Join Panhellenic

Primary Recruitment

Primary recruitment, the formal process used by Panhellenic sororities at Auburn to recruit new members, takes place before fall classes begin. This fully structured process, facilitated by the Panhellenic Council, is a great way to meet all eighteen of our member groups.

Primary Recruitment involves structured rounds and scheduled events. Invitations are facilitated by Panhellenic.

Primary Recruitment Overview

Informal Recruitment

After the chapter total is reset each semester, several chapters are eligible to participate in Informal Recruitment or Continuous Open Bidding (COB). COB occurs during the fall and spring semesters and is not a structured process. A chapter's eligibility for COB doesn't necessarily mean the chapter will extend any membership bids.

Informal Recruitment is based on the eligibility of the chapters. Chapters plan all events and invite students to attend individually.

Informal Recruitment Overview

Mutual Selection

It is important to recognize that both types of Panhellenic recruitment are mutual selection processes. Participation in any Panhellenic recruitment experience does not guarantee an invitation to join a sorority, nor does it obligate a student to join. Approaching either process with an open mind is the best way to have a great experience.

Primary Recruitment

Here is the basic information regarding the primary recruitment process. There are several additional resources and information included on the Auburn Panhellenic website and social media accounts

Register for Primary Recruitment - Coming June 1, 2025!

Fall 2025 Primary Recruitment is scheduled from August 7-16, 2025.

All women wanting to participate in Primary Recruitment must register for recruitment through Campus Director. Registration for the 2025 Panhellenic Primary Recruitment process will open on June 1, 2025.

The fee to participate in recruitment is $135 and will be charged to your AU Student eBill. These fees cover all operating costs of recruitment and are non-refundable.

The following is needed to complete registration:

  • Resume information
  • High School and any applicable college transcripts in an electronic copy
  • High-quality photo, no larger than 1 mb
  • (Optional) ACT/SAT scores

In your registration, you will also be asked to answer two written-response questions and upload a video based on a prompt given to you. Remember, all this information will be sent to all Panhellenic sororities.

The registration form will not save your progress. Please ensure you can complete it in one sitting. To edit your form, please follow the Campus Director instructions linked here.

  • June 1: Recruitment Registration Begins Online
  • July 7: Deadline to Order Extra T-shirts Through Registration
  • July 14: Registration Deadline
  • August 1 – 4: Returning Member Move-In
  • August 4 – 8: Panhellenic Ice Water Teas Canvas Module Open
  • August 5 – 7: Potential New Member Early Move-In
  • August 7: Panhellenic Recruitment Kickoff
  • August 8: PNM Welcome Brunch and Ice Water Teas Round
  • August 9 – 11: Philanthropy Round
  • August 12 – 14: Sisterhood Round
  • August 15: Preference Round
  • August 16: Bid Day
  • August 18: Classes Begin

Registrants should be prepared to dedicate their week to Panhellenic Recruitment. There will be times outside of the schedule when they will be required to meet with their Recruitment Counselors.

A recommendation serves as your introduction to a sorority and gives its members a chance to get to know you before the start of primary recruitment. A “recommendation letter” is supporting documentation that an alumna of a sorority can complete on behalf of a student interested in joining a sorority.

You are not required to secure recommendations to receive a bid. While letters of recommendation are not required to participate in recruitment, PNMs can contact sorority alumnae or an Alumnae Panhellenic for assistance.

Detailed Primary Recruitment Information can be found on the AU Panhellenic Website

Informal Recruitment

While many women join the Panhellenic community through Formal Recruitment, this is not the only way to join. After the campus total is reset each semester, several chapters are eligible to participate in Informal Recruitment, also known as Continuous Open Bidding (COB). This is a secondary recruitment process that is more causal than Formal Recruitment.

The big difference between Primary and Informal Recruitment is that there is no structured event for Informal Recruitment. Unlike Primary Recruitment, there are no silence rules, no long days of going from party to party, or complicated invitation acceptances. When a sorority holds COB, they simply contact you on their own and hold a series of informal events to get to know her better. Each chapter does it differently. Examples include going to dinner, a movie night in the chapter room, or a coffee date

Just because a chapter is eligible for Informal Recruitment does not mean that they are required to contact students or offer them a bid to their chapter. It is a right of the eligible chapter(s) if they would like to contact or extend a bid to a student.

Students who are interested in being contacted by a COB-eligible chapter are highly encouraged to complete the COB Interest Form. The completed interest forms will be sent directly to the eligible chapter.

While completing our interest form is a good way to get your name in the hands of the sororities, it is not required (but it is suggested). It also does not guarantee that any chapter will reach out to you. The only way to meet all our chapters is to participate in fall primary recruitment.

Complete the COB Interest Form

All women who are full-time Auburn University Students are eligible to participate if they meet three conditions:

  1. They must have never been initiated into a National Panhellenic Conference sorority.
  2. They must not have received a bid from Fall Primary Recruitment and turned it down within the preceding year.
  3. They must not have accepted a COB bid and later turned it down within the preceding year.

To determine your eligibility, ask yourself if you've participated in any Panhellenic recruitment process. If not, you are eligible for COB. If you have participated in a recruitment process with Panhellenic before and were matched with a chapter, you are not eligible for COB until the start of the next formal recruitment process on our campus. If you were not matched, you are eligible for COB.

Chapters participating in COB during the semester may be found below. Please note that the bid availability of chapters may change throughout the semester.

Chapters Participating in Continuous Open Bidding (COB) Spring 2025:

  • Alpha Xi Delta
  • Kappa Alpha Theta
  • Pi Beta Phi
  • Sigma Sigma Sigma

Some sororities find themselves eligible and do not have COB; others will have it as soon as they have room for one person. Some sororities will have it one year and not the next. If you want to be a sorotity member, putting your name in the COB mix is a great way to get involved. If it's only one specific sorority you're interested in joining, COB might not be for you.