Sophomore Recruitment at LU
 

Hi, I'm not really sure how this works, but hopefully I'm not breaking any rules by saying where I go to school.

I am a sophomore at Lehigh University, where we have a pretty big greek system for the size of our school. I am registered for formal recruitment in the spring and will be returning to campus early for that.

Although I was interested in joining a sorority my freshman year I did not rush because none of my close friends rushed and I did not want my friendships with them to change. I later came to somewhat regret that decision once when i saw how much all the other freshman who did join houses seemed to enjoy it. I decided to rush this spring (as did two of my close friends and a fair number of other sophomores) and am very excited about it. :) I was just wondering if you think I have an okay chance of receiving a bid as a sophomore. Also, I never know what to say when sisters ask why I didn't rush last year. Any suggestions about that or rushing in general?

Thanks!

I dont know how rush is at Lehigh, so I wont give advice there, but regarding what to say if members ask you why you did not go through recruitment last year..........just be honest and tell them the truth. Tell them you didnt know anyone else going through and wasnt sure it was right for you at that time.

I would definitely NOT say you didn't rush because none of your friends did. That makes you look like a sheep that can't do anything on your own. Plus, the sorority might think "oh God...if we take her, are we going to have to put up with her friends who don't want her to be here?" Just say you weren't sure you were ready for the commitment of a sorority at the time.

Eh, I'm agreeing more with ThetaPrincess here. I think that the truth is a good answer, and the fact she's going through recruitment now means that she's not tied down to what her friends think. You might say that you didn't know if you'd be able to keep those friendships if you were Greek and they were not, as sort of a clarification.

But clearly, just from these 3 posts there's not going to be a complete consensus on what you say, that's your call. I would focus more on why you want to rush now and less on why you didn't rush before, if possible.


ETClarify: 33girl, I see your point, I just wouldn't have had the same perspective on a rushee. As someone who only rushed because her mom wanted her to, I know that the reasons for going through recruitment (or not) don't always have anything to do with the reasons one stays in recruitment, gets offered a bid, or accepts her bid.

I'm not telling her to not tell the truth - that she wasn't ready for the commitment to a sorority is definitely truthful. I'm just saying that not doing something because none of your friends were doing it is a little immature, and if a rushee said it to me, I would definitely have second thoughts about her. As you said, she needs to concentrate on now, not then, as she's done some growing up over the past year.

I agree. I think you can be honest without mentioning the opinions of your friends. I would try something like "I didn't know if it was right for me last year, but this year I know more about the Greek community and my ability to handle the time commitment, and I know it is the right choice now." This makes you sound like you have educated yourself, and you are making a more mature commitment.

I agree with this as the reasons one goes through recruitment dont always have anything to do with the reasons one stays in recruitment, gets offered a bid, accepts a bid, and remains in the sorority. I talked to more girls than not at our recruitment parties that were going through recruitment because either their mothers/sisters wanted them to or because their friends were doing it.

i rushed as a sophomore too. although my school doesn't have formal recruitment and with only three sororities, it's not very competitive, waiting really helped me. i was in a similar situation, but with my boyfriend, not my friends. i believe his exact quote was "if you come over here wearing a sorority shirt what will my friends say?" so i didn't join my freshmen year but i was able to see what all the sororities were like from an outsiders point of view, what my school had to offer outside of greek life, and i still wanted to join.

so i think rushing after a year of being in school could actually help if you think of it that way. you're not just joining because of what you think greek life will offer you, but because you really want to.

I'm also agreeing that you should leave the "none of my friends did" out of it.

http://www.nistockfarms.com/jpeg/handspinning-sheep.jpg

BAAAAAH.


Not the image you want.

That sheep is freaking adorable.

I know, right? But he's still not getting a bid.:)

Well yeah, because he's a boy :p

Thanks for the advice, everyone! :) I realize that my friends not rushing was a pretty dumb reason for not doing it myself (and I did have other reasons, that was just a big part of it). I'm sure I can avoid mentioning that while still being honest, I had just wanted to know if that reason would be looked down upon. From many of the responses I see that it could be, so thank you for letting me know...I wouldn't want to look like a sheep! haha

Thanks again.
Any other advice would be much appreciated, as I am a bit anxious (and very excited!)

Also, this question may have been answered in a previous thread, but the recruitment attire is supposed to be casual all days except for pref round, and I'm not exactly sure what that would include. Do you think jeans and a nice top would be appropriate, or should I try to stay away from jeans?

Sorry for yet another long post!

I would go more with business casual on the casual days and stay away from jeans but that is just me.

Ultimately though, I would ask your recruitment counselor what the norms are on your campus for attire each day. Different people have different opinions of what "casual" is.