Hello! My name is Makaya and I am the Vice President of Recruitment and these are some things I wish I knew before going into Recruitment!!
Written by Makaya Brown
Chants: They Really Do Happen!
Door chants they really do happen. Y'all have all probably seen the most famous video of, “WE’VE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU ALL SUMMER AND WE ARE SO HAPPY YOU ARE FINALLY HERE.” If you haven’t seen it search it up, it's intense, but yes, we really do door chants. So, prepare yourself for them and enjoy them because the chapters put so much effort into them. If you want a laugh, make sure to turn around when you are leaving and watch outside the door. It will make you feel a little less nervous watching each chapter trying to neatly pull their sisters up to close the door. Also, be prepared for some of these chants to get stuck in your head throughout the week.
Use Every Invitation to a House as an Opportunity to Make New Friends
What I mean by this is the house might not be for you, but that doesn’t mean you can’t find a friend in that house. Use this as an opportunity to meet people and learn things about campus. Don’t close yourself off to a house because some girls that recruited me in other houses, we have stayed in touch through my years at SFA. Plus, some of your friends could be going to that house and eventually calling it home might as well be friendly and get to know some people. Plus, the amount of different majors among each chapter means there’s a 99% chance you will have classes with some of the girls. GET TO KNOW THEM they will help you pass.
YOUR VALUES
This experience is about YOU, it isn’t about the sororities it is about you finding your home and where you fit best at. You can’t find where you fit best at if you aren’t talking about things that are important to you. Go in knowing your values and what you want from a chapter. What do you want out of a sisterhood? What do you want from the service experience? Are there leadership opportunities in things that are important to you? Most importantly do your values align with theirs? These are questions you need to answer yourself because this is about YOU! It is not about what looks best on the outside its where everything you stand for aligns with theirs which is the inside view. I want you to find your own home, not the home everyone in your family went, or the home all your friend are going to because sometimes these are the best home for you. Keep in mind chapters are different at every school and chapters even change at the same school. Trust me on this your family and friends will love you no matter where you end up.
Rho Gams
You might be wondering who these random girls are that started following you and put you in a group me. Well they are your Rho Gams. These girls have been trained to help you through your experience and be a listening ear to help you talk out what you are feeling. You might be wondering what sorority they are in, but that’s a part of the secret you won’t know till they run home, and if you do by any chance find out keep it to yourself. They do this so they have an unbiased view so they can talk about all the houses and not just have an opinion on one. It is to benefit you so be thankful they hung up their letters to help you find your own appreciate them because they are so excited to meet you. Also, do not be scared to talk to them it is literally what they are trained to do. Become friends with them because they are so excited to learn everything about you and for you to find your home. Trust me they will be your #1 supporters through this process, they will cry with you and laugh with you through this week. They understand you missing home so talk to them they have been there. Also, use them as a resource they have already been through recruitment they can also give you tips.
Nerves
We know you are nervous; I mean I felt I was going to throw up walking into my first house on day one. I was so worried how the conversations would go, or would they like me or what would they think of me, but the reality is that didn’t matter. The girls talking to you also feel like they are going to throw up. Sometimes this is the first recruitment for these girls on the other side, they are scared you might not like them too or if they had good enough conversations with you that you would remember them. Calm your nerves and know that after the first house on day one it gets better. Have conversations with these girls like you have known them for years, don’t be scared to ask all the questions and talk about things important to you. Let’s be honest I talked about fixer upper in a house and the girl recruiting me went right along with it because she knew I was just nervous, and this was common ground we could talk about. So, shake off those nerves because you got this.
Bring a Purse!
Those sandals might feel really comfort for the first two rounds, but at some point, walking in them is going to be a lot more painful than you thought. Bring some comfortable shoes to change into between rounds. Other essentials to include are hairbrushes, perfume, hair spray and anything else you might need for you hair that day. It is HOT, so bring extra makeup and the oil wipes will be your life saver if you throw them in your purse. These will help dry up the sweat and save your makeup. Bring water and snacks if you have rounds back to back because the day can get long and hot. Rho Gams will be watching your purses when you have a round you do not bring them in with you and they will be fine outside. SO, BRING what you need.
Notebook
A little trick I have learned that can help you when you go through recruitment is have a notebook or even notes in your phone is okay, but after each round in a house write about what stood out to you and what you liked and what you didn’t. Writing about it right after will help you with your choices later in the day. You know exactly what you loved and maybe didn’t so when it comes to you having to choose you have that to look back on. This also helps if you are stuck between houses on preference, you can go back and look at what you though throughout the week on those houses. Make sure to write things that were important to your values not things like I really liked what dress they were wearing. Because let’s be honest when you get in these chapters you will never see them in that dress again but more Nike shorts and a t-shirt so what matters is what was said and how those conversations made you feel.
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