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fraternity
rush
Make
no doubt, fraternity rush and sorority rush are incredibly different.
Twice a year, most fraternities go through their recruitment process, or
'rush', for those of you who don't speak Greek yet.
It's pretty obvious when rush week is at school - the campus is blanketed
in fliers and Greeks take over the Quad area in front of the library. Rush
for fraternities is a lot different than sorority rush, in that you don't
have to visit all of them during rush week. Instead it is up to you, the
rushee, to decide where you'd like to go during the week.
During the week, the fraternities host a variety of events throughout the
Sacramento area. From water skiing to broomball, most fraternities try and
show perspective members a good time, as well as feed them to no end. Mark
my words, if you rush a fraternity, you will eat well! If nothing else, it
serves as a great way to get some free grub.
How do you find out what rush events are going on? There are several ways:
IFC Informational Night. The first night of rush usually starts out
the same for all fraternities. On Monday night, all fraternities
will be in the Union Redwood Room for an InterFraternity Council (IFC)
informational night. From here, you'll be able to browse the various
booths of the fraternities, in a neutral environment.
The casual approach. Do your research before you meet the guys.
Check out their websites, read some of the fliers, and find out when
they're meeting. If you need more information on a particular fraternity,
usually their communications include contact information. Then show up at
their event(s), and go from there.
The head-on approach. Visit the quad and meet some of the guys
right there. You won't be able to avoid them when you're in the quad -
their booths are right there, and they usually have 10 guys hanging out in
front of it. This can be incredibly intimidating, as it's hard to approach
a bunch of guys and tell them you're interested in finding out more about
their fraternity. However, sometimes you can narrow your search down
a little bit right here... if you scope out all the fraternities in the
quad, you might be able to figure out which ones you don't want to check
out during the week. If you're a little put off by the onslaught of Greeks
in the Quad, go early in the day or later in the afternoon... usually
things die down and aren't as crazy.
The referral. This is the most common way guys rush a fraternity.
Usually if you know someone in a class who's Greek, ask them a little bit
about it. They'll most likely be more than happy to tell you about his
house. Ask when they're holding rush and go from there. A lot of times,
they'll offer to give you a hand and give you an inside edge on the rush
process. By the way, this applies all throughout the school year, even if
rush is over, you can still check things out. There's always the next
semester to go through the formal process.
Once you're actually at an event, it's up to you where to go from there.
It's your choice whether or not to attend one evening, one hour, or the
whole week with the guys. Your best bet by far is to check out several
fraternities and judge for yourself. Not only will it give you more
options, you won't be putting all your eggs in one basket, so to speak.
At the end of the week, fraternities go through their selection process,
and if you play your cards right, you'll get extended a 'bid' to become a
pledge of the fraternity. Congratulations! Make the most of it!
Some pointers:
Take it easy! It's not high school anymore. Be yourself... you're
more than likely to impress someone when you're not putting on a front.
Check out as many fraternities as possible. Chances are, not all
chapters are going to be your style but the more you check out, the more
you might find that are appealing to join.
If you're having a hard time deciding, ask questions. A lot of
times, you'll find out that the guys are great, but what else? Ask a
little history of the fraternity and the things they do for social events,
whatever is important to you.
Don't be intimidated by the library quad. A lot of guys are
interested in rushing, but can't get the nerve to mix in with a couple
hundred Greeks socializing in the Quad. Approach a guy that's wearing
letters somewhere else on campus in the bookstore, in class, wherever.
Meet the chapter, then make your decisions. Is fraternity life for you?
Maybe, maybe not! How will you know until you rush?
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