Fraternity rush takes place on Saturday and Sunday nights, while sorority rush begins on Saturday, starting a six-day process that lasts until Thursday.
Sorority recruitment is at a record high, with 385 women registering to rush this Fall, up from 351 in 2009, according to Ellen Sandmeyer '12, Panhellenic Council's vice president of recruitment.
During fraternity rush, men visit and register at any house they are interested in joining. Prospective members may choose to "shake out" at their preferred houses, Brace said, a process similar to the "early decision process for college." Men who shake out will shake hands with every member of their chosen fraternity, signifying that the house is their first choice.
Bids are handed out on both nights after deliberations at each fraternity.
Co-ed fraternity houses design and schedule their own recruitment processes, Coed Council president Andrew Manns '11 said, adding that the co-ed rush process is flexible.
"The rush process is more open in the sense that there are sliding deadlines and very informal get-togethers that constitute the rush process," Manns said. "It's more open in that the process is open-ended."
Manns said that Alpha Theta coed fraternity expects as many as 20 new members to join this term, exceeding the increases enjoyed in prior years. Other houses will likely experience a similar boost, he said.
Sorority rush is a highly structured process, Sandmeyer said. Women who intend to rush register as potential new members with Panhell and go through three rounds of rush.
Potential new members are assigned to trained recruitment counselors, called Rho Chis. These counselors are meant to be informational resources for potential new members and help guide them through the rush process, Sandmeyer said.
A rush booklet that includes financial information about house dues, among other key facts about each sorority, was made available to all potential new members this year, said Madolyn Mertz '11, Panhell vice president of public relations.
Pre-rush events leading up to this Fall's sorority recruitment began last Spring, Sandmeyer said.
"We have open house events with the Panhellenic Council, we had an ice cream social that was very well attended and all the other houses hosted events at their specific houses or social spaces," Sandmeyer said.
Panhell president Anna Sonstegard '11 said that Panhell tried to make the process as transparent as possible.
"The choice to go Greek or not go Greek is a big decision, and we try to give sophomores as much information about the Greek system as we can," Sonstegard said.
Brace said he believes the open atmosphere of fraternities throughout the year contributes to the differences in the structures of fraternity and sorority rush.
"Fraternities are more open to campus because some sororities have regulations against having parties," Brace said. "Their process is a lot more regimented than ours, a lot more formal."
Brace and Sonstegard both said that the College's Greek system is extremely open and inclusive.
"Brotherhood does some pretty special things for this campus and for the individual," Brace said. "And the parties are fun too."
