Many students are under the impression that the greek recruitment process is a shallow system of judgment based on looks.
“You pay to get judged — you work so hard to impress people and you get let down,” said Elena Vargas, an architecture freshman, about the recruitment process.
Speaking from personal experience, finding my sisters and meeting a plethora of new people in all of the chapters during recruitment was a completely positive experience, and I’m disappointed that many students view it so negatively.
Is recruitment a judgment process? Well, kind of. There are a limited number of spots available in each chapter and, at some point, we do have to make decisions. But that’s hardly unique to the greek recruitment process.
If you try out for a sport, you are judged on your athletic ability, work ethic, compatibility with the rest of the team and a variety of other factors. In a job interview, you are judged on your skills, experience and whether you are the best fit for the company. This kind of judgment is commonplace and accepted in society.
“In regards to greeks judging, that’s a stigma that I find to be untrue,” said Drew Jennison, president of the Sports Marketing Association and a marketing senior.
During recruitment, the chapters seek to help young women find their fit in a greek chapter based on the values, culture and pillars of each sorority. Chapters are not judging by appearance, they are looking for women who are likely to make friends within the sorority. Yes, decisions have to be made, but these decisions are based on how each woman’s beliefs and values fit with the existing chapter members’.
“Recruitment is an amazing opportunity for collegiate women to get to know other women who are in their same position,” said Alison Underhill, academic chair of Kappa Kappa Gamma and a junior in the Eller College of Management. “The new members get to feel as though they are a part of a family from the first day of college — something very few freshmen get to experience.”
In many ways, recruitment is far less harsh and intimidating than a sports tryout or a job interview. Women aren’t being judged based on how good they are at a certain skill, and there’s no formal interview. Rather, the process is just like how you would make friends in classes or in a dorm.
“My chapter is the place where I have made lifelong friends,” said Emma Siegert, former spirit chair of Delta Delta Delta and theater production junior, “and I always know that I have Tri-delta as my home.”
Recruitment is about having real conversations about academics, family and home life as women who rush get to know the women already in the chapters. The potential new members are looking to find a new home with a new family, just as current members are looking to find more additions to their already diverse family.
“The recruitment process is a phenomenal way to meet new people,” said Sarah Whitehurst, a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma and a junior studying speech, language and hearing sciences. “I came to the university knowing very few people, and now have friends and connections all over the country.”
As in any selection process, tough decisions have to be made during recruitment, but that does not make it — or the greek community — deserving of contempt.
Stephanie Elliott is a junior political science and English literature major. Follow her on Twitter.com/@steffelliott.
