It is a sure sign when hundreds of well-dressed women descend on the Marvin Center that sorority recruitment has begun again.

I went through recruitment as a potential new member last year, and I can still remember as if it was yesterday. Although I will be going through recruitment from the opposite side of the proverbial table this year, I can still relate to the potential new members. It is with this mentality that I give the following advice to the girls who will start their recruitment experience tomorrow.

Be open minded. Last year, I witnessed many girls enter recruitment with preconceived notions of which sororities were right for them. Typically, these assumptions were based off the generic stereotype that each sorority has. While a sorority’s reputation is undoubtedly a large part of many girls’ decision processes, it is unfair to both you and to the sororities to judge them before you get to know them.

Let the girls in the sorority – not their superficial and often inaccurate stereotypes – shape your opinions of them. This way, you will be able to find the sorority that is truly best for you.

Make your own decisions. Since so many girls are going through recruitment this year, chances are some of your friends or roommates are also potential new members. Naturally, you will want to talk to them about the different chapters you went to and share your opinions with them. Do this as sparingly as possible. It is often difficult to keep your opinions separate from your friends’.

So if your friends decide to express their opinions about the different chapters, take them with a grain of salt. The sorority you choose has to be right for you.

If they hate a sorority that you love, don’t let that alter your opinion.

Be nice to the Pi Rho Chis. Your recruitment counselors have been preparing for this weekend for months and ultimately are there to make sure that you get the most out of your experience. Therefore, if one of them gives you an instruction, like asking you to stop talking, do not take it as a personal attack.

They are ultimately looking out for you and the other potential new members and do not want anything to deter your experience.

While the Panhellenic Association has made great strides in building a sense of community amongst the recruitment counselors, specifically with the assignment of the Pi Rho Chi title, this is still a stressful time for them.

When talking to your counselors about the different chapters, be polite and don’t bash a sorority. If your recruitment counselor is a member of that chapter, you could seriously offend her.

Have fun and be yourself. Recruitment is undoubtedly stressful for everyone involved. However, don’t worry so much about having to sell yourself to the sororities to the point that it detracts from your experience.

The girls you meet during this weekend, from those in the different chapters to those in your recruitment groups, could become some of your future best friends at GW and beyond.

This can be a defining weekend for your college experience.

Make the most of it.

Saige Saunig, a sophomore majoring in journalism, is a Hatchet columnist.