Due to the abundance of clubs to choose from at Sacramento State, most students are able to find their niche on campus.

However, that niche is quickly becoming more of a need for female students, of who made up 56% of the last fall’s student demographics.

Other than the American Association of University Women, which is a club organized by the university, there are two Sac State clubs that are specifically orientated towards women, the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) and Women in Business, both of which are geared towards women in two traditionally male-dominated fields of study.

Women-centric clubs like the Women in Business and the Society of Women Engineers help empower and push female students towards opportunities they may not find anywhere else on campus.

“There’s definitely a kind of struggle for women in business, especially in some departments like mathematics and accounting,” said psychology major and president of the Women in Business. “We bring in speakers and real-life examples to show women who might be feeling unconfident, that they can achieve.”

They also provide an important additional service for their women members — a supportive and understanding community.

“We make the effort to build connections in this club,” said business major Valerie Quezada. “We’re not typical. The bonds that we make with our members are more like friendships which make us look forward to our meetings.”

Whether by the dozens of flyers in hallways or by professors in their departments, Sac State students are often encouraged to explore and engage in campus clubs to build social circles and networks.

In addition, both clubs help to engage their members in community building activities.

“We try to encourage all of our members to go to the Region A Conference,” said computer science major Ashley Gregory, president of SWE.

The SWE Region A Conference brings together 14 collegiate sections and eight professional sections across Northern California, Northern Nevada, and Hawaii.

“Last time it was hosted between Sac State and UC Davis,” Gregory said. “The whole region is able to come together and get an opportunity to interact with clubs, professional, and people within the industry.”

The main focus of both groups is to encourage women to feel more comfortable and supported when expressing interest and going into fields that may be more challenging towards them due to their gender.

“It’s nice for freshman to be able to watch graduating seniors to know that they can make it,” said Lynne Koropp, the co-advisor and collegiate counselor of the Sac State Chapter of SWE. “Women are more often told that we can’t do math, we can’t do science, we can’t be engineers. You can. And don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t.”

There are no requirements for joining either club and both actively encourage students of all majors and genders to get in contact with them if they have an interest.