Transferring To A University Without My Chapter

[LovelyLiving]

Hey lovelies! I just came across this old thread I started last year and wanted to provide an update and some quick advice for anyone who might stumble upon it in the future! Also, thank you to everyone for the kind tips!!

I ended up sticking it out at my school for another 2 semesters (finishing sophomore year), and here's what I have to say from that experience. First, Greek Life can be AMAZING, however, your personal priorities will always be more important. In those 2 semesters, I held an exec. board position, took on a little sister I cherish, and even traveled across the country thanks to Alpha Sigma Alpha. So in all honesty, I highly suggest making the best out of whatever predicament you are in and seeing if you can make your current situation work, but ultimately, I fully support everyone putting their individual needs first, even if that means leaving Greek Life behind.

If you find that you are stuck between choosing your chapter or your education, please put your education first. I was able to make my time in my chapter fun, but throughout that time my general happiness didn't improve and I took on a lot of unnecessary stress in regards to everything outside of the sorority. If you are not fully happy in your situation, things can and will slip (i.e. your gpa, chapter duties, socializing, sleep...). In the end, I've come to terms with giving up active membership in ASA and going early alum. for the sake of finding a school that I'm both proud of and comfortable in, and that's okay; in fact, it's been wonderful rediscovering and challenging myself this year. And as several others stated, there are so many other campus organizations at every school to check out and fill that void, and if you're lucky, some schools have ways to keep their transfer students involved in the Greek community even if their chapter isn't present at that campus.

(BIG NOTE: CONSIDER YOUR FINANCES!! Doing 2 years and transferring isn't always cheap, especially if credits don't transfer with you! That is really the only thing I do regret about not transferring sooner, so the earlier you make a decision the better! And there is absolutely nothing wrong with taking a semester or year off to figure things out!)

TL;DR: Your needs beat any Greek affiliation, because the memories you make when you are truly happy and proud can easily match the memories you make in a sorority, especially if the only thing keeping you happy at your school is that sisterhood. Try your hardest to make things work if you truly value the opportunities afforded by Greek Life, but research the heck out of your other options and do what is best for you in the long run.

Good luck to everyone trying to find their way in this mess of a world, things can and do work out, I promise! ALAM!! 💖💖💖


PS- If anyone needs someone to talk to about something like this, I'm completely open to PMs! You aren't alone in this! 💖

[33girl]

I’m glad that you were able to enjoy two years worth of active membership, as well as find another school that suited your needs. I do, however, question your characterization of our sorority as “extremely regional.” That would seem to be saying that chapters are only located in one area; however, quite the opposite is true, and we are expanding to states and areas of the country we haven’t colonized in previously. I hope you have found opportunities for enrichment and fellowship at your current institution.

[ASTalumna06]

I'm glad things worked out for you!

Just something to keep in mind: your membership in ASA is for a lifetime. While it may seem like you didn't have a long time as a collegiate sister... remember that no one truly does. Even if you went to your original university for four years, it's still ONLY four years. At AST's Convention over the summer, I met one of our oldest living members, and she's in her 90s! Alumnae membership has been so rewarding for me and for so many other women here on Greekchat. I'm sure everyone here would tell you that you have sisters all around you, even if there aren't any collegiate chapters, and there are so many ways to stay involved after you graduate.

Good luck to you!

[LovelyLiving]

Thanks for the kind words, and I completely understand what you both are getting at! I've had the opportunity to attend several conferences in my time and continue to stay active and communicate with sisters across the country after going alum, which I'm 100% grateful for! I didn't mean to belittle membership, but when I was a freshman I was under the impression that active membership was the only worthwhile membership, but I was completely wrong. You are both exactly right in membership being for life, being an active alum member is just as fantastic. What I think I didn't make clear was that going early alum and staying connected is a great option to consider if that's what's best for you (because I didn't realize that going early alum was actually a good option at the time, it honestly felt taboo) instead of staying at a school that isn't good for you just to maintain active membership.

As for my regional comment I made as a freshman, I still defend that to an extent, as I'm from a southern chapter, and there are significantly less of us down here than, say, the northeast. For me, I had no choice but to go early alum if I wanted to stay in state, as (according to the chapter locator on our website, as well as every website of the schools I considered in my transfer process) there is not another collegiate chapter located in my state, and only one in each of my neighboring states. It's a similar issue with primarily southern chapters I've worked with that have only recently expand North, definitely not just an ASA thing at all. I've celebrated the founding of new chapters in neighboring states, so we are definitely growing down here, I didn't mean to deny that, but I've met several other sisters (in various sororities) facing this same issue upon contemplating transferring, so it isn't a non-issue.

I simply meant to create a platform for conflicted members to find advice or hear other member's stories. I love ASA with all my heart, but this was a tough experience that I'd hate others to struggle with or feel alone in like I did. I truly appreciate everyone who loves the organization enough to defend it, but I truly mean no harm, promise!