BACK ON CAMPUS SURVIVAL LISTS: SORORITY RECRUITMENT

As the school year quickly commences, so does sorority recruitment. I'm assuming if you're reading this, you're going to be a freshman and you're going through rush. Congratulations! You've made a great choice, because you're going to get comfortable on campus really quickly. Having gone through recruitment just a year ago, I remember it very fondly. I know sorority rush gets a bad rep for being stressful, but if you go through the experience with a positive outlook, I promise you will have a good time. As someone who went through rush without any tears or worries, I'd like to share my experience with you along with some tips on how to make it a good experience. How It Works: Recruitment looks different on every college campus. Some schools' recruitment can last more than a week, some take place in one weekend. But for my examples, I'll be talking about the University of Iowa's process. It takes place over the course of two weekends, so it doesn't interfere with classes, and every round only lasts one to two days. We have around 14 chapters on our campus, so the longest days are at the beginning, and they get shorter as you move through the process. The first round is generally called the "welcome round" and this is where you meet every chapter and talk to a few girls from each chapter as you visit their houses. Then there's a "welcome back" round where you've narrowed down a few of your choices. Then you'll generally have a "sisterhood round" or a "philanthropy round" where you see fewer chapters, and eventually you have "pref round" where you have your final selection of two to three. Every round, you rank your houses in the order you like them, and the chapters mutually make their choices of who they want to get to know better. Tip 1: Don't dwell on houses that don't ask you back As far as "mutual selection" goes, there will always be a house that you absolutely love that doesn't ask you back. Everyone experiences this, and that's perfectly okay! If it's not a good fit, it's not worth dwelling on. The best thing you can do is focus on the houses that are interested in getting to know you! There truly is a house for everyone. PNM: a "potential new member", reference for the girls going through recruitment! If you're reading this and you're rushing, congratulations! This is what they call you! Everyone is referred to as a PNM during the process of finding their house. Tip 2: Do not make fun of or gossip about specific chapters when you're around other PNMs. This is how feelings get hurt. There will always be gossip on campus about the reputations of different chapters, but it's completely unacceptable to bring it up with other girls going through rush. You never know who's visiting which houses, and you do not want to hurt other peoples' feelings when you bad-mouth one chapter or another. Just remember that there is a house for everyone and judging someone's sisterhood is completely against what Panhellenic stands for. Rho Gam/Rho Chi/Recruitment Counselor: There are lots of different names for this person, but your recruitment counselor will be the person leading your group through recruitment. These are the girls who disassociate from their chapter temporarily for the sole purpose to help YOU find you home! They're there to listen to you, give you advice, and answer any questions you have throughout the recruitment process. They also make sure you're getting to your houses as the rounds progress and people have different schedules! Tip 3: Write down your thoughts/feelings in between rounds to differentiate houses. It gets pretty difficult when you're comparing houses and you can barely remember their letters. Make sure you're writing things down when the experience is fresh in your mind. Write down what you talked about, what you learned about the house, and how you felt while you were talking! Bid: The bid you receive at the end of rush is the offer from a house for you to join their chapter. This happens on Bid Day where you open up your card and start jumping for joy! Bid Day is by far the best feeling for PNM's because that's when it all pays off. Tip 4: Have fun and be yourself! Rush can be for everyone, but not everyone has the same rush experience. Recruitment can be exhausting and stressful, and emotions run high, but in the end, finding a place to call home and to belong is the best feeling you can get. The best way to find your true connection is to be exactly who you are and not try to change for someone else. Don't look for a house to fit in, look for a house that fits you. Keep an open mind and enjoy your time! Wishing you the best of luck in your search for your home. xo Kate