By Sydney Bergesen
A lot of my friends in high school had already decided to go through recruitment very early on. As soon as they got accepted into whatever college they were going to, they started doing research on Greek life and began following all the chapters on social media. I would always hear them talk about it, and they would show me all of these cute pictures. They would talk about how excited they were to go through rush and join a sorority and meet their future sisters. I wasn’t really like them; I didn’t really have any desire to go through recruitment. I had always heard of the stereotypes of sororities, I didn’t think I would be able to handle all the time it took to be in a sorority, and I honestly just didn’t think I would like it.
I began my freshman year at SFA without joining anything. I figured that I would just focus on school and try to make some friends in my classes. A week or two passed, and I honestly was getting pretty lonely sitting in my residence hall doing nothing but homework. Then I started seeing all these girls in my residence hall with their cute pictures on their doors with the sorority that they joined, and I realized how MANY girls went Greek. I never really did any research on the SFA’s Greek life, so I was kind of shocked to see so many girls join a sorority. I started to feel left out because I kept seeing all these girls looking so happy with all their sisters. Every time I went to class I felt like there was at least 5 or 6 sorority girls in each class. I was beginning to regret not giving Greek life a chance. I felt like I had missed my opportunity to join a sorority because I was under the (incorrect) impression that you had to be a freshman to join. I was honestly pretty upset for a while until one day, thankfully, one of my friends from high school who was also a member of Delta Delta Delta at SFA told me that it wasn’t too late to go through recruitment and that I should definitely give it a try the next time around. That’s when I decided that I was going to go through recruitment ASAP!
A lot of girls, just like me, believe that if you don’t go through recruitment as an incoming freshman that it’s “the end of the world." It’s really not y'all. Although I do recommend just trying it out, even if you’re on the fence about it as a freshman, going through recruitment as a sophomore does have some positives. These are the perks that I felt I had from waiting a year:
1. It allows you the chance to really see what the chapters are like during the school year and not just the week of recruitment. One of the best things was seeing how involved each chapter was on campus and with each of their philanthropies. One reason why I chose to go Tri Delta was because during the fall and the spring they had a big presence on campus. In the fall, I felt like EVERYONE knew about the annual Pancake Breakfast for St. Jude, and the same happened in the spring for the Triple Play Softball tournament that also benefits St. Jude. I loved that about Tri Delta. I wanted to be a part of something that was very involved with philanthropy and with the school. It was definitely a big thing for me, too, that Tri Delta’s philanthropy was St. Jude because I have always loved the work that St. Jude has done for families.
2. You get to meet a lot of the girls in the sororities before having to go through recruitment. I loved that when I went through recruitment I wasn’t as nervous as I would have been as a freshman because there were familiar faces helping me and introducing me to everyone. Waiting a year gave me the opportunity to meet a lot of the girls in a more relaxed environment like class or other things rather than in the stress of recruitment. I went into recruitment having friends that told me what it was like and what to expect, so it made the entire experience a lot less nerve-wrecking and even more fun than it already is. It’s also nice to have friends already in sororities because obviously they want you to rush theirs, but they want you to be happy more than anything, so they encourage you to try it out in all the houses to find where you really belong! When I went through recruitment, I had friends that introduced me to a lot of girls and when I went into the Tri Delta house for the first time it was great because I had already made friends and they knew who I was. It made my experience so amazing!
3. A year of not being Greek lets you see the other options that the campus offers. My pledge sister, Clare Rezentes, shared with me what she liked about rushing as a sophomore. She said, “For me personally, I thought it was a good to experience to wait a year because it lets you experience other options on campus and meet other people outside of Greek life. It gives you a diverse group of people to connect with. Also, I felt like I knew a lot more about myself a year into college and I knew exactly who I wanted to be and how I wanted my college life to be. People don’t necessarily know that when they are 18.” Being in Greek life gives friendships and connection that will be lifelong, but experiencing other things before you rush is great, too! I also agree with what Clare said about learning what you want to be in the year of not being Greek. I changed so much my first year of school and so did my priorities. That year really made me realize what I value in my life and who I wanted to be surrounded with, and it definitely helped me choose Tri Delta. All of my sisters value the same things, and I feel like that is what makes us all so close. It’s really good to know what you value; that way you can find other girls who value the same thing.
If you’re trying to decide whether or not rushing is for you, just try it. Also, if you're older and you feel like you missed your chance, you didn’t. Freshman or not, just try going through recruitment. It was the best decision I have ever made, and I have been so much happier since I joined a sorority. My sisters are the best support system anyone could ever hope for. No matter where you are in life, whether it’s a good time or bad, they’re there for you no matter what. I promise you won’t regret giving it a try!
Happy Recruitment,
Sydney Bergesen
