PSL Voices | Union : A host of ways to get involved

Published on May 30, 2024

Studying is great. But there are other things which are just as important, such as going out, meeting people, taking part in artistic and cultural events, developing your organizational skills, and so on. Lucky for us, there’s no shortage of student organizations at PSL.

My name’s Clothilde, I’m president of Union PSL and I’m going to tell you what we are all about. Union PSL is PSL’s student office (“BDE” in French). Each PSL school has its own student office, but the Union is common to all. We’re here to organize all the events a student office, arts office (BDA) or sports office (BDS) offers, open to all PSL students enrolled in a Bachelo's degree program, master’s degree program, PhD, or engineering course. .

Our job, in two words, is to bring people together and be inclusive.
It’s worth knowing that, outside of our evening events, all our activities are free of charge, so you don’t need to spend a fortune to have fun and live life to the full.

Our first role is to federate students. That’s why we begin the school year with the “Cousinades”. What’s a “Cousinade”? It’s a team scavenger hunt throughout the streets of Paris, and each member of the team is from a different school or program. The hunt ends with a fun cocktail event. This federating role is also embodied by the informal dinners organized in association with the Welcome Desk. These dinners bring French and international students together over dishes from all nations, in a relaxed, festive and welcoming atmosphere!

Then, of course, there are all the evening events without which the year would be a little less cheerful. Between the Red Circle, when 1,100 students get together to sing, dance and celebrate the start of the year, to the Equinox to welcome winter or the Trait d’Union during which 500 students celebrate the arrival of summer, there’s never a dull moment.

As well as these evening events, and because they are just as enriching, we also organize chess tournaments or sports competitions between PSL schools and training programs. For 9 years now, we’ve organized PSL’s Annual Debating Competition. This year’s final will be held at the French Senate (!) and will close the Semaine de la Pensée dedicated to ideas and thinking.

I personally chose to get involved in Union PSL because I think its uniting role is meaningful on several levels. Running an organization is a unique human adventure which has allowed me to meet some wonderful people, discover and surpass my limits, and acquire a great deal of organizational, event and people skills. And while juggling my student and extra-curricular lives is a daily challenge, I discovered that it is both possible and highly rewarding.

To conclude, all of us here at the Union are delighted to be able to offer these events to you students, no matter where you come from. And we’re far from being the only PSL student club!!! Whether you’re into musicals, building eco-friendly campuses, feminist or humanitarian groups, or distributing food to the needy, you’ll soon see that, at PSL, we love to create great opportunities for meeting and sharing with people. We love making human adventures for everyone, so that being a student also means discovery, fulfillment, partying, well-being, awakening and so much more.

You’ll find a non-exhaustive .

Ready for the experience?