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What does a sorority offer?
All sororities are essentially idealistic organizations committed to high principles and worthwhile endeavors. Sorority life is designed to inspire you and to help you get the most from your college experience. Knowing others who share your interests and aims creates an atmosphere in which you can make special friends, strengthen your character, develop leadership, better organize your time, and do well in your academic studies. Sororities offer a wide variety of benefits

Scholarship - Every sorority at Birmingham-Southern has a variety of programs to help you make the transition from high school to college level studies. We understand that it is sometimes difficult to adjust to an academic college environment. That is why we help our member in every way possible to achieve above their potential as students. Beginning your first semester, you will have the opportunity to participate in educational programs for academic success, study groups for classes, and tutoring programs. Our success in this area is reflected in the All-Sorority Grade Point Average of 3.265, which is well above the All-School Grade Point Average of 2.947. In addition, our Panhellenic has been recognized nationally and regionally for our scholarship programming.

Service - Philanthropies programs and community service projects have long been sponsored by national sororities and continue to be a high priority of Birmingham-Southern's chapters. Sororities at Birmingham-Southern are proud of their service to the local and national community and of the recognition that we have received for this service. Be sure to take note of each sorority's major philanthropy, which is noted on the sorority page.

Leadership Training - A sorority's program develops leadership. You may start as an officer in your pledge class or as a chair of a committee in the chapter. Also, the members will help you get started in campus activities which interest you. Sorority life teaches both cooperation and acceptance of responsibility as part of leadership development.

An Enriched College Education - Association with others of similar ideals will cause you to grow spiritually, intellectually, and socially. You will be better prepared for life after college due to the social adjustments developed through the activities of a sorority. Learning to work together for the good of the chapter is excellent preparation for citizenship in the larger world of alumnae life after college.

Friendship - From the moment you pledge, you will belong to a group of young women who are sincerely concerned about you. When you need a helping hand it will be there, along with sympathetic understanding. When good things come to you, others will share in your happiness. The friends that you make will be ones that will last throughout the rest of your life.

What does sorority membership cost?
Major costs occur during the first year. They will include a new member fee and an initiation fee. Monthly dues will continue each year that you are in college. Sometimes sororities find it necessary to add assessments to the monthly dues in order to pay for extras. This is usually done by a vote of the chapter. These assessments will vary from time to time and from sorority to sorority, with some having very few or no assessments. Other added costs are T-shirts, pictures, etc., which you may purchase at your discretion. You will be given specific information on each sorority's dues and fees on the sorority page. If you have specific questions regarding the costs involved in sorority membership, please feel free to discuss it with any sorority member concerning her own sorority.

What are "Recs" and Alumnae information sheets?
Recommendations, also called membership information forms or 'Recs', are letters or statements from an alumna to a sorority's chapter recommending a Potential New Member (PNM) for pledging. Sororities often find it helpful to receive recommendations on PNM's to familiarize themselves with a PNM prior to Recruitment. During the summer you may be asked by an alumna of a sorority to provide information to her about you and your high school activities. Should you receive such a request, you should provide it to her so that she may recommend you a s a future member of her chapter. If you know women who are alumnae of sororities which have chapters at Birmingham-Southern College, you should let them know that you are going to attend Birmingham-Southern in the Fall and that you are planning to go out for Recruitment.

Do not worry if you are not approached to provide information to alumnae. Recommendations are not required by every sorority. Each sorority has its own method of handling this process and determining the importance placed on it. If a particular sorority does need a recommendation to ask a PNM to join and has not received one, the final responsibility for obtaining a recommendation lies with the chapter, not the PNM. It is in the best interest of a PNM if each chapter has a recommendation on her prior to the beginning of Recruitment.

There are a few steps that a PNM can take to assist in the process:

Again, although recommendations are helpful, a PNM should not worry if she does not know alumnae who can write recommendations for her. The final responsibility for obtaining a recommendation lies with the individual chapters, not the PNM.

The addresses of the BSC sororities are listed below, in case you need to furnish this information to an alumnae:

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