Ear-to-ear, totally authentic smiles, genuine what’s-your-major conversations and an endless supply of food just about sums up sorority recruitment. For the girls doing the rushing, it’s a lot of take-these-snacks-away-from-me-I-can’t-help-myself feelings which often results in pushing the nearby snacks onto PNMs, AKA politely suggesting they taste some of your amaaaazing chef’s famous puppy chow. Good hospitality maybe, but usually it’s more of a self-control thing because if they’re gone, you can’t eat them anymore.

Or maybe you’re so good at rush that you’re talking to girls every round and don’t have a second to eat, so you’re left starving and shoveling chips and pretzels in your mouth in between parties.

On the flip side, a lot of PNMs worry “is it okay to take snacks at every sorority?” and debate whether or not the girls will judge them for stuffing their faces with fistfuls of Chex Mix. Too many of them experience roller coaster sugar highs from being coerced into eating Chips Ahoy, Swedish Fish and Oreos at just about every house. A lot of girls black out rush conversations and refuse to crack a smile because they’re totally convinced they have the last house’s dirt sundae in their teeth. That’s a legitimate concern though.

No matter where you are, food during rush is definitely a thing.

Here’s the bottom line: eat if you want, don’t eat if you don’t want. If you’re talking with someone who is eyeing your food a little too closely, you don’t want to be in that house anyway, and if you come away from rush swollen from all the salt and sugar and swearing off snacks for the next week, that’s totally normal. But do us all a favor, and make sure you don’t have gross stuff in your teeth.