Rushing As A Junior?
 

I'm now in my junior year at the University of Arizona and I'm debating whether or not to rush next week. Through my first two years of college I haven't really been able to create that close group of friends like I had in high school and I don't feel like I'm having as much fun as I should be. I tried rushing last spring, but it kind of turned into a disaster because I had class and intramurals when all the events were taking place. I'm just a little worried that I might be poorly received because I'm a junior now and I know that mostly the people who are rushing are freshmen. Should I still go for it or am I probably not going to fit in with the whole process because of how old I am? Anyone have any stories or experiences with rushing as a junior? Thanks.

I myself joined my Fraternity , Beta Gamma Nu at Cal State Northridge in California during my third year so I can imagine your situation. I can tell you that everything depends on the organization(s) in which you are interested. Get an idea of the kind of PEOPLE make up the fraternity/sorority (not sure if you are male or female) as well as other people who are interested. At the end of the day, these are the people you will be creating a certain connection too. And as a junior you probably will have more things on your plate to take care of, i.e. academic related items, sports, work, internship. Be mindful of the time and energy commitment and decide if the fraternity/sorority organizational demands will work out. Be smart, do your research, don't get sweet-talked and do NOT jump in just for fun and friends...it's too expensive for that. And on another note, there may be some non-Greek organization that may give you what you want. But you gotta do some looking.

I pledged as a junior at a large university, probably similar to Arizona in many ways. It was somewhat awkward to be the oldest guy in the pledge class and I had to control the inclination to act like a big brother to my pledge brothers. But, it was all worth it after initiation. My advice would be to go into recruitment with confidence and expect to answer the question of why you still want to join a fraternity. It would be worthwhile to rehearse some "talking points" much like you would for an interview just so you're not caught unprepared. Stress that you still have two years left on campus to be an active member. Just realize that your best chance for a bid will probably be from the smaller or rebuilding chapters.

Thanks for the responses. Rush starts tomorrow so I'm going to give it a go and see what happens. Do you think it'd be awkward or pointless if I visited one of the houses that turned me down last time? I liked this fraternity, and when I visited during spring rush I pretty much just took the tour of the house and then left because I had an intramural game I had to go to. Still, they called me back two days later to come for a dodgeball tournament, except since I had class late by the time I got there it was over and everyone was just kind of sitting around. I didn't do a good job of trying to introduce myself to too many people that night and then I didn't hear from them anymore. This time around I'm confident I'll have more time to try and get to know more people so do you think it'd be worth a shot?

If you liked the house last spring, why not go back, but be prepared to quickly explain that you are still interested in them. It might be awkward or they might be welcoming. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. However, have a number other chapters in mind to visit, be prepared to invest your time into the rush process and keep an open mind.