you may be a member of a smaller new member class(pledge class) because the chapter can't take as many members, but your pledgeship will be the same-you will learn the same things, get a big sister, etc., just like the new members from formal recruitment do.

why on earth would an informal new member be looked down on? they would not have offered "you" a bid if they had not wanted you as a sister. they will most likely be delighted to have "you" as a new member.

To play devil's advocate, I kinda understand his question: since formal (when typically done in fall) is a huge deal on greek campuses (and even for a noncompetitive campus, fall is given more attention than spring), i would think that, in the eyes/mind of freshmen (or of the immature/naive/superficial) getting a snap bid or a bid through COB/COR during informal would been seen as like... lesser than?

i'm not phrasing it very positively, but I havent seen many threads on members getting super psyched and prepped for informal/COB, so while *I* know that a member is a member, regardless of when theyre given a bid, someone else (perhaps a die-hard older greek family member or friend) may think "oh, you got a bid after formal rush..." and weight it differently.

PS i am sooooooo sorry for resurrecting this gawdawful thread with this post.

At least in my experience, this isn't true. Part of the reason for the lower level of excitement on the part of members is because informal events are usually low-key, so there's less nervousness so you'll see fewer "OMG I AM SO EXCITED AND SO SCARED FOR FORMAL YIPPEE" posts. In many NPC chapters (save those at the super-competitive schools where chapters are at/over total a lot of the time) COB and informal recruitment is just part of doing business. Formal is exciting because it only happens once a year, whereas COB can happen anytime that school is in session and the Panhellenic Council says it can.

I joined through partially structured recruitment (it was called "informal" on my campus), and a few members were added to my pledge class in the weeks after bid day as the chapter held COB events to bid up to total. It was common (on my campus and in my chapter). It was also up to the New Member Coordinator, the new member class, and the chapter as a whole to catch those new members up to speed and initiate them all at the same time. Obviously, if you bid someone on October 29 and initiation is November 4 then you won't be able to do that, that new member will start her new member period when the next group is bid in the next semester.

Also, the way the quota system works, you can bid up to total (the total number of members a chapter can have), and if you didn't make quota, you can bid up to quota as well. So, say total is 40, and going into formal you have 35 members. At formal, quota is 12. You got 8 new members. You can still bid up to 4 more potential new members even though that would make your chapter size 47 (over total). We would always try to fill quota in the weeks after formal recruitment if we missed it, and at least while I was New Member Coordinator I never noticed any type of rift between new members brought in through COB and those brought in through formal or informal recruitment. The only real difference was that those brought in through COB didn't get the all-out Bid Day celebrations that the others did.

Indiana doesn't use the same system (with their wacky wonky bed quota system that Lord knows I'll never understand) but if I understand a little about their campus culture, it seems that they want every bed in their houses filled. I would imagine they'd be thrilled with getting 20 new members through FR and adding a few more as they go along, if they have the beds.

I could be off with that but this is just a really long-winded way of saying that in my experience new members brought in through COB are completely indistinguishable from new members brought in through formal recruitment, there is no stigma attached.

ETA: If freshmen or non-members thought of those brought in through COB, I did not see it. I forgot to clarify that this is from the view of the outside looking in. Especially because everyone was initiated at the same time.

I think the last 2 posts are talking about something different than the rushees posting are. They want to know if any groups at Indiana are doing COBs/informal rush NOW.

You are assuming that she is telling us the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help her God. Maybe she got cut completely after 8 party but is trying to save face. I don't see any reason why someone would drop out before they have to make a final decision either. Who knows this may be a troll anyway.

It happens all the time at competitive schools like mine. Just because you have a full party schedule doesn't mean you have a full schedule of "meaningful connections" houses. Lots of women will drop out immediately if they think their options are below them.

http://jonwye.files.wordpress.com/2009/01/ducktales.jpg

Couldn't resist.

DUCKTALES! WOO-OO!

D-D-D-Danger lurks behind you..there's a stranger out to find you!!

i wasn't going to say this, because i didn't think it was necessary, but now that i feel the need to defend myself, i will: i got invited back to four houses for eight party, all of them "upper tier" (which i personally think is bogus - no sorority is better than another because they have "hotter girls"). i got dirty rushed at two of them (and yes, i did report it) and the other two i didn't like based on OTHER factors besides the fact that our conversations were uninspiring. one of them had to do with their involvement (or lack of it) on campus, another had to do with their gpa. and i honestly can't say that i wasn't influenced by what i heard (reputations and such), but i can say that i gave them a fair chance despite it.

Of course you did.

As far as I know, there are several chapters at IU doing informal this year - and they're not the ones you would expect at ALL. Talk to your Rho Gamma, she can help you get into all the informal stuff.

And I do know the chapter totals for some houses at Indiana...Tri-Delt got 32, Gamma Phi had 61, Theta and Zeta have 39.

I'm glad I finally get to defend a "Popular" chapter. So you had "uninspiring" conversations with how many girls? Are these chapters filled with clones? Did you talk to every girl in the chapter? 3/4 of the chapter? 1/2? Less than 10 members? How do you really know how involved or uninvolved they are? Did you ask the "uninspiring" girl? Maybe she just doesn't know. She's probably a member like EVERY chapter has that must be FORCED to come to recruitment, doesn't know anyone or anything about any of her sisters. Maybe I'm wrong, but judging an entire chapter because of a few bad conversations is pretty silly.

As for a bad GPA...your GPA doesn't have to be effected by the chapter's GPA, and that is something that can be fixed rather rapidly. My chapter's GPA went from 3rd out of 4 to the top GPA on campus consistently while I was a collegiate. Chapter GPA is certainly not etched in stone.

Sorry if you felt attacked, but you spouted off a lot of code words that we all hate to hear.

Does anyone know which houses at IU are doing informal?