The types of campus events available to students and faculty will vary according to the educational institution and its offerings of clubs, fraternities, sororities, sports teams, and so on. Many colleges and universities feature regular events that focus on the specific sports teams such as basketball, football, baseball, and hockey; these events may include pep rallies, parades, and other types of celebrations. Fundraisers are popular on campuses, and these fundraisers can take many forms and benefit a variety of different causes. Guest speakers are often cause for special campus events as well, as are lectures, films, presentations, and so on.
Many colleges and universities publish a campus events calendar at the beginning of the school year or periodically throughout that year to allow students and staff the opportunity to schedule to attend the events. Since events can be scheduled at any time throughout the year, some events may not be listed on the calendar, so central areas on campus often feature advertisements for specific unscheduled events. Concerts are commonly organized throughout the year, sometimes without set warning, since bands and performers often have schedules that change rapidly.
Colleges and universities often plan campus events that are relevant to specific departments. The English department, for example, may schedule a guest speaker who is an expert in the field of poetry, linguistics, or fiction. Engineering departments may schedule events with prominent engineers, or they may sponsor engineering competitions. Music departments are likely to schedule regular department performances, either by students, staff, or other prominent musicians.
Other campus events may vary by region, city, state, and so on. Politicians are likely to visit college campuses, particularly around election times; elected officials may use colleges and universities as backdrops for political speeches and election events specific to local officials. Another option for guest speakers or lectures includes prominent alumni of the college.
Intramural sports as well as intra-fraternity or sorority events are also common campus events. Intramural sports allow non-varsity athletes to compete against each other or against students from another school. Intramural teams may be gender-specific, or they may be coed, and the intensity of the activity will depend on the experience level of the players. Fraternities and sororities often have competitions among each other in a wide array of activities academic, athletic, or other. In many cases, fraternities and sororities will reach out to other students on campus to include them in such activities, and they will often sponsor pledge events to get more students to join the fraternity or sorority.
