As a transgender freshman trying to find his place at Northwestern University, Adam Davies thought joining a sorority would make his transition to college life a smoother one.

But the 18-year-old Wisconsin native — who said he was drawn to Greek life values of friendship, service and leadership — found out this month that he didn’t get a bid from any sorority at the private university in Evanston, Ill., the Chicago Tribune reports.

“The vibe was — as far as I could tell — ‘We would love to have you, but we can’t,’” Davies told the newspaper of his experience, believed to be among the first instances of an openly transgender man participating in recruitment among the National Panhellenic Conference, which represents 26 sororities with nearly 400,000 members on more than 670 campuses worldwide.

Davies, of Appleton, Wis., said he “made it very clear” throughout the recruitment process that he was a transgender man because he’s “not afraid” of his identity. He was welcomed at each sorority house, where he often discussed feminism and other topics.

Davies said he was told by university staffers that all 12 social sorority houses were notified of his gender identity and that many of their international headquarters could find him ineligible based on guidelines that often require that recruits be female or identify as women.

Alan Cubbage, a university spokesman, told the paper that Northwestern has no authority over membership decisions made by its sororities.

“Student Affairs staff explained what he might expect based on national organizations’ bylaws, with the information we had available at that time,” Cubbage wrote the Tribune in an email.

It’s unclear whether Davies’ gender identity played a role in the decision, since each chapter’s membership process is private, but four of the 12 Panhellenic sororities at the 20,000-student university explained the decision to the Tribune.

An official at Delta Gamma told the newspaper that men are excluded from its membership, which allows women and transgender people who identify as women. An official from Pi Beta Phi said the sorority is a “women’s organization for individuals who live and self-identify as women,” according to the Tribune.

A spokeswoman for Kappa Alpha Theta said the organization founded in 1870 is also open to those who identify as women.

“As some of the earliest women to attend college, Kappa Alpha Theta’s founders fought for inclusion in a frequently hostile social and educational environment,” Liz Pinckj told the newspaper. “Our mission is not to define the experience of being a woman but to offer lifelong opportunities for social, intellectual and moral growth. Membership in Kappa Alpha Theta is open to those who identify as women.”

The vice president of Tri Delta, meanwhile, said the sorority was “committed to supporting and serving women” and that a task force continually reviews recruitment policies.

“At a time when society is wrestling with questions about how the changing concepts of gender identity impact traditional distinctions between men and women, we support our chapters as they make individual membership decisions involving transgender students, as they would for any potential member, based on the best interests of the individual and chapter,” Stacy Gillard told the newspaper.

But weeks before Davies started the recruitment process, the university’s nine-member Panhellenic executive board promised to create a more inclusive community by supporting those who “ascribe to non-traditional forms of gender expression” in a letter to the editor published by The Daily Northwestern on Dec. 8.

“The desire to be part of a women’s community does not need to have any correlation to a biological sex assigned at birth,” the letter reads. “This we know. What we as individuals and leaders in the community seek, value and prioritize is collective commitment to the stated Panhellenic mission and ideals of sisterhood before biological or gender uniformity.”

Nina Seminara, one of the authors of the letter and the university’s Panhellenic president, told the Tribune she believes sororities need to expand their idea of womanhood, particularly since there are already sorority members who don’t necessarily fit the standard gender binary. She also praised Davies for “deepening the conversations” on Northwestern’s campus, hopefully sparking a larger conversation in the near future.

“Some international/national chapter headquarters do define eligible members as individuals identifying as women, but — thanks in many ways to Adam — I think this is beginning to be a more open conversation among (headquarters),” Seminara said.

Seminara did not speculate on which specific sorority or sororities would change their guidelines, the newspaper reports.

Davies, for his part, told the Tribune he was pleased with Northwestern for letting him take part in the process. When required to choose one gender, Davies said, he identifies as a man, but only when forced to pick between male and female. He’s hoping to have breast tissue removal surgery in March and believes sororities will one day open their doors for people outside of typical gender stereotypes.

“I believe, over time, the gender of these organizations will fade,” Davies told the newspaper. “I hope.”