Active: An undergraduate sorority woman who is a current and initiated member of her chapter.
Alumna: A sorority woman who has graduated. Alumnae (plural) often assist collegiate sorority women with recruitment.
B
Bid: An invitation to sorority membership.
Big Sister: An active member of a sorority who serves as a mentor to a new member, guiding her through the new member program and initiation.
C
Chapter: Another word for an individual sorority at UBC.
D
Disaffiliate: A woman who temporarily does not identify as a member of a specific sorority in order to stay neutral and assist potential new members during their recruitment process. Your Recruitment Counsellor and the Panhellenic Council are all disaffiliated during Formal Recruitment.
F
Fraternity: Greek-letter sisterhood or brotherhood. Some sororities are “women’s fraternities” but use the word “sorority” for clarification.
I
Initiation: A ceremony where new members of a sorority become official active members.
Invitationals: The second round of Formal Recruitment at UBC. This round consists of visiting up to 5 sororities for 30 minutes each.
L
Legacy: A woman whose grandmother/mother/sister is a member of a sorority. She is a legacy to that sorority.
N
National Panhellenic Conference (NPC): The international governing body of 26 international sororities; this includes the 8 at UBC.
New Member: A woman who has accepted a bid from a sorority but is not yet initiated.
New Member Period: The period after formal recruitment (usually 4-9 weeks) where new members learn about their organization and participate in activities to get to know their active sisters before initiation.
P
Panhellenic Association: A university-based governing body for sororities.
Philanthropy: A charitable fundraiser or project that a sorority works to commit service.
Potential New Member (PNM): A woman going through sorority recruitment.
Preference (Pref): The last and most formal round of recruitment, which consists of visiting up to 2 sororities for 60 minutes each.
R
Recruitment Counsellor: A disaffiliated woman who assists PNMs during recruitment and offers impartial advice.
S
Sister: A term used by sorority members to refer to one another.
Sorority: A Greek letter sisterhood.
T
Tours: The first round of formal recruitment at UBC consists of visits to 8 sororities for 20 minutes each.
V
Values-Based Recruitment: A recruitment style that focuses on meaningful conversations between active members and potential new members with the goal of recruiting women who will have a positive impact on chapters and the Panhellenic Community.
