"Now each of these four founders,
Formed their own house, for each
Did value different virtues,
In the ones they had to teach.
By Gryffindor, the bravest were
Prized far beyond the rest;
For Ravenclaw, the cleverest
Would always bring the best;
For Hufflepuff, hardworkers were
Most worthy of admission;
And power-hungry Slytherin
Loved those of great ambition."

- JK Rowling, "Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire" (The Sorting Hat Song)

I never pictured myself joining a sorority. I became very close with three girls my first few weeks of college, and these wonderful ladies became my college best friends. I already had a solid girl group, why would I ever consider 'buying my friends' when I already had friends? But as "rush week" approached and everyone started talking about why they were rushing, or why they were definitely not, I became curious about the process. I decided I had nothing to lose by signing up for recruitment.

In the beginning, me rushing was more or less journalistic and based on curiosity. The verdict? Yeah, sorority recruitment is weird. But what I came to realize was that behind some of the 'weirdness' of recruitment, was something a "'Harry Potter' nerd" like myself could understand, because sorority recruitment was a lot like the sorting ceremony first-year Hogwarts students go through! Listed below is why:

1) Greek Life And Hogwarts Both Have Houses

Simple enough. The Hogwarts houses live in separate dormitories and girls in sororities would reside in their own sorority house should they choose to live in. Although they are different in that at Hogwarts, intermixing of houses is discouraged, sometimes forbidden, and at the least - made difficult. Whereas girls in different sororities are friends all the time and can go to each others houses.

2) Different Sororities And Different Houses Seek Out Different Core Traits

Hogwarts is divided into four houses: Hufflepuff, Gryffindor, Slytherin, and Ravenclaw. Hufflepuff seeks out the most hardworking. Gryffindor seeks out the bravest, Slytherin selects the most ambitious, and Ravenclaw wants the most knowledgeable. The different sororities at my school also seemed to be going after specific traits. I joined my own sorority because of it's emphasis on being real, down to earth, and respectful of one another.

3) You Have Some Choice In Where You End Up

The sorting hat saw a lot of Slytherin in Harry Potter, but Harry asked the sorting hat not to put him in Slytherin, and therefor Harry ended up in Gryffindor. With sorority recruitment, there is also some choice. It is a mutual selection process, meaning that at the end of each day girls rank houses in preference order as houses have to narrow down the list of who they invite back each day. A girl can choose to drop a house she does not feel is a fit for her, just as a house can drop a girl. The houses generally have a very good idea of who is going to fit in their sorority, but you also have to trust your own vibes!

4) You Are A Unique Individual

Your Sorority/House is an expansion of you. But it is not who you are. Likely, you are where you are at because you were selected by like-minded individuals. But just because you are a 'Chi Omega' does not mean your personality is so different from a girl in 'Alpha Phi' or vice versa. In "Harry Potter," Hermione is known for her brilliance, a core value of Ravenclaw, and would have done well in Ravenclaw. However she is also courageous, a Gryffindor core trait, and the sorting hat placed her in Gryffindor. Hogwarts does not have a 'black and white' system when it comes to sorting students and neither does sorority recruitment.

Placing first-years into different houses and organizing girls into different sororities is focused on uniting people with others who can help forward goals. Both are systems that divide and label, but ultimately the intention is to bring people together, not to force a mold to conform too. A sorority, or a Hogwarts house, is a team. And in order to have the best team possible a variety of individuals with a variety of strengths have to be embraced.

I Solemnly Swear Sorority Recruitment Is Up To All Good

Mischief Managed & Go Greek!