The Truth About Time: What It Takes to Be an Active Sorority Member

One of the biggest topics of questions we get from potential new members surrounds time commitment and time management as a chapter member. What is required every week? What’s optional? How do you balance your sorority involvement with academics and other involvements?

Today, the Her Sorority Journey Interns take you through what the time commitment looks like for their chapters, and how they’ve been able to manage their time between different majors, extracurriculars, and leadership roles. 

If you’re worried about the time commitment of a sorority, or just need a closer look at the lives of current sorority women, keep on reading!

Hi interns! Tell us where you go to school & what your involvement is with Panhellenic.

Addie: I am a junior at the University of South Carolina and currently serve as the Director of Marketing for Panhellenic Recruitment.

Brooke: I go to the University of Tennessee and I am a rising senior in Phi Mu! I currently serve as the Public Relations Chairwoman in my chapter.

Katie: I’m going into my senior year at Miami University of Ohio, I’m a member of Pi Beta Phi and I currently serve as the Vice President of Member Development for our Panhellenic Executive Council.

What are the weekly requirements for your chapter members?

Addie: We hold weekly chapter meetings every Monday at 8:00 PM. During the new member period, there are additional weekly meetings for new members. Each semester, we also host one required philanthropy event, but beyond that, there are no other mandatory activities.

Brooke: We hold weekly chapter meetings on Tuesdays at 7PM; this is the only weekly requirement. During the span of a semester we are required to obtain 5 community service hours and attend a philanthropy event. There are many other opportunities to get involved, but these are the only required activities. 

Katie: We hold our weekly chapter meetings every Sunday night for current members and every Monday night for new members, while our chapter leadership team attends additional meetings each week. That’s usually the only event required weekly, but depending on the time of year we may host philanthropy events or other ceremonies that all members are required to attend.

What other events does your chapter host throughout the week that are more optional?

Addie: We host weekly sisterhood events—like workout classes and jewelry making—which are completely optional. We also have monthly social functions that offer a fun opportunity to dress up and spend time with sisters. In addition, there are a variety of community service activities available each week to help members fulfill their required service hours.

Brooke: We have a wide variety of sisterhood events that include activities such as doing a craft, eating free food, and even fun things such as taking a makeup class or having a flower bouquet pop-up. We also have date parties and formals that have fun themes where members can dress up and have a night out with the chapter at a rented out venue! We also have additional philanthropy events, bible studies, study mixers, percentage nights where a purchase at a restaurant goes to our philanthropy, and open tabs at places such as local ice cream shops. 

Katie: We usually host social events and sisterhood events each month that are completely optional: Our social events are a fun way to dress up and spend time with our sisters and sometimes other chapters, and our sisterhood events are usually more casual ways to hangout with your sisters doing crafts, watching a show, or getting ice cream. We also have philanthropy opportunities a few times a month to either raise money or go volunteer for the chapter.

How much time a week do you devote to your leadership roles?

Addie: Between team meetings and developing social media content for recruitment, I usually dedicate about ten hours per week to Panhellenic responsibilities—though that time commitment will increase significantly during recruitment.

Brooke: I would say that I spend around five hours a week collaborating with my social media team, searching for content, and editing and posting content. I also am required to represent my chapter at roundtable meetings which are only held twice every semester. 

Katie: Most of my role consists of attending meetings, planning/hosting events, and working with all the chapter’s new member educators, so a lot of my role is flexible in terms of when I need to get things done. I’d say on average I’m spending around five hours a week working exclusively on my Panhellenic tasks.

How have you learned to manage your time between school, sorority activities, and any other campus involvements? 

Addie: My sorority is very flexible when it comes to excused absences for jobs and other campus commitments, and they always share chapter slides afterward, which helps me stay informed if I have to miss anything. On Sunday nights, I review my calendar for the upcoming week and plan how to balance school, clubs, and sorority events if any conflicts arise.

Brooke: I take everything day by day, and make sure to write down any given tasks that I have. I have a running list going and accomplish everything that I am able to each day. The first thing that I look at when I wake up in the morning is my calendar. I enjoy keeping myself busy; something about having a filled schedule keeps me working efficiently.

Katie: Managing all my academics and campus involvement has definitely taken some time to get used to. What’s worked best for me is sitting down at the beginning of the week and figuring out all I need to get done in the next 2 weeks – that gives me an opportunity to prioritize things coming up and put other things off until the next week. It keeps me from getting blindsided by anything that comes up, and helps me block off time in my week to get things done.

With all you’re involved in on campus, how do you take time for self care throughout the week? What do you like to do?

Addie: I intentionally build time into my schedule each day to unwind and do something relaxing, like watching a show or reading. I also make it a priority to schedule physical activity—even if it means waking up earlier—because I know how easy it is to let physical health slip when life gets busy.

Brooke: I tend to unwind at night after all of my classes, work, meetings, and other things are all done. I love to take a long shower and have a long session of TikTok scrolling. What’s great about my job is that even when I am doom scrolling on TikTok, I can still be searching for trends for my social media positions!

Katie: This has always been a bit of a struggle for me, because being busy can very quickly take over your personal time that you need to take care of yourself. I’ve recently been blocking nights off my calendar where I want to take some time for myself, and I like to spend that time watching TV or playing a game. I also try to stay away from my phone on these nights so I'm not tempted to reply to emails or texts that aren't urgent.

Everyone has different levels of involvement depending on their campus, their chapter, and their leadership roles. With all our different perspectives on the time commitment to a sorority, we’ve all gained some important skills in time management and prioritization through our chapter involvements.

While the time commitments can sound daunting in the beginning, our sorority experience has given us invaluable skills and resources we’ve needed to be leaders in our chapter, campuses, and communities.