it’s beautiful and deserves to be shown off. Then I would take them to a football tailgate, a hockey game, and to Marathon Monday. And we would eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner at Hillside – after an egg sandwich, a Panini, and a cheeseburger, who wouldn’t want to go to BC?
If you could go back in time and give yourself a pep talk the night before you moved into BC as a freshman, what is the most important piece of advice that you would give to your former self?
I would tell myself to keep pushing to meet new people and try new things. It’s easy to get stuck in a groove you’re comfortable with, but you should never limit yourself like that—the people at BC and the school itself have so much to offer.
What is your favorite study spot on campus?
A classroom in Gasson, or the booths on the first floor of O’Neill.
What is your go-to meal at Late Night?
Usually mozzarella sticks, sometimes pizza…
What is the #1 most played song on your iTunes?
Love and Memories by OAR
What is the best Halloween costume that you have ever worn?
I was a gumball machine, along with our lovely editor-in-chief, and we rocked it.
If you could only eat at one restaurant for the rest of your life, which would you choose?
There’s this Italian restaurant called Bolu in my hometown. It’s always absolutely delicious, and it has enough variety on its menu to get me through the rest of my life.
If you could befriend the main characters from any TV show or movie, who would you choose and why?
The characters on How I Met Your Mother. Mainly so I could experience the joy of high-fiving Barney Stinson all the time.
