How Does Recruitment Work?

The Recruitment Process

• Register

  When you make the decision that going through recruitment is right for you, you have to sign up – which we hope you do. Contact the fraternity and sorority life office on your campus as there will be an open and close date for registration that will vary depending on the university. Registration may include providing information about your GPA, involvement in activities and providing information about any family members who have also been a sorority member. 

• Meet Your Recruitment Counselor

  As you get closer to recruitment it is totally normal to feel nervous. Anyone who has joined a sorority has felt the same way. The good news is that you will be assigned a recruitment counselor to help you work through the nerves. Your recruitment counselor will basically be your mentor through recruitment. She will be a confidant as you move through the process and narrow your decision. She is specially trained in guiding potential new members through the recruitment process.

• Visit Each Chapter

  Now the fun part. Day one of recruitment. You will go to every sorority on campus – which can be very tiring. Keep an open mind as you meet chapter members rather than relying on preconceived notions or secondhand information. Each day after you will go to fewer sororities. But, you will have longer periods of time with each chapter so you can really get to know the women.

• Ask Questions

  At every sorority, every day, you will get to talk to multiple women in that chapter. As the women get to know you they will probably ask about your major, your passions, where you’re from. The overlooked part is that you are also getting to know them. You can ask them the same questions. In fact, it is encouraged. What sorority you join is up to you so take this valuable time to get to know the women. You should also ask about their organization. What sisterhood or philanthropy events do they hold? What kind of academic support do they provide? Use this time to get to know each chapter and ask about things you value. For example, if you value being in an organization that is service oriented, you can ask the member(s) you meet about the service opportunities provided by the chapter.

• Evaluate Chapters

  After each round of recruitment, you get to prioritize which chapters you want to visit the next day. This can be really easy the first day and can get harder and harder. Maybe you have no clue at all from day one. That is OK. Remember, you have your recruitment counselor to talk through your choices.

   

• Chapter Invitation

  As you are making decisions, so are the sororities. This mutual selection process may mean not going back to a chapter you prioritized highly. You may receive an invitation to a chapter you have indicated as a low priority. Consider this an opportunity to get to know the chapter further as they have identified you as someone who fits the values and expectations of their organization.

• Preference Round

  After a few days of this you get to the last day of recruitment, typically called preference. Time to celebrate, right? You’ve made it to the end of recruitment and maybe now you can sleep! Not quite yet. There is one more important thing you will do before leaving recruitment. You will fill out what is called the Membership Recruitment Acceptance Binding Agreement, or MRABA. Once you submit this agreement, you are agreeing to accept a bid from any sorority you have chosen to list on your form. If you receive a bid and then decide you don’t want to be a member you are not able to receive a bid from another organization on that campus until the next primary recruitment period. Traditionally that is one year from when you sign the form.

The final step to recruitment is Bid Day!

The final step to recruitment is Bid Day! This is where everyone dresses up, cheers and gets so excited to bring home new members they’ve talked to all of recruitment.  There are a few things that might happen on Bid Day:

If there is an outcome that you were not expecting the best thing you can do is keep an open mind.

You may not think a chapter is the best fit, but you may find it is your home away from home. If you don’t receive a bid there are other options, like participating in continuous open bidding (COB) or snap bidding.