You're better off stressin' about what to eat in the caf than what to wear for recruitment. Let me put your mind at ease.
Dressing for recruitment can seem like a stressful experience, but as long as you're comfortable and feelin' oh-so-pretty, you're doing it right; however, if you need some guidance figuring out what to wear when, you're reading the right article.
So, you've made the (super-awesome-incredibly-wise-stellar) decision to rush. Good for you. Giving this whole Greek Life thing a go is a great idea, and it's not easy to just give up an ENTIRE weekend for an event where you're not even allowed to wear sweatpants.
Fortunately, you don't have to be wearing anything that makes you uncomfortable either.
Now I've obviously been through rush myself, and I completely understand the freakout that comes a week/day/hours before Day 1 of recruitment. Whether it's hairstyles, nail polish colors, make-up, whatever - you can't seem to get it right, and the idea of getting a full night's rest is laughable. What if my heels are too high? What if my cardigan is too granny? I worried myself straight into morning, where I finally stumbled towards my Rho Gam half dressed and even less awake. When it came down to visiting the last house of the day in what felt like the dead of the night, I was an even hotter mess. My feet were aching and my outfit was a total joke. I didn't have a chance.
...until, you know. I actually ended up joining that house in the end. BECAUSE NO ONE IS GOING TO ACCEPT YOU INTO THEIR SORORITY BASED ON WHAT YOU'RE WEARING (OR IF THEY DO THEY PROBABLY SHOULDN'T AND IT WOULD MAKE ZERO SENSE FOR YOU TO JOIN THEM ANYWAY SO..) On the other hand, there is a handy dandy guide posted by Panhellenic that you can find here that I'll break down for you below. Just remember, wear what makes you feel like you. Maybe save the sweatpants and sneakers for another occasion -- just to maintain respect for the time and effort everyone else put into presenting themselves nicely, but don't wear anything that makes you feel like a t0taL p0s3r!!!!!!! You can definitely dress comfortably and still look (and feel!) like a million bucks.
*As a general disclaimer I'd really recommend avoiding heels until bid day, since the amount of walking just doesn't make it worth it. If you're one of those super trooper "I'm-every-woman" types, by all means, click away. But if you're more like me, save yourself from the discomfort and the possibility of an active thinking she's about to recruit a newborn calf.
DAY 1: GO GREEK NIGHT
This is your only opportunity outside of bid "afternoon" to wear jeans, so I'd say go ahead and take advantage of it. Paired with a nice top you always get compliments on - not talking about the homemade "Ed Sheeran's #1 Fan" one that you're just dying to find an excuse to wear. Polishing off with some simple jewelry works great.
DAY 2: PHILANTHROPY NIGHT
You didn't get fifty cuts all over them beautiful legs fo' nothin. Pull out a nice sundress or shirt/skirt combo for Night 2, taking care that neither is too short. As a pro-tip, black is always great and slimmin' and all that, but bright colors that really pop do help you get remembered. We go through a ton of names during recruitment, so referring to someone as "the girl with the magenta tank" or "the girl with the peacock hair clip" is almost always responded to with an "OH yeahhhhhh!"
DAY 3: PREFERENCE MORNING
You're only visiting one or two houses this morning, so if you've been waiting to bust out the heels, now's the time as it should provide you with the least amount of inconvenience and/or pain. This is the dressiest part of recruitment, but keep your semi-formal and formal dresses still buried in the closet and opt for more of a Sunday best kind of look. Most PNM's wear dresses, though club attire or anything too tight/featuring one too many revealing cutouts should probably be put away.
BID DAY
Your new sisters will give you an awesome t-shirt to wear the second you run into their loving arms, so you only have to worry about your lower half. Shorts if its hot, jeans if it's cooler is a good way to go (especially since the bid party that follows can go well into the night) and flats/sandals so your running doesn't turn into an awkward half-hobble. You have no one to impress at this point anyway - your sisters have chosen you for more than what you've decided to wear these past three days, so consider it the least of your worries. Just enjoy your time with your new family!
As always, if you have any comments or questions, please sound off below!
