If sororities saw COB as a hindrance to them, they wouldn't do it. Some choose not to, because their house is full or they would rather reach total through formal recruitment, but you won't be offered a COB if a sorority is begrudging about it. I honestly couldn't tell you who in my sorority was a COB because I don't remember and it has never mattered to any of us.

As a current senior at UGA, I can tell you that getting a bid as a sophomore is more difficult than as a freshman, but I know several girls who rushed as sophomores and got bids.
In the case there is no spring recruitment or COB:
Making friends with girls in sororities will help you tremendously, as it will put you on their radar if you go through again. However, you should not go out of your way to try and get in with a group of girl in a particular sorority, because this could hurt you. Dont' force it. But befriend the girls in your hall, in your classes, etc, and if the friendship seems to be working out, do your best to maintain it. Maybe you'll meet other girls in her house that you like and fit in with, and they'll consider that for next time. Don't try and do this with only certain sororities you think you like; Make yourself known (in a positive way) to girls in all houses. Friends in the sorority will be your biggest asset.
ETA: When you're making friends, especially those in sororities, avoid saying "I got cut from everywhere." If the subject of why you aren't in a sorority, it's much better to say that you dropped recruitment, or some other way of saying it. Don't leave anyone thinking there was/looking for a reason you were released, because there may well have not been any good reason at all. Saying "Oh I didn't really find a good connection with the houses that time" leaves it open to a number of explanations, and won't reflect badly on you.

Keep your GPA up, keep your nose clean, don't steal anyone's boyfriend, etc. Look your best, not just for the next recruitment time, but for classes and around campus. It sounds stupid and superficial, but if someone recognizes you only as "the girl who wears sweatpants every day" (not saying you do), it's not going to help you. Looking your best will only help you, and if you feel that you do look your best now, then stay that way, and if you think there are things you can improve upon (I mean like getting a good haircut or starting weight training, not a nose job, etc.) then work on it. Appearances are a minor thing in the scheme of life, but in an SEC recruitment, they bear a little more weight.

Other options to consider are non-Panhellenic sororities like Gamma Sigma Sigma (service sorority) and Sigma Alpha Omega (Christian sorority). I know girls in both, and they are awesome organizations with awesome people, as are the multicultural sororities, if you think any of these fit your style.

Being Greek also isn't everything. There are so many things to get involved with at UGA, especially as a freshman, so try those out. Not only will you get to experience some new things and build your resume, but you'll probably be able to meet some more girls in sororities and decide if it is right for you. Freshman Forum, Relay for Life, UGA Miracle, UGA Heros and major-related clubs are great places to start.

and get involved.

If she's an entering freshman, I doubt that the issue was grades. To get into UGa as a freshman, you have to have about a 6.0 and a 3000 on your SAT plus be Mother Teresa.

LOL!

3.7 gpa because I have the Zel Miller scholarship.

Thank you GeorgiaGreek for taking the time to write such a detailed post! Very helpful and informative; you mentioned some things I hadn't thought of.

I have already indicated that I want to be placed on the COB list, do I need to do anything else to follow up on this?

So, recs - check; grades - check; poise, personality, presentation, reputation -?; activities - ?

No.

Actually I feel like I don't have much of a reputation at all, good or bad. I was involved in a few different clubs and sports in high school, so I talked about those a little with my rushers and asked what kinds of things she enjoys. I did feel a little nervous and maybe it showed. I kept as calm as I could but each time I walked into a house I would start thinking "OMG this is my one shot, don't blow it!" LOL.

GeorgiaGreek posted some excellent advice. First, let me start by saying that I am sorry that happened to you. The best piece of advice I can offer you is to practice chatting people up. Being a good conversationalist is a good life skill to possess and it will help you in any organization you decide to join. From reading your posts, it may be that you just didn't stand out in such a large crowd. The women in the chapters have to make decisions quickly and, unfortunately, there are some women who tend to be more reserved. Some take time to warm up to strangers. Best of luck to you and enjoy your first year, it will go quickly!

OK, the recs and the grades got you to round 2. They wanted to see what else was there. However, you didn't get you to round 3. You should have been selling yourself. Made your resume come alive to the person. I was chairman of the Relay for Life at my HS and I would like to work with it again. How active is your chapter in that event? I volumteered with the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation in my home town and I know that is your group's philanthropy. What all do you do with/for them? I was in charge of XXX for them.

Etc, etc, etc. This was your downfall. You didn't sell yourself....

What a helpful and lovely young lady you are! You represent the Greeks at UGA very well.

Besides Gamma Sigma Sigma or SAO, Xi Delta is another option for greek life at uga. It's a local social sorority. They are hosting fall recruitment next week.

I know that you have a lot of experience with recruitment, but why are you pretending to know what happened here in a specific case?

UGA is competitive enough that it might come down to something superficial and silly. A friends of mine's daughter got released the year before last, and she was a likeable girl with great high school involvement and a wonderful personality, but she just wasn't very cute. She was released after second, I'd say through absolutely no fault of her own.

There's no real way to know why any particular PNM was released until we've actually met her or done MS.

I certainly didn't mean it to come across that way. From her own admission, her involvement/activities are not strong and she simply chit-chatted at the parties. Her recs and grades obviously got her invited back after round 1 but she did nothing to sell herself after that - would could have made a difference. By her own admission she freaked out at every house. I went to Alabama so I know competitive recruitment - you have to have the resume to get in the door and then you have to sell yourself in order to stand out against all the hundreds of others. That would have given her a much better chance.