Bama Rush

Inside the trending sorority recruitment process at The University of Alabama

Photo+courtesy+of+Delaney+Fields+private+collection

Photo courtesy of Delaney Field’s private collection

Lily Kardash, Author

The hashtag #BamaRushTok is taking over TikTok again this fall as recruitment for sororities are back in season at colleges around America. The University of Alabama specifically gained attention due to its incredibly active Greek life. PNMs, or potential new members, flooded TikTok with various micro-vlogs throughout the weeklong recruitment process ranging from OOTDs to tear filled videos about getting dropped from their preferred house. The recruitment experience at Alabama was viewed by millions. 

Around 2,500 young women at UA went through the process of finding their “new home”. Recruitment week, or Rush week, entails a hefty social calendar, including visiting up to twelve different houses per day to pitch why they should receive a bid. These women are expected to prepare resumes and get letters of recommendation from current or alumni members, much like college applications themselves. Houses then decide who they wish to invite back, women who do not get invited back are considered “dropped” by a house. 

Bama Rush Tok gives the ultimate inside scoop on a day in the life of a PMN. Several young women on TikTok gained a mass following within the week solely for rushing at Alabama, pageant girl Kylan Darnell, being one of them. Darnell has gained over half a million followers on TikTok from her iconic OOTD videos which feature her well known catch phrase, “Have a great day not a good day.” The extensive, and expensive, measures these women take have attracted the eyes of people from all walks of life on TikTok, for example, andrereed1985 comments, “Why am I, a United States Marine Corps veteran father of two, so invested in this”. 

The craze of the southern sorority culture has even led HBOMax and Vice Studies to confirm that they have a documentary in the works that will take a deep dive into the recruitment process. Director of the documentary, Rachel Fleit, tells The New York Times, “This film is a thoughtful and compassionate portrayal of young women in 2022 as they rush the sorority system at the University of Alabama,” There is no set release date, but as of now the first-year students in Tuscaloosa are definitely still enjoying the fresh feel of sisterhood. 

Freshman at Alabama and former Battlefield student, Delaney Field, experienced Bama Rush firsthand. Field recites her rush week experience, saying, “you’re waking up at 5 in the morning, putting on full makeup and dresses and then meeting a ton of people.” UA has had the largest reigning Greek life in the nation for the past 11 years, and it will not stop there. Stay tuned for the “third season” of Alabama rush in 2023.