Starting a New Registered Student Organization

Are you interested in starting a new student organization? Congrats! CAIC is so excited to assist you in this journey. Here, you will learn the step by step procedures towards starting a new Registered Student Organization.

1. Meet with an Involvement Specialist to learn about the New Registered Student Organization Process. At this meeting you will receive helpful tips on completing your own organization constitution with our office's template, as well as the general timeline and steps to complete. To set up this meeting, please call the Involvement Center at (910) 962-3553 or email activities@uncw.edu 
2. Complete the Intent to Register Form and first draft of your constitution. The Intent to Register Form must have the name and signature of FIVE students who are interested in being apart of this organization. As you complete the organization constitution, you must include the following three required clauses verbatim: adherence clause, non-exclusionary clause, and the non-profit clause. 

Upon completion of these steps, a professional staff member or graduate assistant will contact you to schedule a meeting and the organization will be granted provisional status. With provisional status, a student organization has 30 days to reserve meeting space for interest meetings and post flyers for recruitment purposes only. No events or fundraisers may be held during this time. 

Provisional Status Organizations - Now What?

1. Meet with your designated CAIC representative to revise/edit the constitution to get it to a final draft version. This may take several in-person or e-meetings to get your constitution ready for a Student Organziation Committee (SOC) review. Once a final draft is agreed upon, the draft will be reviewed by the SOC for a vote.
2. Take advantage of your provisional status privileges as you await SOC approval. Gather interest, discuss as a group goals and outcomes for your organizaiton, and begin designing some basic materials for publicity. 
3. If you are concerned about the status of your SOC review, please reach out to your designated CAIC representative. The SOC may be reviewing several constitutions at any given week during the academic year. 

The SOC may vote to (1) approve your constitution, (2) approve the constitution with suggestions for minor revisions, or (3) revise and resubmit due to major revisions required. 

The organization will be notified of the decision within three business days following the SOC meeting.

• The organization will be e-mailed the SOC decision and any suggestions for the final edits of the constitution by their designated CAIC representative.
• In order to be approved, the constitution must include Article 4: Adherence, Article 5: Non-Exclusionary Membership Clause, and Article 12: Nonprofit Clause verbatim from the CAIC Constitution Template.

Your constitution has been approved - Now What?

Congratulations! The final stage of the registration process is to take the New Student Organization Canvas module, which outlines resources, support staff, contact info, and other helpful guidance that will help your organization be more successful. 

Note: A new organization has one month to register after being notified of the SOC decision. All constitutions that are not at final draft before the final meeting in Spring, will not be able to go before the SOC until September. Only Registered Student Organizations are able to participate in the Summer involvement Fairs and Fall Involvement Carnival. 

Intent to Register Form	Constitution Template	Provisional Status Reservations	Return to Involvement Center
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