“Are you going to join a sorority?”

The generic first month freshman year conversation starter.

Believe me, I probably faked excitement at least one hundred times when answering this question:

“Of course I am!” I responded with a huge smile plastered across my face.

At the same time, I was pretty excited about it.

I apologize in advance if this sounds cheesy, but for most of my life I always knew I wanted to join a sorority in college. The idea of having hundreds of “sisters” appealed to me, not to mention the custom sorority attire and extravagant formals aka college prom.

When the time came to sign up for sorority recruitment, I hands-down, no-question registered. Unlike me, many girls on my dorm floor questioned if the process was for them and if the “hell week” of recruitment would be worth it.

After nervously going from party to party during recruitment week and surviving physically and emotionally (I promise, it really isn’t as bad as it sounds), I can say the process is worth it.

Today, I’m sharing my ultimate guide to joining (and surviving) a sorority, with all my best go-to tips and an overview of the full sorority recruitment and initiation process. I’ll go more in depth on many of these topics in the weeks to come, but for now, read on for my full overview of sorority life:

Related reading: My Sorority Experience: What It’s Really Like to Be in a Sorority (Good and Bad)

Table of Contents

Chapter One: Am I Sorority Material?

Whether your college offers recruitment a week prior to the start of school or after second semester, you need to first decide if a sorority is for you.