With choosing a college also comes a question everyone is asking each other and themselves: Do you plan on rushing?
Rushing, for those of you who don’t know, is the process of getting membership to a sorority or fraternity. This process can be brutal and time consuming, and “Don’t be afraid to really interrogate the frat. Find out their party policy, their value system, and most importantly find and talk to people in the frat or alumni who’ll give you the whole truth”. — Anjani Bodar (12)
Deciding whether or not to rush is based on more than time constraints and hazing. It also comes down to personality type and your other interest areas.
Personality Type: My friend is actually the one who brought this factor to my attention. She said that the reason she’s not going to rush is because she’s not someone who does well socially in large groups. I realized that the same actually applies to me. Even though rushing does give you automatic friends, it can be overwhelming. You might feel pressured to make connections instantaneously and establish yourself in the group. For someone who does well with multiple people at once this might not be a problem, but if you’re not known to be a social butterfly or someone who does well with large social gatherings, maybe it’s best to stay away from rushing and look at joining more intimate clubs instead.
Job Opportunities: A main reason, aside from socializing, that people join frats is for career building and making connections. If you are pursuing business or finance, or any career that functions off of your ability to make connections, rushing could be a really great option for you. But if you are pursuing a quieter career, like a career in research or education, or even certain types of medicine, rushing may not advance your career as much as you think it will. In those cases, it could be better to spend your time getting real world experience and building up your skills.
Research (the history of the frat/sorority): Lastly, it can be really easy to fall for a frat/sorority because it looks nice on the outside. Maybe the housing is boujee and they have lots of investors and the parties look great online, but joining based off of these characteristics can be a huge mistake. Their hazing process could be horrific, the culture could be degrading, and before you know it you’re “donating” more money that you can afford. Which is why it’s so important to research the frat’s history and look into the people connected to it. “Don’t be afraid to really interrogate the frat”, shares Anjani Bodar (12) “find out their party policy, their value system, and most importantly find and talk to people in the frat or alumni who’ll give you the whole truth”.
