the lowdown

[musemuse]

Hi,
I'm a 20 year old English Student and I'm going to be going to UCSB for 1 year beginning this Fall, I was just wondering if some of you could give me some information about sororities as they are not something that Uni's have over here. I am curious about rushing, and considering the possibility, however as I am only a year abroad student, I am not sure yet. Any information would be appreciated!

Thanks a lot!!
Hannah

[WhiteDaisy128]

Wow Hannah! First off, welcome to Greek Chat! I'm excited that you are interested in Greek Life duruing your Universtiy Years! It will be very exciting for you going so far away from home...so I think it would be awesome if you rushed and found a home away from home with one of the houses on campus...

Sororities are groups of women (kinda like a club, but oh so much more) who come together as sisters and live by similiar ideals and values. It's a support network, an academic network, and a social network.

To get into a sorority you go through some form of "rush" or recruitment. That is where you get to spend time for each sorority and pick whether or not you feel at home with that set of girls...at the same time, they pick if they feel like you fit in well and would be a great addition to their chapter (which I'm sure you would be to any chapter!).

Here is some more information about UCSB specifically:

Greek life homepage:
http://www.sa.ucsb.edu/osl/GreekLife/Index.asp

On the campus, these are the Panhellenic Sororities (Panhellenic is an umbrella organization that oversees all of the organizations):
Alpha Chi Omega
Alpha Delta Pi
Alpha Epsilon Phi
Alpha Phi
Delta Delta Delta
Delta Gamma
Gamma Phi Beta
Kappa Alpha Theta
Kappa Kappa Gamma
Pi Beta Phi
Kappa Sigma

Some of the chapters don't appear to have webpages...you can also look at:

http://www.geocities.com/ucsbpanhell...ororities.html

It is the College Panhellenic for UCSB and has pictures of all of the houses at least.

Hope this helps!

[WhiteDaisy128]

Hmm...I just re-read your post...and I do want to mention, that joining a sororoity when you'll only be at the school for one year might be hard...when sororities take new members, they want women who will be around for a while...usually...but there are always exceptions...

[CutiePie2000]

Well, to get started, here are some great links to some wonderful women's sororities.
http://www.npcwomen.org/

Just to let you know, some women's sororities are called "Women's Fraternities". No, this does not mean that men are allowed to join. For example, I am in a sorority but its correct name is "Delta Gamma Fraternity".

Why isn't Delta Gamma called a sorority officially? At the time of the founding of most of the older women's fraternities, the Greek derivative phratres of phratria, meaning tribes or groups of people with similar interests and backgrounds, was the basis for the title, fraternity. No doubt, because the women's organizations were modeled in many ways after the older men's groups, the women simply used the title fraternity, too.

This is a very good link about Sorority Recruitment:
http://panhellenic.tripod.com/FAQ.html

I think it is great that you want to learn about sororities already...you will be so well versed in Greeks by the time you get to college.

I also wanted to let you know that generally speaking, sororities are a lot more similar than they are different. We have initiation vows that are different in word and ritual, but identical in spirit and ideal. All have similar characteristics like colors, badges (a badge is the sorority pin that the initiated members are permitted to wear), a Founding history, philanthropy work etc.


This is awesome for information too:
http://www.atlantapanhellenic.org/rush.htm and also:
http://www.houston-panhellenic.org/rush/generalinfo.htm
http://www.phoenixpanhellenic.org/
http://www.phoenixpanhellenic.org/recruitment_faq.html

Be sure to check out the "Rush" forum as well....that's the old word for "Recruitment".....

Actually, it is ironic that your name is Hannah and you want to do rush at UCSB, because there is a Delta Gamma chapter at UCSB, and one of DG's symbols is "Hannah"!!! True story...click here: http://www.indiana.edu/~deltag/hannah.html and here:
http://www.unl.edu/dg/hannah.html

[CutiePie2000]

Originally posted by WhiteDaisy128
Hmm...I just re-read your post...and I do want to mention, that joining a sororoity when you'll only be at the school for one year might be hard...when sororities take new members, they want women who will be around for a while...usually...but there are always exceptions...

What White Daisy says is true, generally speaking sororities do prefer women who can give a few years to the sorority, not just one...however, I still encourage you to do Rush/Recruitment.

There is also something called "COB" or Continuous Open Bidding. For sororities that do not fill up to "capacity" during Formal Recruitment, COB is like an "informal recruitment". Sororities extend bids ("Invitations") to women that they would like to have for a sister. That might be a great option too, in case Formal Rush does not "turn out".

UCSB sororities:
http://www.sa.ucsb.edu/osl/GreekLife...conference.asp
______________________
Hannah, I also wanted to mention that there is a UK Alumnae Panhellenic (all-sorority women) Association: http://www.ukpa.info/
You could email them with your questions, and perhaps even meet some of the women and ask them your questions in person?

There is also a Delta Gamma alumnae association in England:
http://www.geocities.com/londondg/
(that is the sorority that WhiteDaisy and I belong to)

and also be sure to check the thread called Greekchat London. There are a few Greek Chatters in England and you might be able to meet them and get further insights on sorority life.

GOOD LUCK!

[lauralaylin]

My chapter took a woman from Germany who was only around for one year, and she was great. Everyone wanted this woman because she was different from everyone else. Being from Germany made her special. I definitely recommend that you try it out. There are a lot of alum chapters in Europe too, so you don't have to stop being involved when you leave!

[GeekyPenguin]

Originally posted by lauralaylin
My chapter took a woman from Germany who was only around for one year, and she was great. Everyone wanted this woman because she was different from everyone else. Being from Germany made her special. I definitely recommend that you try it out. There are a lot of alum chapters in Europe too, so you don't have to stop being involved when you leave!

A lot of our chapters have taken foreign exchange students - they're so much fun! The president of one of the locals at Platteville was actually from Sweden.

[Tom Earp]

Are you taking English as a Student, or are you A Student from Ehgland??

If you are a Student from England, you cannot learn English In the USA, you Learn American! We do not have Pints of Lagar in the USE! Nor the Rose and Crown, SherlockHolmes, The Red Rose, The Crown, or how many ever Pubs that I was at in England!

On the other hand, it is always nice to meet people from other States, of the USA, The different Races, Religions, and Countrys!

If you are on this site, you have the best chance to learn about what we are all about!

Amazing, have not see another post from the starter!!!

[CatStarESP4]

If you are interested joining a sorority while you are at UCSB, go for it!

[musemuse]

thanks for all the info, I will look into it when i get there in September!
The thing about "Hannah", made me chuckle a bit, it's kind of a good description of me!

[musemuse]

oh and btw, I am a student from England, not a student studying English.