Nicole Molino, a 22-year-old behavioral health counseling major from Paramus, N.J., is the membership director for Phi Mu Fraternity. She is the woman behind the planning of informal and formal recruitment events. If you’ve ever wondered who you should thank for the free food at the many recruitment events that the sorority hosts, Nicole is your girl!
Originally, Nicole started out at the University of Southern Carolina, where she was initiated into the Lambda Theta chapter of Phi Mu. But after some time, she decided to transfer to Drexel. “I decided to transfer to a school closer to home so I could see my family more than three times during the school year—South Carolina is 12 hours away from my home in New Jersey!” Nicole said. At Drexel, she was reinstated as an active chapter member.
Nicole ran for the position of membership director, also known as recruitment chair, and got it! As such, her responsibilities include planning and organizing both formal and informal events for recruitment in the spring and fall. “Some specifics include choosing and implementing our theme, educating sisters on values based recruiting, and most importantly: making sure there is food to eat during each event,” she said.
Her favorite part about her role is how much knowledge she is able to impart upon potential new members. These pearls of wisdom are often what helps young women at Drexel decide whether Phi Mu is an organization they would really like to become involved in. “As cheesy as it sounds, Phi Mu has really made all the difference in every aspect of my college career, and to be able to help someone else have a similar experience is extremely gratifying,” Nicole said.
For Nicole, the hardest part of the job is trying to balance co-op, classes and her responsibilities as the membership director for Phi Mu. “If only there were just a couple more hours in the day! But I’ll take being busy over being bored any day,” she said. We feel you, girl! We could all use more time in a day.
The position of membership director has helped Nicole develop leadership skills and granted her opportunities to put those newfound skills to the test. She has also learned to manage her time. Another perk that she’s received working with Phi Mu has been the growth of her professional network. Her current co-op with Seabrook House, a substance abuse rehab facility, was referred to her by another one of her sisters, who co-oped with the same company last year. “Having this Phi Mu network—even at the undergraduate level—has been so helpful. If I hadn’t known that this co-op provided such hands on experience I probably wouldn’t have pursued it as intensely,” Nicole said.
After graduation, Nicole wants to pursue a master’s degree in clinical counseling. She would like to continue her work in substance abuse counseling as a primary therapist. And eventually, she would love to get her doctorate degree, but only after she’s gotten some more experience in the field.
When she’s not organizing events or working hard on co-op, Nicole likes to workout by practicing yoga – but only hot yoga! She also loves photography because it provides her with a creative outlet without having to pick up a pencil or paintbrush. “I am probably the least artistically inclined person you will ever meet. Having the ability to manipulate different camera settings to achieve a final print is really interesting to me,” she said.
Keep doing great things, Nicole! The team at HC at Drexel knows you’ll go far! And thanks for the free food we enjoyed at Night on the Row way back when.