I might have found where I want my letters to be!

[OnAMission]

Originally Posted by 1964Alum

Back in the Stone Age when I rushed, our rush was deferred for a year. Had I rushed as a Freshman immediately coming to a large university and rushing at that time, my experience would quite likely have been different. But I had a year to look over the six Panhellenic sororities as they also had that time to look over perspective members. Ialso researched carefully the activities outside their sororities that the various members were involved in. I did also look at the national reputations that all six groups had. This for life after college. I had also already met many of the girls and had a pretty good idea of their reputations on campus and what their priorities were. Mine were high standards of academic achievement, high standards of reputation, diversity within the groups in terms of majors, interests, and the like, and well-rounded members. I decided that I would likely be happy in any of my top three groups, and indeed all three invited me to their preference. Chi Omega was my first choice from the get-go, and I felt very fortunate that they extended me a bid. But my other pref group was a close second. And the group that I declined their invitation to for pref was right up there. Honestly, any of these would have been a good group for me. BUT!!!!! I also kept a very open mind, knowing I was in a very competitive situation and took nothing for granted! There were many, many high quality young women rushing and very few slots to fill. That was before the days of RFM and a very high likelihood of being placed. I did not assume anything and think that it is a very bad idea to do so, both then and now. IMO it is very important to know who you are in terms of your values and what you hope to have in a sorority experience. I wish you the best!

Originally Posted by GoldBows

I think it's important to research each organization prior to going through recruitment, but I would really advise you to still keep an open mind. I also did my research prior to rush and had my top two sororities picked out - one because their philanthropy is something deeply personal and important to me, and the other because I knew some of the girls and thought I had a lot in common with them, and that I would fit in really well. But when I did go through recruitment I didn't feel at home with either of those organizations and instead found my home in a sorority I hadn't really put much thought into. My organization's philanthropies are not causes I would have been passionate about until I joined, and I didn't know any of my sisters before recruitment. But I remember, from the very first recruitment event that I just felt like this was the place for me - these were my people. It was an instant, natural connection. The first girl I spoke to wound up being my big and I'm forever grateful to have her in my life. So do your research but don't let it blind you from other organizations.

I'm a nontraditional (online) and older student, currently pursuing my masters, so my choices are much more limited to begin with.