For many girls, the beginning of the school year doesn’t just mean a new set of classes — they are also preparing to undergo sorority recruitment.

Returning students likely recognize the gaggles of girls racing around campus in matching shirts or fancy dresses. Full days talking to a number of different people and getting from one end of campus to another on foot — all while wearing heels — is the magic of recruitment season.

The Daily Illini spoke with three directors of recruitment for their respective sororities to provide some insider tips to any potential new members — known as PNMs — or, rather, any reader curious about the process.

Zoe Raptis, a junior in Gamma Phi Beta, serves as membership vice president for her chapter. When asked what she recommends PNMs put in their recruitment bags, she advised them to keep snacks and water while also speaking on how she appreciated having makeup compacts, deodorant and a hair brush in her bag.

“It’s nice to just feel fresh and ready,” Raptis said. “It gets hot, especially coming from houses that are further apart.”

Delaney Morse also acts as membership vice president for her sorority, Alpha Xi Delta. Her biggest recommendation was bandaids.

“I ended up using a bunch of them,” Morse said. “A lot of the shoes I wore, unfortunately, gave me blisters, even if I thought they were going to be really comfortable sneakers. So bandaids were super helpful to have on hand.”

Claire Margaglione, a junior in Alpha Gamma Delta, provided some insight into what her responsibilities are as vice president of recruitment.

“I plan both formal and informal recruitment, and I educate our members on how we recruit,” Margaglione said. “Basically, anything recruitment-related, I’m in charge of planning and executing.”

**The following Q&A has been edited for length and clarity.**

The Daily Illini: What was the most memorable part of your recruitment experience?

Zoe Raptis: Meeting everyone in the different chapters. I made connections and talked with girls from every single chapter, and I still talk to a lot of them. I’ll say hi to them when I walk down the street, even if they’re not in my chapter. I remember the girls who rushed me and the girls that I rushed. It’s nice to keep the connections up.

Delaney Morse: Honestly, recruitment goes by in such a blur and it’s hard to find something to remember, but for me, it was the last official recruitment round — it’s called Preference. At that point in time, I was unsure if joining a sorority was the path for me, but the conversations I had during Preference felt so much more real, relaxed and genuine that they sealed the deal for me.

Claire Margaglione: For me, the most memorable part of recruitment was probably after Open House. It was the Philanthropy round. You have hundreds of girls walking around campus in the same shirt, and you get to see everyone super excited. It was really powerful to see everyone in the same boat navigating it all together and being really excited to continue the process.

The DI: How did you balance the first few weeks of classes with recruitment? Any tips?

Raptis: Trying to stay as organized as possible is so important. I have a little planner that I love to write every single thing in. It makes me feel like everything’s in one place, and I’m not going to forget anything. Also, be sure to decompress at the end of the day. If you need alone time, take that alone time. Go on walks, and do whatever you can to clear your mind because there’s a lot going on at the beginning, especially with adjusting to school, recruitment and moving to a new place.

Morse: It was tricky, especially when you’re getting used to college as a freshman, and you’re still trying to figure out what materials you actually need to buy for your classes and whatnot. If I were to give someone a tip, I would just provide a reminder that you’re a student first, and that should always be your first priority. When you focus on school, the rest balances out on its own.

Margaglione: I would recommend, as soon as you get to your classes, to make a spreadsheet of all your assignments, readings, projects and things like that. I made a Google Sheet and put in every single date for the entire semester. It let me look at my weeks at a glance really easily on one sheet and see where I needed to work ahead. That way I could get done what I needed to do before recruitment.

The DI: Who did you turn to for support in the recruitment process?

Raptis: I talked to my mom a lot. After every single round, I would text her. I also talked to my friends from other schools who had already gone through recruitment. A lot of my friends from home went to schools in the south, so they had already been through it. They helped me a lot, especially with the later rounds when I was so torn.

Morse: I had two main people I went to for support. One of them was my dad. He was just so excited for me to go through recruitment, and he would let me talk about all the little details of my day and how I was feeling. I also turned to my freshman-year roommate. She and I ended up becoming good friends out of it, so she was a good person to turn to because she knew exactly what I was going through and how I was feeling.

Margaglione: I 100% went to my Recruitment Counselor. She gave us all her number, and I remember there was this one round where I was running from one house to another on the opposite end of campus. I was so nervous that I wasn’t going to make it in time, and I felt comfortable enough to call my RC. She was my go-to girl. She was wonderful.

The DI: What is a piece of advice you would give to PNMs this year?

Raptis: As cliche as it sounds, really trust the process. Everything happens for a reason with recruitment, so just stick it out. I know a lot of girls who didn’t have things go their way, but they stuck through it and now they’re obsessed with the houses they’re in. If it doesn’t work out for you, that’s totally fine, but at least you tried. Give yourself the benefit of the doubt and stay true to yourself in the process.

Morse: It really goes by in such a blur, but don’t feel bad about that. There’s nothing to feel guilty about if you forget little details or if you feel overwhelmed. Just take notes on what you can and focus on enjoying the process at the end of the day. It’s about you as a PNM, not about how others perceive you.

Margaglione: Don’t stress too much about it. You may have thought you said the wrong thing or made a bad move, but it seriously all works out in the end. I know it can be an overwhelming and stressful situation, so reach out to who you need to get advice from and know you will end up exactly where you need to be at the end of it all.

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