Jeans for recruitment
 

Are jeans really appropriate for formal recruitment? The fashion show recommended them for the first round- a glo member said privately that if you wear jeans they should be designer- 7 or earl- along those lines- not American Eagle or Hollister.

I'd say it would depend on where you are rushing. I wore jeans straight through Philanthropy night & only wore a dress for Preference. Many other girls did the same & I know that (at least) my jeans weren't some fancy expensive brand.

I went to a non-competive school and I wore jeans one round, but I dressed them up with a nice blouse and a short sarong tied around the jeans. Typically, from what I've seen, you take whatever the fashon show/suggestion book says and you step it up a notch: If they say jeans, wear kakkis or slacks or even a jean skirt, if they say skirt & blouse, wear an appropiate dress (not short, slightly dressy, and NOT a ballgown). Do: Take it up one step, Don't: Take it up MORE then one step.

I'm confused. Aren't you already in a sorority? Or are you just asking are they appropriate, i.e. do you think it should be recommended to wear them.

I'm asking for my daughter who is rushing this spring.

Maybe she was rushing a girl who was wearing jeans and debating on whether that was appropriate??????

I was just thinking too, as I made my other post...will PNM's always dress one step above the fashion show?? I mean, if the fashion show were made up of pics from the previous year's PNM's and what they ACTUALLY wore (not what was rec'd), would the PNM's that year take it a step up anyway?? Maybe the recommendation to wear jeans is actually a way of keeping it from going out-of-control w/people starting at coctail dresses 1st round and ending in a Valentino evening gown by pref.



ETA: She beat me to posting


Where is she rushing???

good point alphafrog.(your sarong with the jeans sounds cute!) i think that if pnms were able to see what the majority of last years pnms wore during their recruitment, they would wear something similar. panhellenics can put on fashion shows and post pics of suggested outfits till the cows come home, but as long as pnms can network with other pnms and with friends in sororities on that campus, they will wear what their peers and the sorority friends suggest.

washrinserepeat: is the round where it was suggested that jeans be worn the philanthrophy round? if so, they may be suggesting jeans because each chapter your daughter visits will most likely have the pnms do some sort of craft that will be donated later to their philanthrophy. things can get messy, with paint, glitter, glue, etc. or the pnms might be sitting on the floor to do the craft.

I wore jeans on the first round with the t-shirt provided by the pan hel. we were told to wear comfortable shoes. Next round is black pants and a sweater and so is the next .last is the cocktail dress.

I don't think the jeans had to be designer. As if the girls would even remember what brand I wore, and why would they be looking at my ass in the first place?

I was under the impression that sorority women looked for personality more than the clothes. If not, then I don't want to be a part of an organization that puts more emphasis on clothing than character.
I hope they know that no matter how well I dress during rush I will be bumming around in sweats most of the time, just like all college students, so who gives a shit if I wear juicy couture?

I wore jeans the first day with the Panhel T-shirt they gave us. I just wore Levis....I personally think paying $150 for a pair of jeans is ridiculous. I can't remember what I wore the 2nd day, but I probably wore nice jeans and top. I wouldn't recommend wearing jeans after the 2nd day, but I know a lot of people did.

OK that makes sense. I didn't know you were a mom. :)

Listen to what the sorority member told you privately - it is more what really happens than what is in the recruitment book. Especially if she is at a southern school or one with a very competitive rush. Yes, at some schools jeans are fine, but I know one school on here (I think it was either USC or UCLA) said in their rush book jeans were OK and a sorority member from there said that was definitely NOT true.

The only way to get girls to dress down in rush at some places would be to enforce it - as in "you may only wear a t-shirt and jeans from Old Navy or you will not be admitted into the rush parties." And of course that's not going to happen.

Depends on the school. I haven't helped out in recruitment at my school for a few years but I would imagine that jeans are the norm for at least the first day. Recruitment has never been quite as formal as other schools.

I just thought I'd throw out that on another rush thread (I want to say at Indiana U.?) it was recommended that the PNM NOT go up a notch from jeans, as this would make her look out of place and could make her stand out in a not-so-good way. I would listen to what sorority members from that particular campus are telling you.

I say if they tell you to wear jeans, you can always be cautious and wear a denim skirt (preferably not the ones that look cut up).

I would trust the sorority member's advice, because I was one of those idiots who actually went by what the school's rush booklet said and I felt extremely dressed-down! It didn't seem to affect the number of invites I got, but I did feel slightly uncomfortable. Needless to say, the next day I was a little wiser!

I wouldn't wear a skirt on Philanthropy day:)

I would err on the side of conservative, as well as on the side of wanting to present a neat and put-together appearance.

