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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at WMU chapter.

A Sorority Might Not be for You

 

It’s made to sound like the best part of college: sororities – a home away from home. But I tried to branch out and join one, and I ended up hating it. It’s not for everyone and it may not be for you, either.

 

For example, I’m a natural loner. I love hanging out by myself. If given the choice I would rather hangout with myself for a month than spend most of my time with 30 or so other girls. If you know you’d rather be by yourself than attending mandatory events, then a sorority might not be for you.

 

Another thing is I hate a lot of girls. Not like hate them, but the majority of my friends are boys. I have one or two close girl friends, and everyone else can barely be counted as an acquaintance. I don’t like the drama that some girls come with, and I don’t like most topics girls engage in. For some reason, I thought if I joined a sorority it would help me learn to like them, but in all honesty it didn’t remotely help. None of the girls made an effort to be my friend, and in the end I ended up dropping. If you don’t like girls, then a sorority might not be for you.

 

I also should’ve known from the fact that formal recruitment didn’t end up being ‘fun’ for me that a sorority wouldn’t be fun for me either. My eyes had been acting up, so I ended up having to wear my glasses that week – something that I never do – and it was hot out so instead of straightening my naturally curly hair like I usually would for events like this, I ended up wearing it in its frizzy state. My naive self thought that if the girls really liked me they’d accept me no matter how “ugly” I was looking throughout the week. I mean, my personality is the same no matter what I look like, right? Honestly, if I had straightened my hair and worn my contacts, half the sororities that didn’t want me (I dropped from formal recruitment because all of them except one dropped me) would have probably accepted me back throughout the week with open arms. Formal recruitment was the worst week for me, and when informal came up I thought it was perfect. I didn’t realize that if they didn’t want me during formal, then why would they be my “fit” during informal? If the idea of formal recruitment gives you a pit in your stomach, then a sorority might not be for you.

 

Something else most people don’t realize is that some sorority girls party a lot. In the one I had joined, girls went out every single weekend to party. I work part time, and I knew I didn’t want to sacrifice my money (weekends are busiest for me) for a party, especially every weekend. I didn’t understand the appeal either- who wants to go out every weekend and do the same stuff? Half of their outfits ended up looking the same, too, and their instagram feeds are full of them posing in Frats. If you can’t imagine going out to party with your fellow sisters at least most of the time, then a sorority might not be for you.

 

I don’t want you to get the wrong idea. I think sororities for the most part are great organizations, but they just aren’t for everyone. This article is for anyone thinking about joining a sorority, and if you can relate to most of my points made above, then a sorority might not be for you.

I'm studying English and Art at Western Michigan University. I aspire to be an author. I want to move to Australia after college. I love reading, writing, and working out. My favorite artists include Eminem, Red Hot Chili Peppers. Highly Suspect, Modern Baseball, and The Front Bottoms. I currently waitress, but I'm hoping to get an internship next summer for editing. I'm from Paw Paw, a small town about half way between Kalamazoo and South Haven. My favorite season is summer, because that's when my birthday is. 
Johanna is the campus correspondent for the WMU chapter and a senior at Western Michigan University. She is studying journalism and political science. She hopes to spend her life writing and influencing the world around her with her words. A member of the Western Michigan University Marching Band, Johanna has been in love with music for as long as she can remember and tries to balance out her busy life between writing and playing music.