At Auburn University, with the beginning of a new fall semester comes one consequential season: Panhellenic recruitment.
For many, it is a time of picking out outfits, shopping for the perfect shoes, gathering letters of recommendation and checking every detail of resumes and headshots.
So much preparation goes into just seven days of four rounds of fall primary recruitment.
Then—in the blink of an eye—it’s over.
Maybe you could not be more excited because you just accepted a bid into the sorority you always dreamed of.
Maybe you got your second pick, and although you are a little disappointed, you’re keeping an open mind.
Maybe you went through a few rounds of recruitment but then chose to drop out because you decided it wasn’t for you.
Maybe you never signed up, and after seeing so many girls so excited to receive a bid, you’re wishing you would have given it a try.
Maybe you have always despised sororities, and you just wish everyone would talk about something else.
No matter what opinion you hold or point of view you’ve construed, one thing remains true: no combination of letters will ever define you.
I’m here to interrupt the deception we have all been conditioned to believe that the same way tests, eggs and meat are given letter grades that determine quality—we too are designated and summed up solely by letters.
We are not.
As much fun as being in a sorority can be, it is not the only way to have fun. As many opportunities being in a sorority can give you, it is not the only way to get involved.
As overwhelming and impactful as recruitment can feel, it will not make or break your college experience.
According to the Auburn University Common Data Set, 56% of first-year female students at Auburn University joined a sorority in 2021. That same year, 47% of undergraduate female students as a whole were in a sorority.
This means that in 2021, if you were an undergraduate female student and a member of a sorority, you were in the minority.
Remember that the next time you catch yourself getting caught up in thoughts about recruitment, sororities or Greek letters.
You are so much more than any membership you ever obtain or string of letters you wear on your back.
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Catherine Haynes, junior in journalism, is the opinion editor for the Auburn Plainsman.
