hii im a first year student thinking about starting a club for the next academic year. ive read the pages on ulife about starting a club (writing a constitution, applying for recognition, etc) but i would like to know more! how do clubs get custom shirts, donation boxes and posters? ie. students for wishes have shirts, donation boxes and posters with their club name on them. and how do transactions work? clubs receive funds by cheques… does this mean i would have to create a bank account??

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hey,

im a first year student interested in starting a club for the next academic year. i read ulife’s page about starting a club. from what ive gathered, i (basically) need to write a constitution and apply for recognition. i would still like more information on how transactions are made. i read that utsu funds a club and that clubs are paid by cheques. so like would i have to create a bank account? how would i do that??

also, do you know how clubs get custom shirts, donation boxes and posters? students for wishes and other clubs ive seen have shirts, donation boxes and posters with their club name on them.

…also, where can clubs set up their events? I know clubs can rent some places around campus but which places?? or could a club just randomly set up a stand outside? lol

right now, im just thinking about starting a club. i’m a commuter so i would like to get as much info as i can on starting a club before i actually commit to it.

i dont have any background in business or any experience in leadership but i do feel passionate about a certain cause.

plz help

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why hello there,

first of all, i can 100% guarantee that sending in the same question twice to our email and tumblr will not make us respond any faster! that’s a big aska no-no. pls do not clog up our inbox with extra emails thxxxxx. seeing extra emails = more stress = more anxiety = less productivity. capisce?

on to the main event:

once you’ve completed your constitution and applied for recognition, you can do the following:

1. form an executive team: i would recommend that you assemble a good team of people you work well with who share your passion about the cause. this group of people will become your executive team and you’ll work together to start up your club.
2. recruit members: you need to have at least 30 members and 51% of these members have to pay UTSU fees. plus what’s the point of having a club if you don’t have people?
3. find your club headquarters: location, location, location. do you require an office space for your club or would you be perfectly content working from home? where will your club members hold meetings or events? if you do need office space, you should check out this link to learn more about how to apply for a club space at 21 Sussex Court. for meeting spaces or room rentals, the campus room finder is great, but you’ll need to be registered as a primary or secondary contact on ulife.
4. money, money, money: if you want to get funding or sponsorship, you can reach out to businesses and ask them to sponsor you. sometimes they’ll offer your club members discounts or straight up give you money. be very professional when approaching businesses and always have a portfolio prepared. if you require funding from the UTSU, you’ll need to first be recognized by Ulife. here is basically every question you could possibly ask about UTSU recognized clubs answered. watch out for deadlines because they exist!

if you do receive recognition from Ulife and UTSU before september, you’ll be able to set up during the st. george street fest and UTSU clubs fair at hart house circle in september! that’s where you’ll get a bunch of people coming up to your booth and signing up to join your club.

printing t-shirts and other swag can be done through the UTSU, you just have to reach out to them. there are other options available for t-shirt printing of course, you can always do more research and compare their prices with other retailers. not sure what you mean by donation boxes, but it can’t be too hard to make one yourself! nice long banners can be ordered from the UTSU and if you need to print paper posters, UTSU’s got you too!

in terms of opening a bank account, check out question 30 at this link! there are many different kinds of accounts and it would be in your best interest to sit down with a financial advisor at the bank of your choice to discuss what kind of account you would need. i would ask before the appointment if you require any extra documentation in addition to the Office of Student Life recognition letter. it might save you a trip!

important people to contact when you need help:

clubs and leadership development: i’ve heard that they are wonderful people who are happy to help you with any inquiries regarding club development!

the UTSU also has a contact who can help you with all aspects of your club. if you need advice, you can contact vpcampuslife@utsu.ca to book an appointment and sit down with someone.

anyways. i think i’ve covered it all.

if you have any more questions, reach out to the people i’ve mentioned above. ^

happy clubbing.

*bonus points if you know what movie this is from! ^*

peace and love,

aska