At a school like Miami where Greek life is as popular as it is, it's rare to find a group of girls who don't belong to a sorority or at least don't go through the recruitment process. When I returned to school this semester, it was not surprising to hear "You're rushing, right?" at least three times per day, usually followed a shocked "Why not?" when I said I wasn't, and sometimes even a "Really? I pegged you as the sorority type" after that (although I still don't understand where that one came from). Rushing is just what freshmen do at Miami this semester. I've witnessed more makeup tutorials in these past few weeks than I've ever wanted to see in my life. I've read more cheesy Instagram captions in a week than ever before, and I'm no longer fazed to see a group of twenty to thirty girls sprinting across campus with sweatpants on under their skirts in 20-degree weather. Even if you aren't rushing, this semester is still overwhelmingly all about rushing.
And that's fine. I am in no way hating on Greek life. If you want to rush a fraternity or sorority, that is your decision and I'm sure you'll enjoy it (and if you're my friend, I'll proudly take pictures of you with your hair and makeup done before each round of recruitment too). My point is that rushing isn't for everyone. The fact that I'm a freshman girl at Miami University doesn't mean I'm obligated to join a sorority, and no amount of "Why aren't you rushing? Aren't you going to be bored?" is going to change my mind that easily. Maybe in the future I'll reconsider, or at least maybe I won't be as intimidated by sprite dates as I was this year, but for now the fact is rushing isn't for me.
Yes, I understand that I'm missing out on the opportunity to gain a "family away from home" and meet other girls I could be friends with for the rest of college, or even enlist as my future bridesmaids. I'm missing out on philanthropy, Instagram-worthy pictures and most importantly a drastic increase in my t-shirt collection. But I'm not missing out on breakfast dates with my floormates, spontaneous road trips, and a drastic increase in my free time that I really need to start using for studying over anything else. I'm not missing out on team trips with running club or the late night runs to Bagel & Deli that really saved my life these past few weekends. I'm not missing out on nights out with friends, nights in ordering Chinese food and meeting the people I consider my "family away from home" and future roommates or housemates.
Rushing is a great way to meet new people, make new friends and widen your social sphere, but I don't think I've been held back from any of these things by not rushing. I know I've met some of the people I will be friends with for life at school this year, and I didn't have to participate in Greek life to do so. I don't think my college experience has been damaged at all by my decision not to rush, and I know my bank account will thank me for it later. The fact is that rushing just isn't for everyone, and it just isn't for me.
