With my mom and two of my aunts being in a sorority, everyone expected me to join one as well-which is why my friends and family were shocked when I told them I was dropping out of formal recruitment. Truth is, I was so excited to join a sorority. I had spent months planning my outfits and stalking all of the sororities on Instagram. I was heartbroken when I made the decision to drop out of formal recruitment, but my gut was telling me that the houses I had left were not where I belonged. So, I sat down with my Rho Gamma and filled out the application to drop out of recruitment. Towards the end of the application was a box that said “Would You Like to Be Notified of Continuous Open Bidding opportunities?” I checked “Yes,” not really expecting anything to come from it. Little did I know that I would later join my sorority through the COB process.Â
If you don’t know, COB is a chance for panhellenic chapters to add more girls to their sisterhood after bid day. It’s similar to formal recruitment, but often much more relaxed, usually involving a short interview with a few girls in the chapter. A few weeks after bid day, I received a text from an older member in the chapter asking me if I would want to get coffee with her and one of her sisters. We got coffee a few days later and had a normal conversation that flowed so easily. Even though I had met both of those girls that day, the conversation felt as if I were talking to friends. After the conversation, I knew that the chapter was the right sorority for me. I was so happy when I received a text from the VP of membership offering me a bid, I seriously almost dropped my phone in the Starbucks line I was waiting in. I was THAT excited.Â
The process of joining the chapter through COB was a much smoother transition than I had anticipated. I thought that it would take months to catch up with the other new members, in terms of the new member education process, but to my surprise we were able to catch up with them in about two weeks! Since we caught up so fast, the other COBs and I were able to get initiated at the same time as the other new members, and get our big sisters just a week after the other new members did.Â
Overall, joining my sorority through the COB process was one of the best decisions I have ever made! I immediately felt so welcomed by the other girls in the chapter and I knew that I had made the right choice. So, if you’re ever considering joining a chapter through the COB process, I highly recommend doing so. Like I said, joining my chapter through COB was one of the best decisions I have ever made!