Sorority rush is no joke. It's confusing, nerve-racking, time-consuming, and exhausting. You want to end up in the right place surrounded by the right people; people that are similar to you and will love you for who you are. Sometimes, it can be hard to determine where exactly that place is. Other times, you know right away where you want to be. Regardless, the process is not a particularly fun one, and most would rather never go through it again. For those of you rushing, here are a few things to keep in mind and tips to help you along this dreaded journey to your new home.

1) Go into rush with an open mind

This is the MOST IMPORTANT thing one can possibly do when it comes to rushing, seriously. Throw away all the stereotypes and all of the gossip that you've heard (I'm looking at you, GreekRank readers). Majority of the time, the stories circulating through the world of prospective new members are not true, and it's unfair to be biased towards certain houses because of it.

It is SUPER important to give each and every sorority a fair chance, regardless of the things you've "heard." Once you've gone through a round or two and start to get a feel for which houses you're gravitating towards, and which you 100% are not, then it's okay to rule some out. Definitely start with a clean slate and an open mind, some places might surprise you.

2) Be your truest self

It sounds dumb and stereotypical, but it's actually crucial to your happiness wherever you end up. Don't pretend to be someone or something you're not. If you do, you might end up in a place that's just okay for you instead of somewhere that's perfect for you.

Having meaningful conversations about things you care about and relating to the girls in the houses you talk to is the focal point of finding the right place. Personally, I fell in love with my sorority because of a conversation about mac-n-cheese pizza, and my love for it only grew from there. I know it's intimidating, but just be yourself, it will work out for you in the end, I promise.

3) Disregard "tiers"

It's sad, but for some people, "tiers" are incredibly important. However, I'm telling you right now, they do not matter, whatsoever. I could go on forever about the silliness of "tiers" but the main point is, the only things that matter when you are rushing a sorority are: how comfortable you are there and with those people, if you can truly see yourself there in the future, if you are excited/happy every time to go to your favorite house(s), and if you can be yourself. After those things, everything else will fall into place.

4) Don't worry about your first semester friends

By now, you've probably made some friends that you absolutely love. Going Greek is scary because the thought of losing them terrifies you. Well, I am here to reassure you that if they are sincerely your friends, they will be there for the long run.

Don't choose a sorority based on what your friends are doing, choose based on your thoughts, opinions, and feelings. It's not the end of the world if you end up in different houses, and like I said, if they are truly your friends, you guys will still be close regardless of where you end up.

5) Be prepared

It's not a bad idea to have a few go-to conversation starters prepared. Although the girls rushing you are normally tasked with keeping the conversation going, this is not always the case. Luck favors the prepared, and it'll definitely be helpful to have a topic to go to when the conversation you're having gets dull.

6) Pay attention to the people, not the things

Base your decisions off of the people you talk to and the relevant information you hear. Basing decisions off of what brands people wear, what cars they drive, or anything like that won't get you anywhere.

There are going to be girls is every sorority with fancy things, so don't assume one is better than the other because of it. Even the quality of the house itself doesn't matter if the quality of the people inside it is poor.

7) Write your thoughts down

Something that's incredibly helpful while going through rush is writing down your thoughts and feelings after seeing a house. Eventually all of the girls you meet, and the houses you see are going to blend together, which ultimately makes your decision more difficult.

Write down the names of the girls you talked to, something about the conversation you had, and your overall feelings afterward. This will make your process, and your life so much easier. If anything, it'll be funny to look back on these after you select your new home.

8) Trust the system

I won't sit here and tell you that every single girl who rushes finds her perfect home and is insanely happy. I wish that's how it worked, but that's just simply not true. There will be some heartbreak, and maybe the sorority you thought was perfect for you dropped you. However, I will say that as corny as this is, everything happens for a reason.

The place you think you belong might actually be horrible for you, and 95% of the time everything ends up working out. There will be some girls that drop rush all together and try again for next year, or girls that will walk away all together, but most of the time people are happy where they end up, even if they didn't think they would be at first. *

**For those of you reading this who go to Maryland, every girl ends up with a house to be in, and nobody ends up with 0 houses. They might not be the ones you wanted, but you definitely will not be left with nothing!***

9) Rely on your group leaders

I'm not sure what they're called universally, but at University of Maryland, they're called Rho Gammas. They're similar to camp counselors, and they are there to help you. These are the people that are going to be showing you the ropes your first few rounds, and will be there when you rank your houses.

They know almost everything about going Greek, and will provide important insight if you're having trouble choosing. Some girls never use them, and some girls cry to them for hours, it just depends on your needs! They do have to be impartial though, because each of them is already involved in a sorority, so don't expect them to tell you exactly what to do.

10) Don't listen to stereotypes

This kind of goes along with #1 & #3 but basically, just know that the entirety of a sorority cannot possibly be the same. Wherever you end up, there will be people who are studious, creative, partiers, athletic, quiet, shy, outgoing, loud, silly, strange, awkward, etc. Your experience is what you make of it. If you want to just use your sorority for philanthropy, you can.

If you want to use it for parties, you can. If you want to be extremely involved and surround yourself with everything that has to do with it, you can. You have the power to decide what type of experience you want to have and who you want to be in that organization, the organization does not decide for you.

While rush can be scary, the result of it is usually positive. Hopefully, you will end up where you wanted, and all your dreams come true. Whatever you decide, the Greek experience will provide more opportunities and memories than you ever imagined. Even if you're on the fence, I still urge you to go Greek. You might be surprised at how happy you are, and if you're not, you can always drop without consequences. So, good luck to all of you in search of new homes, I hope you find your place, I know I did.