By Rachit (BMS’26)

I find the concept of societies quite wondrous and strange at the same time. A group of 30+ students bound together by an organization which really just exists on paper, regardless of their individual personalities. Of course, some societies barely enforce this, and hence end up inactive, and are rather crudely referred to as “dead”.

For a society to be active and thriving, the members should have an incentive to be involved in it. The incentive ranges from wanting to interact with the members, liking the work the society does, and a belief that being involved in this society’s activities will provide some enriching experience and, of course, good CV pointers.

It is funny that in many societies, people end up quite attached to the society, have pride in being a member of it, and as a result grow competitive and resentful of other societies. It is like watching a mini version of international competitiveness. These people go the extra mile for the sake of society, for example, social media posts, etc, working on things that won’t necessarily end up on their CV.

For the more inactive societies, this incentive does not exist. First of all, the “quality” of members differ. Some societies end up with more hardworking and talented students, who are bound to provide more output and quality than their more “chill” counterparts. Sometimes there is a massive mismatch in personalities, leading to a major drop in the social incentive that people have to get involved in societies. The quality of work and enrichment/value provided by the societies is not good enough for the people to pay much attention to the society. They will still do it, for the sake of their CVs of course, but don’t really bother to do it very diligently or involve themselves in the soc beyond that.

PORs and elections should also be kept in mind when one discusses attachment of meaning and pride to societies. Politics are involved to a certain degree in every soc, whether it be to convince the CCs that you are worthy of being the coordinator, or convincing the whole society that you can lead the society as a president and you should be voted in, instead of the other guy, even though these people got along well just a few weeks ago.

Friendship, comradery, toxicity and neglect pervade every level of every society, but at the end is not the primary concern for most CBSites. Since this is CBS, what you do outside of college sets you apart the most. Whether it be internships, case competitions or Competitive Exams like CFA. You can’t get placed in the societies solely, and societies can act like a double edged sword here. Even though you get to fill your CV with LPs and Pointers, you won’t be moved to enrich this CV with better quality experiences. A full CV begets complacency. What the heck am I waffling about. lmao.

At the same time, societies can give you a taste of what working life is actually all about. Working with and getting to know people you wouldn’t otherwise talk with, or finding your favourite people in college solely thanks to these societies. It is, like office life, not dictated by your own free will, but the situations the society puts you in on its own.

Many people find new passions that they never would have ever dreamed of engaging in in their school days. Whether it be acting, debating, dancing, or sports, people find new aspects of their desires and personalities that become a crucial part in shaping their future personalities. For the most part, these activities provide an outlet from the mundane life of CBS, a way to keep different parts of your personality intact.