Hey, y'all! My name is Isabella, and I’m a college student learning how to navigate adulthood right alongside you!! Today, I will define a few things I didn’t know or had to learn about when I came to college. Some of these definitions are specific to my university, and some apply to other colleges as well! Every college does things differently, but I hope this will help you understand them better!
- A Swap
- At my university a swap is a 30-minute-long event between a new pledge class of a sorority and a new pledge class of a fraternity. There will be a theme previously decided by representatives of both organizations, and you are all expected to dress in the theme. You will have a swap with multiple other fraternal organizations, the fraternal organization you attend a swap with will vary chapter to chapter.
- A PNM
- PNM stands for “potential new member”. This means you are participating in sorority recruitment and are going through the process of potentially becoming a new sorority member.
- A Pi Chi, Ro Gam, etc.
- This name varies depending on what school you attend, but this will be an older girl who is a sorority member on campus who has chosen to disaffiliate for the summer to help potential new members through the recruitment process. They are there to be an unbiased source with whom you can share your thoughts and feelings throughout the recruitment process.
- A Date Party
- A date party is a dressy event where you can bring your chosen date. You would typically wear something similar to a high school dance dress for these events. Think of a cocktail dress or classy mini dress.
- A Formal
- A formal will be one of your most social events of the year. Most organizations will do a Fall Formal and a Spring Formal.
- A Social
- A social event is often held with other sororities and/or fraternal organizations for a combined event. These events normally have a theme for which all attendees are expected to dress accordingly.
- Syllabus Week
- Syllabus week is the first week of classes, during which you will attend all of your classes but will not necessarily start learning any material. Most teachers use this week to acclimate their students to what their class will entail. This week, they will tell you exactly what materials you will need, what to expect, and other general information you might need.
- Swipes & Dining Dollars
- Swipes are your prepaid meal swipes. Depending on your meal plan, they can be given to you monthly or weekly. Last year, I got five swipes a week, and now I get 50 swipes a semester to use on my timeline. Swipes allow you to go into your dining hall any time you want, as long as it's open, and get as much food as you want. Most dining halls serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner. On the other hand, dining dollars consist of a prepaid amount of money to spend anywhere your school allows. For my standard meal plan I get $500 a semester. For my campus, you can use it at any restaurant or store on campus and I’m sure this is similar to most campuses. If you don’t spend this, it will not get refunded so find somewhere you like to use it or use it at a convenience store on your campus!
- A Game Day date
- A gameday date entails a new member of a fraternal organization inviting you to be their date for the whole day of gameday. You essentially will go throughout the day with them to tailgates and into the game, etc.
- New Member Event
- A new member event is a bonding event that you will attend after you have pledged into a new sorority. This is to get to know all of the other new members who have also just pledged into your new sorority.
- Parents weekend
- Most sororities have a Spring parents weekend and a Fall parents weekend. It will normally entail a dinner of some kind for all of the active sorority members and their parents to attend.
With Love,
Isabella XO
