One of the first things you’ll encounter at college is sorority and fraternity recruitment. It’s everywhere!
If you haven’t been lucky enough to have an older sibling to seek advice from (I didn’t), it can be confusing and frustrating to figure out if Greek Life is something you’d be interested in.
The first step is figuring out WHY you want to join a Greek organization. I’ll walk you through a couple of common thoughts … and let you know if they’re the wrong or right ones!
- I want to make friends. Good! Greek organizations are a great way to branch out and meet new people. It also allows you to interact with upperclassmen, who can give you advice throughout your freshman year.
- I want to PARTY. Bad! While part of Greek Life is being social (and yes, you will get the opportunity to party), it shouldn’t be the number one reason why you want to rush. There are lots of requirements (and costs) that come up when you join a fraternity or sorority. It’s not all fun and games 100 percent of the time.
- I want to get involved on campus. Great! Joining a Greek organization is one of the best ways to get involved on campus. In my sorority, girls were involved in many different organizations, so it was easy for me to get involved, too. If I was interested in something, I could ask my sister who was in the organization for information (or just a buddy to go to the meeting with).
- I want something for my resume. OK, yes, Greek organizations do look good on a resume. But if you don’t actually get involved with the fraternity/sorority, what are you actually accomplishing? Just paying dues and showing up to mandatory events won’t exactly help you feel involved.
- What have I got to lose? Good point. You could try it and figure out this isn’t the right thing for you. Or you could discover this is one of the best choices you’ve ever made. Don’t knock it ’til you try it!
Now that you’ve decided why you want to rush, here are some dos and don’ts:
- DO keep an open mind. Don’t let gossip or the others around you influence your decision. You’ve got to go with your gut on this. If you feel like it’s a right fit, it probably is.
- DON’T be rude to the people rushing you … even if you know you aren’t choosing their organization, you never know when you’ll run into these people again. And, trust me, if you were rude, they will remember you.
- DO act like your true self. Why would you want to be part of an organization that only accepts you for acting a certain way? Aim to be the best possible version of yourself during recruitment, and you can’t go wrong.
- DON’T try too hard. Avoid bragging at all costs. Seriously.
If you’ve decided you want to rush, good luck! If not, that’s totally fine — Greek Life isn’t for everyone and that is OK.
