6 Super Fun Event Ideas for College Students

college event ideas

So you want to host a college event. Great! Trouble is, you have no idea what you want to do. What events can you throw for your college organization that are actually manageable and fun? Never fear because Sparxo is here with 6 easy to host, super fun events. You’re welcome.

Game Night

See who has game in your group by hosting a game night! Gather up a variety of board, video, and party games and then put them all in one place with some free food. Jenga, Twister, Mario Kart, Ping Pong, Blackjack – that sort of thing.

Often, college dorms will be able to offer most of these games for free and will be willing to lend them to your organization. Be sure to offer a good variety of games. This way, if members get tired of one game, they’ll have lots to choose from, plus you’ll entice them with fresh games they’ve never heard of. Learning and playing games together will be a great opportunity for members to get to know each other better and grow as a team. Not to mention have lots of fun.

Next-level Movie Night

People love movies, but what they love even more are movies about themselves. Host a creative movie night for your college organization by offering to play a popular movie and movies made by members of your own organization. Put together a short movie yourself as an example, and offer a prize to whoever makes the best movie. With phones and laptops, just about anyone can put together a fun video in just hours. Invent a theme, some basic rules on content, video runtime, material, and prizes. Encourage your members to form teams so that they’ll have a chance to bond together. Finally, find a projector and a convenient venue to serve as a theatre.

When the contest period ends, bring everyone together to watch their films, with free snacks of course. This should get everyone in the mood for whatever feature film you’ve picked to put on after. Comparing their work to the feature-length movie is sure to make for some interesting discussion. Just, hopefully not during the movie.

Dog Day

Bring in animals to help your college organization de-stress and grow together! The unconditional love of a dog or similar pet has been shown to help reduce anxiety, stress, and even depression. Unfortunately, most college students aren’t able to keep pets. Luckily for your college organization, you can invite an animal mental health group to your organization, often for free.

Many colleges and universities have nearby mental health animal organizations, often on-campus groups designed to cater to college organizations like yours. UC Berkeley, for example, has an on-campus Destress with Dogs program that brings trained dogs to clubs and campus organizations. Cornell has a similar program with guide dogs. In exchange for their time and service animals at your organization’s events, these animal groups gain visibility and exposure. Win-win.

If your school does not have one of these groups nearby or on campus, consider a petting zoo or a farm. Many local farms and even animal shelters have tours and programs open to the public to raise awareness. These can be great opportunities for your group to get their fur fix.

Viable Volunteering

We know, we know. You’ve suffered through group volunteer events that were as much fun watching paint dry. But it doesn’t have to be that way. With the right research and planning, you can find volunteer events designed for college organizations that your members will actually enjoy. Since so many colleges encourage or even require service commitments from their organizations, volunteer organizations often target college groups like yours, with events made for an exciting team-building experience.

But how do you find these events, you ask? With viable volunteering, it’s all about location, location, location. You want to be doing somewhere your members will actually enjoy what they’re doing. For example, a beach cleanup would be preferable to an alleyway cleanup. Volunteering in a New Year’s celebration would be preferable to volunteering at New Year’s garbage dump. Look on volunteering websites like VolunteerMatch and Idealist for cultural celebrations, exciting location cleanups, and food volunteering opportunities. You’ll also want to make sure your volunteering at an event designed for organizations. Before deciding on an opportunity, be sure to contact the coordinator, and see if they’ve hosted school organizations in the past.

Not only will volunteering help your organization come together, but it will also boost your organization’s reputation in the community.

Formals and College Proms

Throwing a grownup style prom party is an easy way to hook members of your college organization, plus spice up an end-of-semester celebration or award ceremony. Swap boring punch for a spiked punch bowl and redeem your old school prom dress and tuxedos. Instead of hosting your traditional end-of-semester recognition party, make it a college prom, spicing up the event with dance, music, and a whole new level of fun.

First, you’ll want to pick a venue and theme for your college prom. Make sure the space can accommodate your entire group, plus has room for food, drinks, lighting, and decorations. Many college organizations will have used spaces like these before for past reception and award ceremonies. Spend a few nights before your event transforming the space with balloons, streamers, and any other easy party decorations. Make a playlist, and ensure you have speakers set up in your venue, along with snacks and abundant seating. You’ll also want to put together a series of high-school themed awards beforehand as well, like most-likely-to-be-early-to-a-meeting or class-clown. Awards like these will make members feel seen and grow closer to your organization.

Finally, send out invitations to your members, explaining that instead of a traditional award ceremony, you’ll be hosting a College Prom, where instead of a Prom King or Queen, you’ll be recognizing member contribution. When everyone arrives, act as MC, putting on your playlist and making sure everyone has a good time. If you’re looking to raise funds for your organization, you could charge members a small fee for their ticket. This could help pay for food, drinks, and entertainment, plus may even make the prom experience feel more authentic.

As a college event planner, you’re busy with scheduling, your venue, clients, and managing your business. When it comes to ticketing software, you’re looking for convenience and often pick the first software you hear. However, most ticket sales software take huge portions of sales, cost too much, promote competing events, and eclipse your own brand. You can use Sparxo to post your event and sell tickets for your event anywhere, letting you sell tickets directly from your website with no redirects – all for free!

Import your guest lists and sales lists from other systems
aggregate all of your customer data in one place
Keep 100% of your ticket sales
White Label, greatly improves SEO and Brand

Pool Party

Need we say more? A pool party is the perfect way for your group to unwind, exercise, and cool down, all while having lots of fun. It gets everyone outside, requires limited setup, plus offers a low-maintenance activity that will keep your group members busy for hours.

The first step is to find your pool. We recommend an outdoor pool, one with plenty of space for talking and eating, plus provides shaded areas for partygoers. Often, your campus will have access to an outdoor pool that will work perfectly. If your campus doesn’t have an outdoor pool, reach out to your network of friends, family, and former organization members. It’s very likely that someone will have access to a pool nearby. If you can’t find one through your network, contact local community pools – they usually offer reservations for a reasonable fee. Also, don’t forget that many hotels with pools offer organizations a one-day pass for their pool without staying at the hotel. Once you’ve secured your pool venue, just bring together a few decorations and some snacks (plastic cups and utensils, no glass) and you’ll have a fun, low maintenance event your college organization is sure to enjoy.