Before the start of spring classes in early January, around 1000 female University students brave freezing temperatures and icy streets to participate in formal sorority recruitment. Grounds, the Corner and Rugby Road are filled with the sounds of bangles tinkling, boots stomping and coats zipping as girls adorn their favorite outfits and visit the various chapters governed by the University’s Inter-Sorority Council.
That being said, the recruitment process can be overwhelming because of its emphasis on fashion, financial inaccessibility from sorority dues and lifestyle, stereotypes surrounding Greek Life and perceived expectations around the rush process. The Cavalier Daily spoke to three women in sororities at the University who drew on their own rush experiences to provide fashion insight and advice for those rushing this January.
Their insights include reaching out to older girls, finding clothes you feel comfortable in, shopping second-hand, expressing your unique style, sharing clothing with friends and wearing pieces with stories. Most importantly, they all emphasized that a sorority should be a place where one feels welcome for who they are, not for what they wear.
Formal recruitment includes six days and four official rounds — Round Robins, Philanthropy, House Tours and Preference — culminating in Bid Day, when Potential New Members, or PNMs, receive their bids to join a chapter. As the rounds go on, the number of houses each PNM visits decreases — during the first round, they visit all 14, while on the last they visit only two. Each round has its own dress code encouraged by the ISC, beginning with jeans and a t-shirt during Round Robins and ending with semiformal attire during Preference. However, outfits are ultimately up to the discretion of the PNMs who are trying to both stand out as memorable and comply with the dress code.
Piper Reese, outgoing Vice President of Philanthropy at Pi Beta Phi sorority and third-year Batten and College student, defined Round Robins attire as something you would wear to get coffee with friends, and Philanthropy, which is slightly more formal, as something you would wear to a nice brunch. She described House Tours attire as an outfit you would wear to a white tablecloth dinner with your parents, and finally, Preference, the most formal round, as similar to Homecoming Dance attire.
Reese said that when she was planning her outfits for rush as a first-year, she tried to strike a balance between following the dress code and expressing her own personal style.
While she doesn’t think she fits into a single aesthetic, Reese said she has been told her style is similar to 1970s bohemian — characterized by flowy fabrics, natural materials and layering. More specifically, some of her favorite pieces in her closet include second-hand denim and hand-beaded pieces. While planning her outfits for rush, she incorporated this personal style into her clothing choices which contributed to her conversations with sorority women during visits to the houses.
For example, Reese noted two pieces, a necklace she got from a foot spa while on vacation and a unique skirt she wore during a round where PNMs typically wear jeans. Reese advised PNMs to wear their most personalized fashion items as a way to express themselves as well as to build connections during the recruitment period.
“It's not like your entire outfit needs to be the most unique, [but] wearing one thing that you got from a cool place, or your mom gave to you, [is helpful],” Reese said. “You can talk about that because it builds on to something else [about you].”
Jenna Wade, Director of Recruitment for Delta Zeta sorority and third-year College student, similarly emphasized the importance of self-expression in fashion choices for rush. When she planned her outfits before rush her first year, she did not only aim to follow the dress code, but also aimed to showcase a little piece of herself, too.
“My strategy going into it was to try to pick clothes that look like me … because I wanted it to express who I was,” Wade said. “I wanted outfits that radiated the energy that I typically give so I could show everyone who I am.”
Planning outfits for rush is not always an easy feat — the process can feel overwhelming, especially when trying to comply with the dress code and express your personal style, while also not breaking the bank. Reese mentioned the financial anxieties that may arise when shopping for recruitment outfits. She said that the process can cause many PNMs to stress about how “nice” or expensive their clothing is, rather than how well it represents their personalities.
“It's not about … how nice your clothes are, and if [sororities] are judging you off of that, then it’s not the sorority for you,” Reese said.
She also noted, however, a recent shift towards consignment and vintage shopping, where buying expensive and first-hand clothing has become less popular — therefore altering the narrative around wealth, fashion and rush.
“The more interesting thing about clothes today isn’t necessarily the price tag, but the history behind it,” Reese said. “It's a flex to have a pair of shoes or jeans that has withstood the tests of time since the 70s versus a new pair of jeans that feels cheap… and still runs over 100 dollars.”
Reese also recommended taking advantage of the “shared closet community” — borrowing and sharing clothing items with friends, rather than buying completely new outfits.
Mary Katherine Watson, member of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority and second-year Engineering student, looked to older girls when planning her rush outfits as a first-year to help her clear up uncertainties about what to wear during each round.
“I didn't really know coming in what the whole wardrobe was, so I reached out to a lot of older girls and saw that each [round] has such a variety of outfits that you can wear,” Watson said. “Then, within that range, I tried to pick something that I felt would be best for me and most comfortable.”
Similarly, Wade said that comfort in the freezing Charlottesville temperatures should also be considered when planning outfits. Given that PNMs walk to and from houses between rounds, Wade said that PNMs should prioritize choosing jackets and shoes for warmth rather than style.
“People would wear sweatpants and a jacket over all of their clothes, and then take it off right before they go into a house,” Wade said. “You can bring some slippers or some Ugg [boots] and then change into your heels once you get [to the house].”
Overall, however, all three sorority women emphasized that the key thing sororities are looking for is not the clothes you adorn — instead, the sororities want to get to know who you are as a person. Fashion is another avenue to displaying your personality, but it will not make or break a rush experience.
“When you rush, you're not getting into the sorority because of your closet or because of how you look,” Reese said. “You're getting into the sorority because you have similar values, and they feel a connection with you.”
Wade expressed a similar sentiment, further highlighting the importance of self-expression in recruitment fashion choices.
“You should try to end up in a place where you know you'll belong and they love you for exactly who you are,” Wade said. “Just wearing clothes that express your personality and that you feel comfortable in can go a long way.”
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