Dear PNM,

I am so excited you have chosen to go through fall recruitment. You are making an excellent choice and you will find an entire organization filled with girls who want to be your friend. I have a few words of advice for you throughout recruitment: go in with an open mind.

You have heard this from everyone you've talked to about your choice. Right? Ugh, it can be so annoying when people say the same thing over and over. Here is why I'm telling you this for the hundredth time.

When I went through fall recruitment, I had houses in mind that I wanted to rush, but I mostly went in with no expectations. I had a pristine transcript and I had decent recommendations...I was even a legacy to a house. Ice water went well at all houses, I thought. I got compliments on my outfits, I was friendly and the conversation flowed. However, the talk outside of houses made me question why I liked some of the houses. Mean nicknames, stories of blunders committed by some houses made me feel lame for liking the "lower tier" houses.

When I was not invited back to the most sought-after sororities, I felt a pang of sadness. I did not understand why the "upper tier" houses did not like me back. My feelings were hurt but I felt good about the houses I had left and I shook off any feelings of inadequacy.

It was not until preference round, when I was cut from my mother's sorority that I felt that like I blew recruitment. I cried and called my mom, who quickly reassured me to go through this last round and choose the house where I felt the most comfortable. If my mom hadn't urged me to finish out the night, I probably would not be Greek.

That last round solidified that I had fallen in love with two sororities and I had a tough time choosing between them. Neither were organizations that stood out to me before Ice Water. By the end of rush, though, I realized both organizations were absolutely amazing, that all the organizations were amazing, that it did not matter which of the houses I chose. I would meet women I would love like my own family, I would have opportunities to network and become a leader, and that I would leave college feeling like I left a mark on something. I joined the sorority that I felt I could fall flat on my face in the middle of a chapter meeting and I would not die of embarrassment. I chose the house that, I felt, I belonged most. And I never once regretted it.

If I had not gone into recruitment with an open mind, if I had set my heart on one house and given up when I faced disappointment, I would not have had the opportunity to meet my best friends, become a leader in my chapter and on campus, or have access to resources to raise my GPA higher than the average college woman.

Go into recruitment and fall in love with the house in which you feel most like yourself. You won't regret it.