Dear PNM’s (Potential New Members), this time next week your life will be changed forever. You will still be yourself, but you will be a part of something so much bigger. Next week, you will be showered with an overwhelming amount of love and “welcome home” greetings from girls who will make a huge impact on your four years here at Illinois State. Next week you will have your letters, meet the girls who will become your future bridesmaids, and wonder why you were ever nervous about recruitment. On bid day, you will be anxiously sitting in class thinking about how crazy it is that in just a matter of hours, you will know which chapter you’re in. One second you’re going to be getting ready and prepping to head over to the Bone for your final day of recruitment and in the blink of an eye, you’ll be sprinting to your future home with your new sisters. Recruitment is an unforgettable experience. To this day, it is still one of my most prime experiences of college. As a sophomore, I can’t imagine my life or my ISU experience without my sorority sisters. In order to end up with the best results, you must put your best self forward. Here are the most important must haves of recruitment.
1. An open mind with no bias or outside influences.
It is well known that before recruitment there is always talk about which houses are considered “top tier”, “middle tier” and “bottom tier”. PAY THESE NO MIND. I can tell you now that if you choose a house only based on what a bunch of anonymous people on some website said about it, then you are not going to end up having the life changing experience that I previously described. The whole point of recruitment is to get to know a variety of different girls in different houses and decide from there where you feel most at home. Don’t choose a house for the wrong reasons. The beautiful thing about being in a sorority is finding girls who are basically your other half; the people you can share your laughs or tears with. Choose the house that you can picture yourself in a year from now. Choose the house where you met and spoke to the girl that you could picture being your best friend. Choose the house that stands for the same things as you. Choose the house that is YOU. If people were meant to go into recruitment already knowing which house they wanted to be in, then there would be no point for all of the social interaction and house visiting that occurs during the process. Go into it with a clear mind and I assure you that you will come out with the best results that were meant specifically for you!
2. A unique personality.
One of the most important tips for recruitment is to be your authentic, unique self. What you may not realize is that the sorority girls are talking to hundreds of PNM’s in one day. By simply being yourself, you will stand out to them and make a great impression rather than someone who just tries to conform. The only way to end up in the house that suits you best is to show the girls you talk to who you truly are.
3. A good attitude.
As a communications major at ISU, I was taught this term called “self-fulfilling prophecy”. The term is basically saying that your outlook and attitude towards a certain situation can determine your outcome. When my professor asked us to think of real life examples of this term, I instantly thought of recruitment. If you go into recruitment with doubts and negative thoughts then your experience will play out just that way: negatively. If you show up to the Bone each day excited, confident and positive, you will find that talking to the sorority girls will go very smoothly and you will leave each day with a good feeling. Your attitude will make or break your conversations and impressions while going through recruitment. The experience though it can naturally feel intimidating, is meant to be a fun and amazing experience. Remember to keep that in mind whenever you feel unsure.
4. Keep all of your options open
This may add on to keeping an open mind but I cannot stress how important it is to consider all of your options. If a house that was high on your list doesn’t invite you back and a house that wasn’t so high on your list does, give that house another chance. Every house here at Illinois State is diverse and you may find that you click with a certain girl in one of the houses one day and another girl not so much. Maybe vice versa; the house may have been low on your list because you didn’t click with the girl you talked to but if you give them another chance, the next girl you talk to could be your future big for all you know. Recruitment can be unpredictable, but that is one of the beauties of it.
5. Waterproof mascara
As you can see, this one strays away from the others but it is so, so necessary. Recruitment is an emotional rollercoaster but in the best way possible. During preference rounds, you will cry. If you’re overly emotional like me, you might even just cry of happiness at the thought of being so close to finding your home. Recruitment is supposed to be an emotional and eye opening experience because the letters you end up with become a part of you not just for your time at Illinois State, but for life.
6. Cough drops, tea, and your voice
If you don’t lose your voice during recruitment, I applaud you. Recruitment is a lot of things but quiet is not one of them. In houses, you will find yourself practically screaming to hear the person sitting directly across from you. I’m not one to lose my voice easily, but by the end of recruitment it took all of the effort in me to even let out a whisper. Make sure to stay healthy during recruitment and take good care of your voice since it will be your best friend during recruitment!