Questions...
 

I don't have any Greeks in my family, so GC is really all I have to turn to for advice.....! Eep!

I don't know how many other GC PNMs are sailing in my boat, or might just have simple questions to ask, so... to address the issue.... I'd like to make this a thread that all of us PNMs can post our questions to the rest of you actives/alums!!

My questions:
Of late, I've noticed a trend in this Rush forum about appropriate/inappropriate clothing, etc. (particularly the notorius "black dresses"). I was just wondering exactly HOW important your attire is, and where does one draw the line between appropriate/inappropriate dress?

Also-are dress pants acceptable? Or does it depend how far into the recruitment process you are?

Does this vary from school-school/GLO-GLO?



Thanks bunches!!

-Sarah

P.S. All you actives/alums that frequent this Rush forum are awesome and I love youuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!

Re: Questions...
 

Attire is important. We (at least, myself personally) wouldn't make a judgement just based on your outfit, but this is one time you really want to look nice...it's like an interview. Others may have different ideas, but appropriate dress to me is attire that doesn't show underwear lines, too much skin, bra straps hanging out, etc. Just use good taste, and don't wear anything you wouldn't want, say, your grandparents to see you in, you know?

I would say yes on the pants, even up to Pref Day (if they're dress pants). In fact, I like seeing PNMs wearing something a little different.

School to school, definitely...but I'm not sure about GLOs on the same campus. Maybe. Anyone else have an idea?

Re: Re: Questions...
 

Some sororities are definitely "dressier" than others. That's more of a day to day thing, though it does show in pref parties. We had one group that all wore the same thing for pref (I think) but other than that no one else did...not coincidentally, they were known as the fashion plates on campus.

Re: Questions...
 

I know that on my campus the way a girl dresses can almost place her in a house. What I mean to say, is that the girls in each sorority on our campus have their own kind of set style, and just by looking at the way a girl dresses you can tell what sorority she is in. I learned which house dressed which way while I was going through formal recruitment and the girls that went through with me also saw the difference in the houses by the way they dressed. One house is the "trendy" house, one is the "classic" house, one is the "designer-names-only" house, and one is the"girl-next-door" house, not to say that this was their personality, but those were the differences in the way they dressed. I would say to observe the greeks on your campus before you go into recruitment to see if that is the case, because i know that it is not the same on every campus.

That is totally true and can look at any grl and tell which house she belongs too, I know alpha phi has the tall blonde girls, I know d phi e has the girls who are kinda urban...i think if you could catagorize us its t and a, we either have big boobs, big asses or both!

Your clothing choices DO make a difference, although how much difference it makes depends on the campus and the sorority. Some places it will make much more difference than others. The important thing isn't usually how expensive your clothes are, but whether or not you look put together, if you stand out enough from the other rushees that the sisters will be able to remember you later, stuff like that.

Basically EVERYTHING having to do with rush varies from school to school, and what's appropriate to wear is no exception. At my school, for example, dress pants would be appropriate up until Pref night, but at Pref you're expected to at least be in a skirt, and most girls wear dresses. At other schools, it may NEVER be acceptable to wear pants. And rushees at my school dress very trendy compared to many other schools, where I get the impression that a more classic style is preferable.

The best rule of thumb that I've heard is to look at your recruitment guidebook, see what they recommend, and pick the dressiest option. (If they recommend "Nice pants, khakis or a skirt" for Round 1, pick the skirt.)

Your Rho Gamma can also be a pretty good resource for questions of that nature. She's hopefully been through recruitment at least twice, so she should be able to tell you what is most acceptable.

In case any rushees from SEC schools are reading this, I would say that you probably shouldn't go the pants route for prefs. Wow 'em with your clothes savvy later (or your nose ring or whatever) but conservatism reigns that night. Especially with the alums who may be lurking in the shadows and can, in many cases, influence voting.

Carnation,
I totally agree. The only exception to that would be if you have a REALLY cute, nice capri pants set or something. That might be appropriate for the first round. Also, if your school has a philanthropy round, you may be required to wear something more casual...a denim or khaki skirt is cute for that round or some nice shorts.

MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE TOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

k sorry just got a little exited that i wasnt the only one...

I guess this goes along with my "be yourself" policy, but I would suggest wearing what makes YOU feel appropriately dressed. If you guide suggests "nice pants, khakis or skirt" and YOU feel most comfotable/appropriate in khakis, go with the khakis! If you totally love being in a skirt, wear the skirt!

Although, keep in mind, I come from a less competivite greek system, but I think it all plays into you "finding your home". If you have to dress in a way that you wouldn't normally, I really don't see how that's helping you find that.

"Because sometimes the best way to find out who you are, is to go to a place where you don't have to be anybody else!" (My fav bid day shirt!)

Clothes make a difference... just like in day to day life... no matter how much we hate it, we do get judged on what we wear.
Sororities are looking for women who know how to present themselves for the situation that they are going into. They want to know that you're not going to have trouble with the dress code for formal meetings, or that you know when it's appropriate to "flaunt" a bit and when you should cover it up. (rush is def. a time to cover up) It shouldn't be about labels though, it doesn't matter who is wearing 7 jeans or who is wearing jeans from Walmart... it's about who knows how to dress herself for the occasion. Your Rho Gamma should be giving you some guidlines about what type of clothing for each round at your school because it does vary from campus to campus how dressy each round gets... but as long as you follow those guidelines, you should do fine =)

oh i almost forgot...i'm going to go to an SEC school...

I hope you'll post your rush story, 4runnerstar! The SEC stories are always fun to read. What school will you be attending?