It’s that time of year again. The trees are blooming, the sun is shining, and spring recruitment is in full swing on the RIT campus. Fraternities and sororities all over campus are doing their best to find the best students to join their respective brotherhood or sisterhood. Since recruitment can be a somewhat intimidating process to both those rushing and the fraternities and sororities, here is a list of things to keep in mind during recruitment.
For those who are rushing a fraternity/sorority:
1. Be Yourself. This is the most important thing to remember during rush. Being yourself is the best way to make sure that you find the fraternity or sorority that fits you best. When the day comes that you get your bid, you are going to be so glad that you stayed true to who you are through the process.
2. Keep an Open Mind. You may already be coming into rush week thinking that you know exactly which fraternity or sorority that you want to be a part of. We all do it, and it’s perfectly fine. But keeping an open mind about all of the fraternities or sororities is very important. And who knows, you may find that a different fraternity or sorority fits you just as well, if not better, than the one you originally thought of before.
3. Talk to Everybody. Okay, so you may not be able to talk to every single person in every fraternity or sorority during rush week, but you can at least try to talk to as many people as you can in each house. Making an effort to talk to as many brothers or sisters as possible makes a great impression on the house and the amount of people you talk to and connect with could make a huge impact on which fraternity or sorority wants you to be a part of their brotherhood or sisterhood.
4. Relax. Rush week isn’t meant to be a super intimidating, scary thing. It’s supposed to be fun and interesting. Not to mention it’s supposed to be a place where you make connections with people. You could possibly be a part of one of these fraternities or sororities. Keep calm and don’t stress about it.
For those who are already in a fraternity/sorority and are recruiting new members:
1. Be Yourself. Just like you were when you rushed your respective fraternity or sorority. Yes, you want to give a good impression of your house, but you also want to make a real connection with the people who are rushing and possibly want to be your brother or sister. Be real and do not lie about anything.
2. Come Prepared.You will be getting a ton of questions about your fraternity or sorority, and knowing the answers to any question those rushing might ask you will look great on you and your house. If you need to, brush up on the history of your chapter, your philanthropy and community service, your chapter’s involvement on campus and anything else that you think someone rushing might ask you. Nothing looks worse than not knowing the answer to a basic question about your chapter.
3. Ask Open-Ended Questions. When you are talking with someone who is rushing, think about what questions you want to ask them. Consider the type of person you want representing your fraternity or sorority. Avoid asking any yes or no questions. This can lead to silent, awkward moments, which you really do not want during recruitment. Ask more in-depth questions like: What clubs or sports were you involved in in high school or at RIT? Why do you want to join a fraternity or sorority? Etc.
4. No Party Talk.Before you ask, yes, there really does need to be a reminder about this common sense issue. Nobody who is affiliated with a Greek organization wants people to think that fraternities and sororities are all about partying. Especially considering the fact that partying should have nothing to do with anyone’s decision to join a fraternity or sorority since it has truly has nothing to do with being Greek. Unfortunately, society has placed this party stigma on Greek life. So to avoid any more stereotyping of Greek organizations, do not talk about that great party you went to on St. Patty’s Day, or the crazy stuff that happened over break. None of that talk has any place during recruitment.
There is definitely a lot more that goes into rushing or recruiting during Rush Week, but these are just some of what I have found to be the most important things to remember. Good luck to all who are rushing over the next week, and even those who plan to rush in the future!
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at RIT chapter.