Recruitment 2016: Go Greek!

Kent State University Panhellenic Sorority Recruitment: September 20th- 26th, 2016

I was to start off with a disclaimer, although I was a freshman at a university three hours away from home, I wasn't new to greek life. Through my childhood I was privileged to seeing the system I was about to become a part of and how it impacts women with the good, bad, and ugly. I like to say that since I popped out my mother's womb, that I was held close by greek life, my mother, and her letters. My aunt and mother had both rushed with the same sorority two years apart at the same university and became sister in the Zeta Tau Alpha fraternity for women. Growing up I was baby sat by younger sisters (my mother was an advisor), helped with the fundraiser for the ZTA alumni chapter since 2005, and was rocked to sleep by their chapter songs. Many years later my older sister went through rush at the same school my Mom and aunt went to but became a Delta Zeta, which despite the strong love of ZTA was where she belonged. I have watched her become a stronger and more confident women because of the life lessons and friendship with her chapter and sisters, which I was eager to do myself.

Because I love all chapter on campus for different reasons I am not going to share my specific experience with recruitment week because every chapter is different from year to year and everyone has different experiences. But I want to highlight why I went greek and what greek has to offer to you. For me I partially went through recruitment because it was an unspoken requirement; I w as never told I had to but it felt like I had to give it a chance at the bare minimum. But more importantly I went greek because I wanted to better myself and join a community of love and respect. I wanted to be my best self while having people who would always have my back.

Tips for recruitment week:

1. Being cute is all well and good, but comfort is a must-- essentially be yourself:

You will be on your feet for hours and having blisters or wardrobe malfunctions are embarrassing. I tried to dress cute but wore nice flats with insoles all week until preference. Trust me, I didn't regret it when on preference round I was able to wear heels and feel more comfortable than the girls that wore heels all week and had some killer blisters. Now if you are the type of girl who loves heels and wear them all the time, go for it and be you, just be aware of how the choice will turn out after a couple of hours.

2. DRINK LOTS OF WATER:

You will do a lot of loud talking because the room will be packed. If the person you are talking to, cannot hear or understand you because you are thirsty, what is the point. I personally brought a water bottle in with me to the rounds and it made it so much easier to talk and I was more comfortable.

3. Be presentable:

You want to be presentable visually and personally. Just like a job interview, you are trying to sell yourself in a way, be kind and curtious to the active members you are speaking to. Keep in mind that first impressions really matter here due to the sheer number of PNMs and short time, you want to be unique and individual while keeping the fact you went out partying last weekend and can't remember anything to yourself. Each chapter is looking for unique girls that will add to the chapter with their individual strengths, be yourself, but remember this is basically an interview.

4. Be positive:

You can express your feelings, but complaining about your roommate, blisters, or the weather is not the best thing for you to do. This goes with saying that gossiping is dangerous and can be very awkward, so just keep it to yourself. Most people do not like the girl that always complains and never has anything good to say. You are going through recruitment for a reason, so be positive and act like you want to be here by trying to be positive about everything, because everyone is tired and has blisters.

5. Clean up social media:

A lot of chapters will look you up on social media during recruitment week to see if you are in fact who you say you are. Needless to say, keep the dirt off social media and try to keep it professional. Plus, if you clean it up now and maintain it, there is no need to scramble to clean it up when you apply for jobs and internships. Keep it flattering and you in the best light as you are a great girl for a chapter to have.

6. Prepare a recruitment week survival kit:

This for me was super useful. My kit had deodorant, water bottles (more than one at all times), breath mints, blotting sheets, band-aids (for blisters), black flats, and granola bars. I feel like I was able to be my best self because I had prepared before hand for most circumstances. Having put on some fresh deodorant, mints, or a water bottle helped me feel more confident and prepared to present my best self. I would advise to think of things you would need beforehand and add to the list, you can never be too prepared.

7. Make the decision that is best for you:

I was one of those kids who was lost because I really wanted to be in another chapter because my sister was apart of it at another university, and was blinded by this. In the end, you are the one joining the chapter and it needs to be for your best interest. Although I would have been okay at the sorority my sister was in, it was not a perfect fit. It is hard to trust the system, but it almost always works out for the best. It might feel selfish, it is your life, your chapter, and your college career. Make the decisions that will help you be the best version of yourself and help you grow, because these four years will never happen again and you want to be able to look back at the decisions saying it was the right one.

8. Never underestimate finances:

Although greek life is AMAZING, dues can be expensive, especially as a new member. Personally, I am paying for everything in my life by myself, so finances were a big deal, but do not make decisions off of finances alone. Most of the girls in my chapter work part time jobs for due so it is not that bad. If a chapter has not given you a financial sheet, ask. Talk to a active member about finances and what dues are like. My chapter's dues go down the longer you are in the group, and can be paid in one lump sum at the beginning of the semester or in monthly sections with the payment plan. My biggest point here is be realistic, if you cannot afford greek life then do some thinking and decide it is worth the commitment and financial responsibility. For me I decided although I could not pay the lump sum, I could get a part time job and work to pay it off because I think the experience is worth the money. Plus there are scholarships for members once you have joined from individual donors, alumni chapters, and national.

9. Relax:

I know this seems like a dumb comment, but relax. Be your amazing self and let your true colors shine through. Even if you do not get asked back to chapters, the world is not over. There is always informal recruitment and next years, just talk to your recruitment councilor. In my case, girls who were not asked back to chapters had the opportunity to go through Sigma Delta Tau recruitment are be a founding part of the colonization process for Kent State's newest sorority, and also informal recruitment in the spring. Sometimes things do not work out in the way you want it to because there is a bigger plan out there for you, where you belong.

10.Have fun:

Unless you are being forced to go through recruitment, you are here because you choose to be. The long days of going to parties and meeting hundreds of new people for a week is exhausting but it is worth it. Even my introverted self loved being able to meet new people and find out what each chapter was about and how they donated time, money, and services to their philanthropic organization(s).

To this point, will be initiated in late January 2016, I love greek life, Chi Omega's Lambda Delta chapter at Kent State University, and what it provides for not only me but the community. I am able to live our the six purposes of Chi Omega everyday and grow as a person. I love making friendships that are long lasting, meeting people from different backgrounds and identities, giving to the Make-A-Wish Foundation and granting wishes, loving my fellow greek organizations, and so on. Each person goes greek for different reasons, but I joined for sisterhood (friendship) and philanthropy (giving back) and my chapter and greek life on Kent State has lived up to this and gone futher. I would not have changed these experiences for the world and cannot see where Chi Omega will take me and where my chapter will go!

#goGREEK #ChiOmega #IloveyoulikeXO