thinking of greek life...
 

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go for it!
 

You are never too old for greek life! Several threads have been posted here at GC about this very topic. If you search the old threads, you will read that most people will agree that you should check out rush with an open mind. Good luck!

I agree with Cream, that you are never too old, GO for it and keep us posted !!

Don't worry about your age at all. I am 21 and I rushed this semester. As long as you will be at the school for a while there should be no problem. Hope you have fun during recruitment!

Anne Marie

Go for it! It's one of the better decisions I've ever made.

GO GO GO!
 

I was 25 when I started my Local! I am still very envolved in My Chapter and My International! Try the Alum thread and see those that are being initiated after they have Graduated!

We as Greeks always need people who want to be members of the Greatest Organizations in the world! Welcome to the GC Site, Look around, you will find many Freinds here!http://www.plauder-smilies.de/happy/xyxwave.gif

Also, if you want to find ANYTHING OUT, ask on this Site and You will have an answer back with in 12-24 hours! I guarentee it!:D

No way, you're not too old! We just bid a senior (she's got another year or two left).

YES! You should rush and also here is a thread of someone who is in a similar situation to you! :)

to rush or not to rush...
 

Thank you all SO much for all of your input. I am feeling MUCH better about the whole situation!! I will most likely lean towards the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority, of which my boyfriends sister is a member. All of the Kappas that I've met so far are SUPER sweet, and seem like a great bunch. My only three concerns are these: Time (it will be my first semester at a new school, meaning clean slate as far as GPA goes, and I have to keep it as high as I can. I need to prove that I can handle going Greek AND my classes.) Two: Hazing kinda sorta scares the hell out of me. For one, I am 5' tall, and a mere 98 lbs. I don't drink(much), I might have had 5 beers last year total. Is this still a big deal?? Do many soror's do it? Three: Cost. I am living in an apartment, the cost of which is COMPLETELY out of my pocket. How much am I looking at as far as dues go? And, my junior and senior years, I would end up living in the house. DOes the cost of living in the house compare to living in a dorm?? Thank you all again SOOO much. You have no idea how much I appreciate all of this. :D

glad to see that there are MANY other students out there in my boat! makes me feel MUCH better! thanks guys ;)

a couple of vague answers
 

okay here's the deal.

my entire pledge class was 'old' out of the nine of us,
we had 2 who were 21
we had 4 who were 20
we had 3 who were 19

no one in my pledge class was a freshman, and one of the girls graduates this may (our one year anniversary)

as for hazing, NO SELF-RESPECTING SORORITY PARTICIPATES IN HAZING -- there is no purpose in it, besides causing harm to the new members and the chapter in general

grades - every sorority on my campus has study hall hours available to both new members and actives. kind of a set aside time to concentrate on your classes, after all that is the reason you are in college in the first place

money - this will be laid out for you plainly at your rush parties, so that you will know what you're getting into long before you sign a pref. card. I encourage you to talk with your boyfriend's sister, and see what she can tell you about greek life on that particular campus, as each campus has it's own unique 'shine'

=) okay i'm done now


PS - i LOVE your user name! DMB is awesome!

thanks jessica! youre 'vague' reply really did help! :D the more and more that members of the greek community reply, the better off i will end up being. thanks again to everyone. your encouragement is overwhelming. and yes dave matthews band is the greatest. ;) -kristin

Re: to rush or not to rush...
 

Congratulations on your decision to check out sorority life. As an alumna, I have a few words of advice for you...

First, go through Rush with an open mind. Just because you like the Kappas and your boyfriend's sister is one doesn't mean that Kappa Kappa Gamma is the only sorority for you. It very well could be -- but you should give the other groups a chance to impress you also! :)

Secondly, concerning hazing: No NPC sorority is allowed to haze. Their National Headquarters forbid it, as do the schools. So, please don't worry about hazing. There are enough stupid rumors going around campuses to scare just about anyone away from Greek Life -- but the vast majority of them are just that - rumors with no facts to back them up!

As for alcohol, drinking is not a requirement of joining any NPC sorority. If it was, then my chapter wouldn't have ever made quota! :D It's true that alcohol is going to be around at parties and such, just like it is at practically any non-Greek-related campus party. However, you do not have to drink if you don't enjoy it, or if you don't feel comfortable doing it. Trust me, whether your preference is Sprite or vodka, your sisters will be your friends regardless of what beverage you have in your hand.

Thirdly, academics is at the forefront of sorority life for most chapters. You have to maintain a certain GPA in order to attend sorority events, so studying is strongly encouraged. Many chapters even have set study hours for their members to help girls prepare for their classes, and it's pretty easy to find a sister who has already taken a class that you're about to get into who can help you out!

Finally, there are definitely costs to joining a sorority. Your pledge/new member period will be the most expensive, because there will be Initiation fees, badge fees, etc. My advice is to ask the sororities during Rush to tell you upfront how much pledging their particular group will cost, and how much you can expect to spend per semester on standard sorority events.

Dues vary from campus to campus, from chapter to chapter, and from sorority to sorority. For example, my dues were only $45 a month, but the DZ girls that I advise at UGA pay much more. The reason is that they have a house and a ton more activities to participate in each semester, so more money is needed to plan their events. Also, the majority of the time, living in the sorority house with their private meal plan is actually cheaper than living in a dorm or an apartment!

Something else you should take into consideration is that you'll have other things to pay for in addition to dues. T-shirts, professional pictures from socials and formals, and assorted sorority memorabilia are all things that you'll probably want to purchase. They aren't required purchases, of course, but you'll probably want to factor in those added costs when you're trying to figure out if you can handle the financial requirements that come with a sorority membership.

Please know that I'm not telling you any of this to dissuade you from joining a sorority. Quite honestly, I feel that sorority dues are pretty cheap when considering all the benefits that Greek Life offers! :) All I'm trying to do is make sure that you think everything through before accepting a bid.

Good luck with everything, and please keep us updated on your decisions!!!!

thanks!
 

thanks again to everyone who responded. any other pointers?? what can i expect during rush week? during recruitment?

Each campus handles recruitment differently. Some hold formal recruitment the week before schools starts in the fall, some just after during a (verrrry fullllll weekend), some spread it over several weekends after school starts, and some hold deferred recruitment either just before school starts back in Jan. or just after. So what to expect differs from campus to campus.

Check out the web page for the school and see if they have a greek life page. Sometimes you have to use the search feature and look up panhellenic or sorority. Some - for example:

http://www.union.arizona.edu/csil/greek/index.php (Arizona)
http://www.nmsu.edu/Campus_Life/Stud...tml/index.html (New Mexico State)
http://www.auburn.edu/panhellenic/ind2.html (Auburn)

have really extensive web pages with lots of information about greek life and some don't.

If you tell us where you'll be going, there may be someone from that campus or familar with that campus that can more accurately answer your questions.

Also, if you haven't already .. you might try reading through the threads from women who went through recruitment last fall.

Good luck!!