At the beginning of the fall semester, I made the decision to rush and potentially join Greek life. I’m a sophomore this year and felt that an opportunity to make new friends and have better relationships in a professional and informal setting could be a great benefit for me as a female college student.
However, last year as a freshman, I remained hesitant about joining a sorority. I feared the stereotypes of constant drinking. I was scared about possibly being a part of an organization that didn’t have girls I would get along with. I was nervous to be paying to be in an organization that I wouldn’t enjoy. There were a lot of fears and anxieties that really hindered my participation in Greek life, and ultimately I chose not to rush my freshman year because I wanted to be 100% positive that this was something that I would enjoy.
As the year went on I began joining other clubs and organizations that were female oriented. I joined the competitive cheer club, Her Campus and the Lao and Cambodian Student Association. All of these clubs really introduced me to strong and persevering women that only enhanced my yearning to join a sorority. Though, I was still wary about the possible setbacks of joining a sorority. How much time would I have to commit? Could I still be in other non-Greek organizations without focusing too much on the sorority life? All these questions and concerns I had about Greek life became super stressful, and I ultimately decided to make my decision in the fall when recruitment and rush week came around.
Over the summer, I went back home to Colorado and worked two jobs over the summer. Even with a busy schedule, I felt bored and the need to be a part of something. I weighed out a list of pros and cons and soon started to realize that the pros outweigh the cons. So as I came back to Madison in the fall, I rushed to potentially join Greek life.
In all honesty, rushing was a very long and daunting process. Depending on your university, rushing can mean going to all of the chapters at your particular school. Here at UW-Madison, we have 12 chapters, so the first day of rush was long and strenuous because it meant walking and talking to girls at 12 different chapters. While this allows you the opportunity to meet with girls from every chapter to help figure out which sorority is right for you, the process was long and part of you really wants it to be over. However, it was nice to look at it through the lens that you get to pick a sorority just as much as they’re picking you. For me, this really enhanced my experience because it eliminated the fear that I needed to act a certain way to get into a certain house. Through this mutual process, I was able to learn more about Greek life and the houses that I did and didn’t like. Slowly through the days of rush week, you pick houses and houses have the opportunity to pick you, which dimmed as time went on.
Finally, it came to be the last day of rush week and I was given the choice between two different houses. At this point of the process now, it seems that sororities are ultimately trying to get you to pick their house as they now need more members to fill this current pledge class. For me, this felt nice because again the mutual selection was emphasized that it’s not them just picking you, it’s you picking them too. From there, I made my final selection and I hoped that I would get into a certain house for bid day.
Come bid day, my fears I initially had were reinforced — that I wouldn’t get into the house I wanted or that I would need to be a certain person if I got into it. But ultimately, I was just hoping to come out on the other side okay. I opened my envelope and I received a bid from my number one choice, Kappa Alpha Theta. From there, I ran to the house with the rest of my pledge class to the sorority that would be our home for the next couple of years.
While I recognize that to some, the process of rushing sounds over-exaggerated and cheesy I found the process to be worthwhile and beneficial to me as an individual. Joining a sorority has allowed me to see what I need as a female college student and what I can benefit from when joining a group of girls that have very similar values to my own. I’ve been able to develop relationships in a formal and informal setting with girls that are sweet, kind and devoted to their life as strong and persevering women. Here are some of the things that I’ve taken away in my first semester in a sorority:
1. Sorority stereotypes don’t have to exist if you don’t want them to.
One of the fears that I definitely had developed prior to joining a sorority was the adaptation of the stereotypes that society displays in pop culture and media about sorority life. Through this I mean the idea that sorority members are girls who seemingly have their parents pay for most things, only care about the clothes they wear or the things they have, and don’t care about anything but partying. While I knew these stereotypes weren’t and aren’t true, it bothered me that some people might think of me that way just because of my membership in a sorority. As a woman in a college, I know that many of the girls in my chapter strive to work hard in their classes and genuinely have a vast interest in the volunteer opportunities in the world. Ultimately, how you define your role in your sorority is up to you, and how you portray that role is how everyone will also see you.
2. You get out what you put in.
Commitment to a sorority was another fear that I had coming into Greek life. How much time would I need to put in? How much effort would I need to maintain membership? Something that I learned during rush week that has helped me along the way is that ultimately the amount of time you put into the sorority is also how much benefit you’ll get out of it. I knew right off the bat that I wanted to be focused on my academics but also wanted to be involved a fair deal. However, I knew I couldn’t do it all, and was fearful that I would be affected later on.
Contrary to my initial beliefs, I’ve found it so easy to not be able to commit the entirety of my life to this sorority. I know lots of girls in my chapter who have done most things and are super involved, but even for the girls who don’t commit a lot of time or effort, it doesn’t make them any less in the sorority as compared to someone who has committed a great deal of time to the organization. I was really elated to find out that what I do for the sorority — even if limited and less than that of other members — I’m still able to be a part of the sorority in all the same ways.
3. Dues can be expensive but are ultimately worthwhile.
Another deal of stress that I had going into sorority life was the part of paying really expensive dues. I knew that this was something that was inevitable and I would have to pay either way. Dues can get to be very expensive, but when I’ve looked back on my experience in the sorority, this has paid for several social events that I’ve been able to go to whether it be formal, date parties or sisterhood events. Also included are dinners that I get to eat every week at the house made by a gourmet chef, which really helps as a college student who’s very limited in cooking skills. Even more than that, I’ve also gotten a lot of clothing items that cost upwards of $200, which have all been able to come out of my dues. So while it seems that the money you pay to be a part of the organization is a lot, it ultimately pays for a lot of things that you choose to do with the sorority in the long run.
4. You get a unique opportunity to build great relationships.
One thing that I can’t emphasize enough about the benefits of being in a sorority is the bonds and the relationships that you share with other women who share the same values as you. While it’s hard to make relationships with every girl in your sorority, finding a small group of girls in my sorority has been so helpful in my first semester in the organization. As a sophomore it was a bit difficult finding friends in my pledge class, as a good majority of the girls are freshmen; but, luckily I found a handful of other sophomores in my pledge class who have been having the same experiences that I’ve had and I’m super grateful to have met them. Without a doubt, the highlight of my experience in the sorority has ultimately been the formation of relationships with really awesome women.
5. Being a part of something bigger than yourself.
Finally, one of the big takeaways that I’ve really appreciated with my experience in Greek life is the feeling of being a part of something so much bigger than the chapter at your college campus. As I’ve said earlier, I’m a member of Kappa Alpha Theta, and in our sorority alone there’s a lineage of nearly 250,000 women in which I have linkage too. Women who have strived to do more for the world, to persevere in tough challenges and aim to lead women in all ways that they can. There’s something extremely humbling knowing that the women in the years before have achieved so much, and it’s really motivated me to be a part of a strong lineage of success. Not only in my particular sorority but all other sororities — and even further the entire Greek organization as a whole.
My first semester in a sorority has proven to be a very positive and fulfilling experience. Not only have I met an amazing group of women that maintain the same morals and values as I do, but I’ve also fulfilled a really beneficial and exciting experience for me as a college woman. This experience is most definitely not for everyone, but I can for sure say that I’ve come out with a great mentality about Greek life and I can’t wait to see what happens further in my endeavors in Kappa Alpha Theta.