This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at U Maine chapter.
Like many other girls here at the University of Maine this past week, I went through sorority recruitment. It was an extremely overwhelming process, and I had no idea what was going to happen. Here are a few things I wish I knew (or paid more attention to) before going through the process:
- It is LONG. Obviously, this is a basic statement that was told to everybody during orientation, so I knew it would be long. However, I was not prepared for how long and tiring it would actually be. Sisterhood rounds were 25 minutes each for eight different sororities, philanthropy rounds were 35 minutes for five sororities, and preference rounds were 50 minutes for two. There was so much waiting around involved too, and every round completely EXHAUSTED me.
- Hydration is KEY. This is another thing I was told at orientation, but I didn’t really listen to it. I wish I did. There is SO much talking involved, to the point where my voice was absolutely gone at the end of each night. As I mentioned, rounds are long. Each night of sisterhood you talk for 100 minutes total, philanthropy is 175 minutes, and pref 100. There were so many instances where I ran out of breath while talking or fumbled over my words. I found myself chugging a bottle of water after every single round since I hadn’t properly hydrated before.
- Go into each sorority with an open mind. There may be some you aren’t excited for, but you could easily change your mind about them. I know for me, there was one specific sorority that I thought I wouldn’t like, but I ended up loving them and they were one of my top choices. You might also not like a sorority’s first impression, but could love them if you end up meeting with them again. I know someone else who didn’t vibe well with a certain sorority one night and wasn’t ecstatic about being called back to them, but ended up having a great time there the next night. You never know which sororities you’ll fit in best with before meeting them, so always be open minded!
- Rejection is inevitable– And it is brutal. There were two specific sororities I instantly connected with. I really saw myself as being a part of them, and put them at the top of my list – only to find out that one of them rejected me after the first round, and the other one rejected me after the second. It sucks not getting called back to ones you really liked, but it happens to everyone. You really have to trust that you will end up where you belong.
- Trust the process!! This is something you will be told dozens of times, but it really is so important. Like I said, rejection is inevitable. You may think that you fit in perfectly with a certain sorority but don’t get called back there. But, you will end up where you’re meant to be! The process is really long and brutal but you have to stick it out. It will all work out in the end, no matter where you end up.