How to Convince Parents to Pay for a Sorority

So you have decided you want to go through sorority recruitment (formerly known as "rush") this fall at your chosen university. The only problem is, you are not sure you can convince your parents to fork out the cash for a sorority. Fear not—-you can prove to the parents that a sorority is not as expensive as it may seem and is a worthwhile investment.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

1. Play up the beneficial aspects of being in a sorority. Nationally only 50% of students who enter college graduate; for Greeks, however, the figure is 70%. Most sororities have GPA requirements and provide academic assistance to their members. Each sorority has a charity to which it dedicates countless hours for the greater good. Being a Greek provides numerous future career-networking options. Remind your parents that if you do not get a job upon graduation, they are faced with you moving back home. Wouldn't they rather you joined a sorority and got a job quickly through your contacts?
2. Find out how much it costs to live in a dorm and participate in your college's meal plan. Compare this total amount to what it costs to live in a sorority house. On most college campuses, it is cheaper to live in the sorority house, where your meals and sorority dues are usually included in the price, than it is to live in a dorm and purchase the school's meal plan. In addition, most sorority houses have an adult "house mother" who lives on site 24/7. She helps to insure that proper behavior occurs in the house.
3. Compare the rules of a dorm to the rules of a sorority house. Most sorority houses have stricter rules than dormitories. For example, the sorority houses at the University of Georgia do not allow men in the girls' sleeping quarters. Dates must pick up the girls downstairs in the common areas. Many all-girls' dormitories allow men to sleep over 24/7. Put that image in your parents' minds and see how they like it.
4. Point out the advantages of arriving early during sorority rush. For those colleges which have recruitment in the fall, girls going through rush arrive a week earlier than all the rest of the freshmen. This allows you (and consequently your parents) to move in a much less rushed, hectic and traffic-laden environment. You are also likely to form friendships during rush because all the girls are going through the same thing together, thus lessening homesickness (and tearful calls to your parents).
5. Remind your parents that going through rush does not in any way obligate you to actually join a sorority. You can always go through recruitment and choose not to pledge a sorority, but you still meet many new friends. Getting your foot in the door by going through rush may swing your parents toward paying for a sorority should you decide to join one.