[psusue]

Every sorority that I know of has some way of helping members pay their dues if they don't have unlimited funds (and contrary to what some may believe, very few sorority members do). This can range from granting the woman a special consideration status (as it would be called in my sorority), giving her a grant, etc to reduce the amount of her dues for a set period of time, however, a sorority woman is expected to pay her dues. Being in a sorority has greatly improved my money managing abilities, and the financial commitment is a part of sorority life. That is not to say that certain exceptions cannot be made for certain situations, but it would be best if you went into it realizing that the vast majority of the time, you will be expected to pay your dues on time, every time. It is called financial responsibility, and college is a great time to start with this. Let me give you an example from my life.

When I first joined Sigma, I had had jobs in college but nothing very serious as I was only paying for extraneous expenses at the time. When I joined I knew that my parents could not and would not pay for my dues, and I do not come from money anyway, so my only option was to get a job. For me I chose babysitting after school because it was something that I loved to do, it paid pretty well, and it was semi flexible hours. The way our dues work is that they're about $300 per semester, base cost (i.e. national plus local dues) with things like tshirts, formal, certain sisterhoods, etc being extra. This is split up into about $100 per month, starting in September for the fall and January in the spring. Each month, dues are sent out via our online billing system (billhighway) on the 5th of the month and they are due by the 25th, with a one week grace period after that date if it's needed. That calculates to about $100 per month. That means $25 per week. In other chapters it's significantly more than this (for example, one chapter on campus has dues that are $800 per semester but theirs is completely all inclusive) but the idea is the same; you need to figure out how much dues are and how much you need to earn per paycheck to pay them. Some sisters also use their summer job/winter break job money to pay them all up front, because that is easier to them. I prefer to use my babysitting money as I go, but that is me. You will have to decide what works for you.

In all honesty, I was very nervous about the financial commitment before I joined Sigma. But it is a part of it and I really think I am so much better at managing money because of it. My mom even noticed that since I joined, I haven't overdrawn my account and I have saved more than I ever have, and it's because now I have to plan for my expenses. Honestly I think that it is great training for life and the opportunities the cost have afforded me has well exceeded my investment. As someone said earlier on here, at the rate of $2 per friend per month (and the endless personal growth and leadership opportunities it's given me), my dues have been well worth the ends I've received as a sorority woman. Best of luck to you, talk to the Greek life office, and let us know how everything goes.