Since at this point, people have already decide on their college (upcoming freshman) or thinking about where to apply (high schoolers), I hope this discussion would shed some light about student orgs at Vanderbilt! There is a HUGE student org fair at the beginning of the school where all freshman can meet the clubs and get to know a little about them. Student orgs have definitely helped me find my niche in Vanderbilt as well as meet so many different people. Current students, if you guys want to share anything about student orgs to upcoming freshman or high schoolers, please post below! If upcoming freshman or high schoolers have any questions, feel free to post!
Im going to start off with some orgs that either I or my friends had some experience with. Also, lots of orgs are referred to by their abbreviations.
Vanderbilt Commodore Orchestra (VCO) - It’s an orchestra that mainly has non-music majors in it. I enjoy it because I can still play my instrument and play great works of music. I thought about joining the Blair orchestra (for credit) but it was too time intensive for my schedule, and I wanted to adjust to college my first semester. I met so many cool people through this org and really enjoy it! They put on two concerts per year, and they also have social events to get to know other members.
This is their website: https://studentorg.vanderbilt.edu/commodoreorchestra/. Check it out!
Alternative Spring Break (ASB) or Alternative Thanksgiving/Winter Break (AWB) - Service organization that occurs during the breaks (Thanksgiving, Winter, or Spring) and lasts for one week. Definitely check it out at least once during your four years at Vanderbilt! ASB was actually created at Vanderbilt and spread throughout so many college campuses. You are in a group of 10-12 people that you have never met before and spend a week with them. You get to hear so many stories and learn about people’s background. Also, you get to be involved in service!
Websites: https://www.vandyasb.org/ and https://www.vandyawb.org/. Check them out!
My D was very active in the Vandy music group. They planned Rites of Spring & something each fall. She really enjoyed that group. She founded a Habitat for Humanity Youth group in high school, so she joined the Habitat group at Vandy. She ended up on the board & was in charge of the Habitat spring break work trips. She found like-minded friends in these groups.
Unfortunately, one of her favorite activities is no longer available…she had a radio show focusing on unsigned Nashville musicians. Vandy doesn’t have the radio station anymore, though.
@kelsmom What happened to the radio station? One of the reason our D applied to Vandy was to one day become a signed musician. Last year was a busy year for her, so she did not look out for any music opportunity or write any new songs. Hope my D has a chance to get to know your D in school.
Vanderbilt sold the radio station. They were doing shows online after that, but I don’t know if they still do.
My D actually graduated in 2011. I drop by the Vandy forum from time to time to see if I can offer any advice (I work in higher ed so still hang around to weigh in on things on other forums). My D is a very proud alumnus.
If your D wants to become a signed musician, she can certainly develop a network while at Vandy. There are profs with music industry ties, and there are opportunities to network within the Nashville community. Your D will be in the perfect place to both get a great education and develop ties with the music industry. Best to her!
@kelsmom Thank you for your response. I misread your previous post and thought your daughter was still a current Vandy student because through Vanderbilt Media Immersion, a program for incoming freshmen before move in, I thought the radio (Vanderbilt’s radio stations, WRVU and VandyRadio described in the Media Immersion program) was the same as the radio stations in your daughter’s days.
Yes, Nashville and the place near Vandy (Music Row) have tons of opportunity for aspiring artists. My D is actually not ready for spending much of her time pursing her music career but want to focus on her school/major until maybe 2nd semester junior/senior year. For this summer, she goes to open mic at our local place weekly, and it helps.
I am sure that your D was fond of Vandy and a proud alumnus. We like the school more any more each day.
I confess that I don’t know a lot about radio, but WRVU was an on-air radio station that sold its air space … they continued to run as an online station. I don’t know what the current state of the station is, but D was bummed that it stopped being an on-air show (so she stopped doing it).
My D was going to work in the business end of music, but through her internships, she realized she did not want to do that. She was disappointed that she had devoted so much time to that idea, but she now realizes that it’s as important to know what you don’t want to do as it is important to know what you do want to do. Fortunately, her major (MHS) prepared her for the career she eventually found (health care consulting).