Recruiting and retaining members is a common challenge for ACS Graduate Student Organizations (GSOs). Everyone is balancing research, teaching, writing, personal life, and other responsibilities that take priority over volunteer work. As a member or a leader of a GSO, you already know that these organizations are unique in the way they allow students to develop leadership and communication skills, support their department and community, and bond with people who love chemistry.

So how do you draw members in, keep energy high, and build momentum to continuously grow your organization? Here are some strategies to engage and grow your GSO.

Discover people’s interests

People join—and stay in—groups that address their interests. So, what major issues do graduate students in your program or department want to change? What professional development opportunities would they like to see on campus? What brings them joy and excitement (or at least relieves stress)?

“You need to have your graduate population provide input,” says Alex Menke, the current president of the GSO at Texas Christian University (TCU). “If only your leadership team is interested and nobody else is, then you’re not going to have a successful outcome.”

Priorities and preferences can change as your membership and student body change, so check in regularly. There are several ways to gain this type of information:

• Surveys: Use paper or online surveys to learn students’ interests, the skills they want to develop, and the concerns they have that your GSO or chapter might be able to address.
• Focus groups: Meet with small groups of current or potential members to learn what they love about the group and what it can do better. Reserve a few minutes at the end of general body meetings for these discussions.
• Chats: Talk to students in and outside of your department to see where their interests lie and get ideas for successful practices from other clubs. These conversations may lead to new activities that align with members’ interests, such as a green chemistry outreach project, a CV-writing workshop, or a movie night. Also, your faculty advisor will have insights on what has worked well in the past, as well as connections to help you plan your events.
• Debrief: After each event, survey or speak with participants: What worked for them? What didn’t? Hold a similar debriefing meeting with the event organizers. People appreciate having their voices heard, and you will gain feedback that can help make future events more engaging.

Be accessible

You already know: graduate students are busy! Research, writing, teaching, classes, and personal commitments make life complex and spare time a rarity. Some students may also have accessibility concerns that complicate attendance.

Make it easier to participate in your GSO or chapter by meeting current and potential members where they are. Try scheduling meetings around a mealtime (with pizza or drinks!), on less hectic evenings or weekends, or offer virtual meetings alongside in-person meetings for those who just can’t be there in person. Be sure to tailor meeting times, locations, and platforms to your members’ preferences.

As Menke points out, “Building a community is like a marathon race instead of a 100-meter sprint.” For GSO and chapters’ leadership and student members alike, it’s important not to “get bogged down by trying to plan the one huge event.”

Choose a meeting space that is convenient to access, has good lighting, and that accommodates mobility aids. Be sure to ask members for their accessibility needs and preferences for virtual or in-person formats. Record your meetings for people with scheduling conflicts and enable closed captioning to improve comprehension, accuracy, and engagement. Be sure to actively welcome input from each participant, online or in person, either during or after the meeting.

Make your activities easier to participate in too. Allow members to assist with long events in shorter, 1-hour shifts, which will support those who need frequent breaks or have experiments to check on. Designate pairs of members to lead projects so that one can step in if another has an emergency.

Both current and future members will feel more connected to the GSO if they know they can reach someone. Set up a group chat, email account, social media account, or even a phone number for your group, and make sure they know that it’s constantly monitored. Also, try to respond to emails, social media posts, and phone calls as soon as possible (24–48 hours is a good rule of thumb).

Share, post, promote, chat

Get the word out about your GSO in as many ways as you can. It’s not just about letting potential members know you exist; it’s also about keeping your group at the front of people’s minds.

Showcase your vibrant and active group. Wear T-shirts that promote your club and its activities at campus events. Post pictures of your activities on social media. Tag your institution, ACS, and any other organization that can boost your post.

Use newsletters, bulletin boards, school newspapers, and other media to promote your activities and report your successes. The more coverage you get, the higher your group’s profile will be and the more you can show off all the great stuff you are doing.

“If you’re really promoting your event well and advertising what your event’s going to have like, ‘We’re going to have these really great prizes, we’re having this food,’ that’s what gets people to come,” says Michaela Jacobs, the president of the GSO at the University of Southern California.

Collaborate or host joint events with other organizations, such as other campus groups or your ACS local section. You may find new and interested members in other local chemical societies or STEM organizations, such as Alpha Chi Sigma, the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE), the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), the American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES), the National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers (NOBCChE), and the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS).[NB1]

Show appreciation

People want to feel comfortable and appreciated, as well as have fun. Try social events like movie nights, game nights, and potlucks to celebrate successes or just enjoy each other’s company. These events are in many ways more important to a successful GSO than traditional career development activities. Jacobs believes that “every event for graduate students needs to have food—free food—because that will get students out for sure.”

Don’t forget to show appreciation for your volunteers after each activity. People like to be thanked in different ways, so vary your strategies and be creative. You can make an announcement on social media, provide small gifts, or write personalized thank-you notes mentioning something special that an individual did.

If money is an issue for your members, try covering the premium package ACS membership fee. You could do this for your officers (who are required to be ACS premium package members), as an award for your most active members, or simply cover the minimum six memberships required by ACS to maintain active status for your GSO or chapter. No matter how you do it, covering fees shows member appreciation.

Making members feel welcome and invested will keep your GSO strong for years to come.