Indian Graduate Students' Association

Mission

• Providing support to Indian students, particularly to those new to the University in adjusting to the Madison campus and lifestyle.
• Promoting Indian culture at the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus through classical concerts in music and dance and by celebrating Indian festivals.
• Collaborating with voluntary, charitable and other student organizations on campus for social and multicultural activities.
• Maintain ties with the Indian community in and around Madison.

Join our events mailing list

History

The Indian Graduate Students Association (IGSA) was established in 1996 by a group of graduate students from India at the University of Wisconsin-Madison with the aim of bringing Indian culture to the UW-Madison campus. We are a voluntary non-profit organization registered with the student organization office at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In the span of eighteen years we have grown into an organization with over 1400 members. Our members belong to different backgrounds and age groups. Membership to our organization is open to all.

Nature of Activities

Music and dance concerts: We invite renowned artists and performers belonging to different schools and genre of Indian classical music and dance to perform at UW-Madison. Most of the artists we invite are recipients of several national and international awards. These artists could be instrumentalists or vocalists belonging to either of the two main schools of Indian music, Hindustani and carnatic. Through these high quality music and dance concerts, we hope to demonstrate the richness and diversity of Indian culture. Such experiences help enhance the cross-cultural diversity on campus. The concerts are held primarily in the premier auditoriums on campus.

Outdoor trips: We organize a Fall Colors camping trip at the peak of the renowned fall color activity in the north woods of Wisconsin. The popularity of this event is shown by the rising numbers every year. This is a wonderful opportunity for students to be a part of a truly Wisconsin experience. We also organize ski trips to ski resorts close to Madison and white-water rafting trips to north Wisconsin.

Social & cultural events: We organize various events like table tennis tournaments, trivia quizzes and other literary events. We also organize cultural events which provide an opportunity for students to showcase their talents. Through these events we aim to present the rich Indian history and ethnic diversity. These events also provide an opportunity to the UW community to witness traditional costumes, and savor authentic Indian cuisine.

Voluntary service to new students: We provide voluntary help to the Indian students new to the Madison campus, to settle down and get acclimatized to UW lifestyle. We help students with temporary accommodation, and conduct several orientation programs for their benefit.