If it were me, I would look at the pictures/guidelines from Greek Life and pick the dressiest type of thing in the picture to wear. For example, if they show a picture with pants and a skirt/dress as attire for a round, pick a skirt/dress outfit to wear. If you have previous input from Greek members or alums, go by that.

after registration there should be some sort of "info packet" suggesting attire. I know jeans are basically"required" for the first two rounds at Otterbein, if for no other reason than it is BLOODY cold!!

Several years ago, I went with my cousin shopping for recruitment. When she bought a new pair of jeans for the first day of an SEC recruitment, I about fell over. Apprently, the first day (or the philanthropy day) of many recruitments suggest jeans with the recruitment t-shirt... even the sisters wear their letters with jeans that day. I could never imagine in the early 90s wearing jeans.

Maybe its just me, but no matter whay the recruitment brochures say, I would NEVER wear jeans. Plenty of other nicer pants you can wear without looking too dressy if everyone else is, in fact, in jeans.

But then again in my day, we wore dresses and pantyhose when is was 100 degrees in August, so...

We still do ;)

I have to agree that it really depends on your school.

I know in LA, about half of the girls wear jeans the first day. Nearly all of the girls wear flip flops. BUT most of the girls wear designer jeans and flip flops are almost always really cute, or rainbows.

On the safe side, I think it's a good idea to dress it up a notch. Not over the top or anything, but either a cute skirt/shirt combo, sundress, or a pair of nice khakis. Khakis are a good compromise for philanthropy day.

Well, we had one day where jeans were okay, the other days they were a big no-no. Of course, when I went through rush, we all wore designer jeans, but when I was VP Recruitment and I was having meetings with Panhell, we were told to tell our chapters that not all of us should wear 7s or citizens because we didn't want the girls to worry about having to wear designer clothes to be in a sorority. I think that was pretty good advice.

Edit: I just realized how confusing the 2nd to last sentence is! Bear with me, English was never my best subject!

No, no, no. Destroyed jeans are fashionable and cool, but inapproprate for rush (especially in southern schools). Go for dark rinse or white (if you could) jeans.

Absolutely not.

Again, I'd follow other's advice and err on the side of conservative.

WHITE JEANS?
Ick, no. I didn't realize that they made white jeans still.
White pants aren't flattering on anyone that isn't rail thin.
Plus i'd NEVER advise wearing white pants anywhere like rush- you look at the pants wrong and they have stuff all over them.
Plus you might end up pulling a Mishca Barton


ETA: Rollergirl, please STOP giving out recruitment advice. I don't know if you're honestly trying to be helpful, or if you're purposely trying to give out bad information. It doesn't matter that much to me whether or not someone is initiated (though I think it's certainly helpful!) when they're giving recruitment advice. However, you keep on saying things that are just wrong! PNMs that are new to the site and don't know your background are going to think you're just another poster giving recruitment advice.

No destroyed, white, or colored denim!

Here, I'll provide links with pictures that would have been acceptable where I went to school.

http://store.nordstrom.com/product/p...tyleID=2828650
http://store.nordstrom.com/product/p...tyleID=2873590
http://store.nordstrom.com/product/p...tyleID=2870070

I think you get my drift. Of course, it was so hot out, so a lot of girls opted for denim skirts by Sevens or Citizens. They certainly don't have to be those brands, but those give you an idea of what was okay to wear at my school!

how "destroyed" are we talking?

Amycat and irishpipes and some others will remember when we went through the stonewashed, giant rips in the knees, pour on the Clorox thing in the 80's, but even to an open bid event those would have been too casual. I would have worn my nicest jeans if I wore them.

WHITE JEANS ARE NOT COOL.

IF YOU ARE GOING TO WEAR WHITE JEANS, YOU MIGHT AS WELL WEAR AN AIRBRUSHED T-SHIRT, YOUR PUFFY-PAINTED KEDS, AND CARRY YOUR BINGO TROLLS.

Call the office of Greek Life or talk to sorority women from that school to get their feedback.

I have supported recruitment efforts at various universities. If the campus culture is trendy or more casual, dark stylish jeans are appropriate with a coordinated top and accessories. I wouldn't suggest ripped jeans with a school sweatshirt. You want to look coordinated. Recruitment is an interview week-- you want to dress to suit the occasion. You don't need to dress in business attire if the tone is casual, but even "casual attire" has its limitations.

(At my school, in my day, I never would have dreamed of even wearing pants-- always dresses.)

I'd always recommend dressing it up just a notch above what is recommended.

Why are you mkaing fun of what I wore to work today? :(

Um, HELLO, you forgot the most important part. Peg the jeans, and wear two pairs of fluorescent colored slouch socks layed over each other in constrasting obnoxious colors.

And put the banana clip in your hair

I thought those Mischa Barton pictures would be enough to scare anyone off of white pants.


There are some schools where destroyed jeans would be perfectly acceptable, but you never know if yours is one, so why take that chance?

I think that everything that can be said about the subject has been said, so I'm locking the thread.