Ever wonder how Rush works at Hamilton? It’s been going on for the past few weeks, and you may not even have noticed. Greek life occupies a different place in Hamilton life than it does at most colleges and universities with Greek life. While you may notice the beautiful mansion-like upper classmen housing, such as Eells and Ferg, which are remnants of the Hamilton’s Greek past, you will not find a single operating sorority of fraternity house on the current Hamilton campus. Unlike southern Greek life, Hamilton’s Greek life is much smaller, with only about 30% of the student body involved in it. Due to these differences rush operates differently at Hamilton, too, in quite a few aspects:
Time of the Year: Instead of having a fall rush, or even both a fall and a spring rush, Hamilton only has a spring rush. According to the college Greek life report, rush cannot start until the first week of the spring semester, and bids cannot be given out until after spring break. This means that if you rush the first time around you will rush as a second semester freshman and pledge as a first semester sophomore, but if you decide after your first year at Hamilton that you want to rush, you will have to rush as a sophomore and pledge as a junior.
Duration: Unlike other schools, which feature a “rush week,” in which you return to campus a week early from winter break to rush and meet all the different Greek organizations in one overwhelming week, Hamilton rush lasts many weeks. Since bids cannot be given out until after spring break at the earliest, rushers and rushes have 7 to 8 weeks to get acquainted. The length of rush may seem strange, but it is a great way to really get to know the sisters and brothers and find where, or if, you belong in Greek life.
Acceptance: Having only a limited number of sororities and fraternities, unfortunately, not every one who rushes will be accepted in a Greek organization. Unlike the large universities with many Greek organizations where everyone will be accepted in one, Hamilton Greek organizations will only take 20 or so new members each rush, so be careful to think about your desire to join a Greek organization.
If you are looking for more information you can find it here on the Hamilton website:
http://www.hamilton.edu/studentactivities/greek-life
And remember rush is supposed to be fun, so just have a good time.