Getting Ready for Sorority Recruitment

During Recruitment, there is always a lot of talk regarding legacies. What is a legacy, exactly, and what does this mean to a Potential New Member like you? This article answers common questions from prospective sorority members participating in sorority recruitment.

Q. How do I know if I’m a legacy?

♥  A “legacy” is a woman who is closely related to a member of a given sorority. If your grandmother, mother or sister is a Beta Beta Beta, either in college or out of college, you are a Beta Beta Beta legacy. However, each sorority has its own definition of “legacy.”

As the concept of “family” has changed, many sororities have refined their concept of “legacy” to include aunts, cousins and step-relations, while others have not made this change. If you think you’re a legacy to a sorority, but you’re not sure, talk to your sorority relative or campus Panhellenic contact. Be aware that sororities DO check with their headquarters to confirm, so don’t “fudge your facts.”

Q. Does my sorority relative have to write me a recommendation? Read the rest of this entry »

Technorati Tags: aunt, cousin, grandmother, guaranteed bid, legacy, mother, panhellenic, sister, step-relatives

In the dark ages, people in tribes would make choices by voting with fundamental communications like grunts and rock tossing.  As communities became larger, systems became the method of choice for pleasing the villagers, citizens, employees, or stakeholders.

Today, many organizations use Preferential Bidding Systems (PBSs) to satisfy the preferences of their constituents.  You may be familiar with some of them.

★ Airline employees use their company’s PBS to bid on their preferred schedules each month.
★ Professional sports leagues use their PBS to determine which rookies will be invited to join which professional teams.
★ College administrators use a PBS to determine which students will be allowed into popular classes.

Similarly, students wishing to join collegiate sororities participate in a mutual selection process, which is a PBS just like those mentioned above.  The PBS ensures a prospective member is matched with the sorority chapters that are most interested in her, and vice versa.

Here is a simple explanation of how a matching mechanism like this works using three student examples during sorority recruitment.  Read the rest of this entry »

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Numerous television shows and movies portray Fraternity and Sorority Life as an elite party scene, escape from reality, or horror scene.

How accurate are these depictions?

TRUE or FALSE: Through joining a fraternity or sorority students become part of a social network where drinking, pranks, and partying become important everyday occurrences.

♥ FALSE.  Greek-letter organizations became popular in films during the late 1970s with the release of “National Lampoon’s Animal House” (1978). The film takes college traditions like homecoming, fraternity rush, and house parties and mocks them by presenting the most extreme cases or mishaps that could occur.  For example, the chapter meetings in this film show alcohol consumption.  In reality chapter meetings are alcohol free and run as any professional organization would with procedures and standards. Read the rest of this entry »

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It’s done.  You’ve registered with your Panhellenic Council and tried not to over think it.  But as the date of that first sorority recruitment event draws closer, you’re realizing you’ll need to make both good impressions and educated decisions.

Here are eight great tips to prepare you for the big events.

♥  KNOW what you are looking for in your experience. This way, you can be sure to ask thoughtful questions of the women you meet. Ask yourself, why do you want to join a sorority? Are you looking for women who share your passion for community service? Are you looking to become involved in athletic programs like intramurals?

♥  LEARN. Be sure you are learning all you can about each organization. Most chapters maintain a website about their organization. You can also find more information through your campus Panhellenic, Greek Life or Student Activities Office.

♥  PREPARE.  Discover your strengths by writing down your skills, talents and experiences. Think back to your activities, jobs and the interests you are passionate about. What lead you to being in important positions or earning awards? You will want to share what is special about you and these will be great conversation pieces. Read the rest of this entry »

During formal recruitment a phrase you may hear often is “maximize your options.”   This means you should accept all party invitations extended to you, and attend all events to which you are invited. Here are four reasons you should heed this “maximizing” advice.

♥   Chapter members are skilled in determining who will be a good “fit” in their chapter; more so than you.  Even if you’re unsure about a chapter that has invited you back, give them the benefit of the doubt. Attend the event and meet more people from the chapter.  You might be pleasantly surprised.

♥   All sorority women have friends in other sororities.  While you may only join ONE chapter, sorority recruitment is a wonderful opportunity to make friends throughout the sorority community. Read the rest of this entry »

We at SureSister.com have a Twitter account. Occasionally we will solicit the opinions of our followers on a variety of topics. Recently, we asked people to complete this sentence:

“Being a member of a sorority is important to me because _________________.”

We were astounded by the number of immediate responses to this Tweet – as well as the passion behind them – and thought they were worth sharing.  The most common thought behind these responses of women from every Panhellenic group, from all around the country (and world), is …  parties?  Purses?  You be the judge.

@mahoran “Because my sisters helped me be the best me. Even in the alumnae world, I’ve met women that inspire me.”

@gabbyblack “The life lessons learned in sorority can’t be duplicated & the support to get u through each lesson is behind every corner.”

@LainaMo “Because the my sisters and my experiences with them molded me into the fierce woman I am today.” Read the rest of this entry »

Still unsure about this whole sorority thing?

Don’t worry, you aren’t alone! With formal recruitment starting soon on campuses nationwide, it is time to make the decision. It is common to still have reservations at this point, but what do you have to lose by giving it a try?

Here are four benefits to participating in sorority recruitment this year.

1. It is a great way to meet people.

You will spend multiple days getting to know possibly hundreds of women across campus, both upperclassmen and other first year students like yourself. This will make those first few weeks of not knowing anybody a whole lot easier. Read the rest of this entry »

Sorority members seek many qualities in new sisters, but being able to win a staring contest isn’t one of them.  Knowing how to ask good questions is.

The sorority women you meet during sorority recruitment are as nervous as you when it’s time for that first recruitment event.  They have spent weeks, even months learning communication etiquette and reviewing relevant facts about their organizations – with the goal of getting you to join.

Because you haven’t had all that training, we give you these simple tips on making those introductory conversations shine. Read the rest of this entry »

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If you are a first generation college student or if your parents were not in a sorority or fraternity, they may be wondering how the sorority recruitment process works. Even if a parent was in a sorority or fraternity, he or she may be wondering how “rush” has changed – besides just the name.

These tips will help you talk with your parents about the idea of recruitment and sorority life.

BEFORE:

✽  Research your options with your parents. Tell them why you want to be involved. Let them know about the events you will be attending and any women you have already met. Read the rest of this entry »

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How do you strike a perfect balance between “Gaga on Tour” and “H1N1 patient” during sorority recruitment?  Simply add your smile and personality to these eight tips to project your true beauty during  recruitment events.

♥   If you wear liquid foundation or tinted moisturizer, apply it BEFORE concealer, as sheerly as possible.  Even with this sheer application, you will use less concealer – the result? A lighter, more natural look.

♥   Apply concealer to the undereye area with a small brush or the pad of the ring finger.  It should be placed from the area on the side of the nose (at the inner corner of the eye) and continued out to the outer corner, focusing on the darkest areas. Once your concealer is placed, don’t rub, but PRESS and PAT it into the skin to blend. Read the rest of this entry »

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