It’s that time of year again for the University of Georgia. The new class of 2021 has been admitted, and spring semester is coming to a close. As the new baby bulldawgs scramble to find their roommates, their dorms for next year, and their majors, they are also prompted by UGA Panhellenic to rush for a sorority. A sorority is an organization for women that are bonded together by a certain philanthropy. Fall Rush is the formal recruitment process of the eighteen Panhellenic sororities on campus that consists of different events or rounds for PNMs (Potential New Members) to go through. For the Univesity of Georgia, recruitment sign-ups for fall 2017 opened up April 1st here. The question is though, should you sign up for rush, even if you are not a freshman?
Don’t worry, you don’t even have to wait until the end of the article because the answer is: YES!
If you are like me, you went through freshman year curious about the whole sorority situation. You didn’t sign up for rush like the hundreds of girls before the school year did, but you did have friends that were affiliated with the different ones around campus. Of course, it sparked some interest. Sororities hold philanthropy events, have sisterhood events, and have socials with fraternities among other things right on campus. At a large, public university like UGA, they are very prevalent in Athens. If you are interested in becoming a part of sorority life on campus and you are not an incoming freshman, it is still plausible to join one!
There are countless girls that go through rush that are sophomores and juniors, and they all go through the same experience as freshmen. I personally know of people who went through recruitment as sophomores and they don’t regret their decision one bit! Sororities are categorized by their pledge class year rather than your personal year in college. Listed below are some advantages you have rushing even as a non-freshman.
1. You already have a feel for the sororities.
If you have gone to philanthropy events or have friends in sororities, you already kind of know what you are about to get yourself into. When you have been on campus for a year or more, it is easy to get a feel for the different groups of girls. It may be easier for you to go through rush because you know more than incoming freshmen!
2. There is an upperclassmen quota.
“It gives upperclassmen and transfer students a greater opportunity to pledge during the Formal Recruitment process as they are not considered in the same pool as freshmen.” This is quoted from UGA’s website. Even though nothing is different for upperclassmen during recruitment, they are given an advantage because they have fewer years to rush compared to freshmen.
3. Meeting new people
Of course, you have met amazing people during your first year of college, but why not meet more?
4. For the hell of it
Rushing is not a commitment for joining a sorority. It’s a process of events where you get to meet more of UGA’s organizations and other UGA students. There is no requirement to join one at the end of the process. The week that it lasts (the week before classes start), can be a week where you can just experience something different and forge new friendships! If you have had any curiosity at all, there is nothing to lose (besides the registration fee) to go through this experience.
All of my friends that have gone through rush have gained positive experiences from that week. They have gained friends and knowledge about themselves through the process. Rush can be considered hard because of the long hours and work that goes into it, but the best things in life never come easy. It would be better to go through something challenging and end up with an amazing group of sisters at the end of the process or experiences (if you decide not to pledge) than not experience it all and not knowing whether it is for you. Take the chance! If you are considering this, you truly have the advantage. College molds you into a new person, specifically your first year, and you have probably already started to figure out what kind of person you are and want to be. As a college sophomore and up, you are more mature and settled into UGA’s atmosphere, and you can take away more from rushing. Take the chance and do it!