The first step is the aspirancy. It is a time to "come and see," and involves two weekend retreats in our extern quarters, followed by two more weekends and an extended live-in experience within the enclosure.
After an aspirant applies and is accepted for admission to our community, the first year to year-and-a-half is spent as a postulant. One is given time to adjust to a whole new culture, so different from the world "outside." The rhythm of our daily life starts to "form" the person as a nun, a woman religious serving God through the purely contemplative life.
The novitate begins with the clothing in our Dominican habit, but with a white, and not a black, veil. The novice also receives a new name: "In the world, you were known as ... [such and such] ... now you will be called ... [such and such]. It is a special two-year period of coming to understand more deeply our way of life and of preparing for the taking of vows.