So you’ve decided to go through recruitment. Or maybe you haven’t, but you’re wondering what the big deal is. Informal Recruitment is coming up quick, and Formal Recruitment will be here sooner than you think. Here is your insider’s guide to Greek life at Oxy!
There are three fraternities, three sororities, and one associate member in Oxy’s Greek Council. Of the three fraternities, Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE) and Phi Kappa Psi (Phi Psi) are national, and Zeta Tau Zeta is a co-ed, local fraternity. Of the sororities, two are local – Alpha Lambda Phi Alpha, known as Alpha, and Delta Omicron Tau, known as Delta or DOT. Kappa Alpha Theta (known as Theta) is the sole national sorority. The associate member of Greek Council is Sigma Lambda Gamma, a national, historically Latina-based sorority. Occidental College Greek Council is the governing body of our Greek system, and Some Oxy students are also members of Phi Alpha Delta, the nation’s biggest co-ed law fraternity.
What’s the difference between the local and national fraternities and sororities? National Greek organizations have chapters at college campuses all over the world – you could be a Theta sister or an SAE brother at Oxy and have a Greek family at the UW, Mizzou, or Colgate University. Local fraternities and sororities were founded at Oxy. There are pros and cons to being in a national or a local organization. National organizations offer huge networking possibilities, but are restricted by certain rules and regulations imposed by their national governing body. They also have national traditions that are shared by brothers and sisters all over the world. Local organizations have only self-imposed regulations and rules, but have a smaller alumni network.
At Oxy, both Alpha and Delta have been on campus for over 100 years, and Zetas have been on campus for nearly 85 years. Their local status doesn’t mean at all that they have no traditions (As an Alpha sister I can attest to that!). In fact, although they have their national traditions, Oxy’s chapter of Kappa Alpha Theta has only been on campus since 2004, and they have no house of their own. Traditions or otherwise, all the sororities and fraternities have strong bonds of sisterhood and brotherhood.
Why go Greek at Oxy? College Prowler grades our Greek life as a C+, but their grading system also tends to favor schools with huge Greek systems centered around parties and inter-Greek dramatics. Oxy’s Greek system is relaxed and low-key. It is as much commitment as you would like, and there’s no pressure among students to join or not join. Students decide to join for a lot of reasons – to meet new people, to get involved on campus and in philanthropy opportunities, to participate in the events, and to wear the awesome t-shirts, to name a few.
What’s Rush like at Oxy? Rush is Greek-speak for Recruitment, the week-long process during which prospective/potential new members (PNMs) meet all the organizations and get a feel for each of them. For girls, PNMs experience two days of bonding with each sorority and Zeta, followed by preference dinners with your top two choices. Then, a PNM will receive her bids (invitations to join) on bid day, and participate in Coming Out the Door, a ceremony where PNMs become pledges and run to their new organization. Boys have a slightly different process, but the idea is the same – meet and get to know the brothers, then accept a bid to begin the Greek journey! For both girls and boys, if you go through recruitment and decide not to join, no problem! There are no hard feelings – deciding to become a Greek is an entirely personal decision.
So what does a collegiette™ wear during Recruitment? The first two days are casual – jeans and a cute top will do! You’ll be sitting down on the floor and walking around so stay away from the super short skirts. Wear something that says something about you – this is the time to make a great first impression! Preference dinner nights are the time to get dressed up. Put on a pretty dress and heels (and maybe a cardigan for those cold walks across campus) and a big smile. And a tip for Coming Out the Door – if you decide to make it this far, wear a tank top or shirt that a t-shirt can easily slip over (should your organization choose to provide new pledges with shirts).
Life as a pledge is a lot of fun. It’s a secretive process, but suffice to say that you will bond with your pledge class (the group of people that joined the same semester as you) and get to know the actives (the initiated members of a Greek organization), and by the end of the pledging period (6 to 8 weeks) you will know all you need to know and be ready to initiate!
Hopefully this article has clarified some questions about Oxy’s Greek system, and quelled any fears you may have had about Greek life on campus!
Are there other Greek life questions that weren’t addressed? Was pledging the best decision you ever made, or the worst? If you have an opinion about Greek life at Oxy (and everybody has one), comment below!
Sources: Occidental Greek Council http://departments.oxy.edu/orgl/greek/