What to do outside of class as a graduate student?
Graduate school can feel like a treadmill: readings, research, teaching, work, family and the constant pressure to produce. When time is scarce, “getting involved” can sound like a luxury. But the paradox is that the most worthwhile graduate experiences often happen outside the classroom — especially the kind that strengthens your résumé, builds your network and gives you genuine influence outside the institution.
At UNC Charlotte, one of the most direct ways to do that is through the Graduate and Professional Student Government (GPSG). We are an R1 research university, which means graduate students aren’t just attending Charlotte — we are driving its intellectual engine. Service matters because universities continue to become excellent when people like you help steer the priorities.
Serving on the 17-member GPSG leadership team is a concrete, high-impact way to give back while also investing in yourself. As a team member, you help represent, advocate for and support more than 5,400 graduate and professional students. You will bring graduate concerns to key campus decision-makers, including senior administrators and the Chancellor. You also receive a small bi-monthly stipend to support your service.
This is not symbolic involvement. It is real leadership. GPSG leaders deliver short monthly presentations to other graduate leaders in our monthly senate meeting and are only required to attend a one-hour Zoom call per month. You will receive your own GPSG campus email address. You will build fluency in governance, budgeting, policy and coalition-building — the skills that translate into careers in every realm of academia and beyond.
As one of the leadership team members, you will have 24-hour access to a shared professional GPSG office in the Student Union — an exclusive space that comes with the Niner Nation spirit built in. You receive an official university name tag and a gold government pin. You’ll be part of a team culture grounded in competence, community and momentum.
But the best benefit is building community. GPSG is a place to meet individuals dedicated to scholarship and service — graduate colleagues who have mastered the balance between ambition and high academic achievement. We are Charlotte’s very best of the best. Our experiences turn into relationships, which turn into collaborations, recommendations and, very often, lifelong friendships. You will no longer feel isolated and will instead feel connected to a community with a shared purpose. If you’re wondering what to do outside of class, don’t just add another obligation. Add something that gives you voice, visibility and belonging. Graduate school is temporary; the leadership habits and networks you build here are not. GPSG is one of the best ways to make your time at Charlotte meaningful — for yourself and for the graduate students who follow.