get some aloe, ice, water, rehydrate yourself, put your feet up -- and get ready for some more fun.
but take care of yourself.

And if you have a Walgreen's near you, their aloe sunburn gel is THE BEST!!!!

Have fun!

Curlyhead's Recruitment!
 

Good luck to you Curlyhead! My niece is a ZTA at UCF and loves it! I agree with the other FL alums, rec's are nice but not a necessity. Just be yourself, have fun, and FOLLOW YOUR HEART!

:)

whew. long day. Went to the remaining 5 houses today and voted.

We have a top 7 list ( in no order ) and a bottom 3 list (ranked by preference)

Top 7 List: (in no order)
Ivan
Charley
Frances
Dora
Agnes
Michelle
Dennis

Bottom 3:
1. Jeanne
2. Donna
3. Mitch

Tomorrow we will visit a maximum of 7 houses for Philanthropy Day and then cut it down to 5 at the end of the day.

so are your bottom three the chapters that you would least like to see again?

OK so IVAN is on your top list, but not necessarily your "1st" choice.

That is fine with me GO IVAN.

It is interesting for me to hear about "house" recruitment. We don't get sunburned @ UNA cause the sororities are all in the same dorms.

What if it rains? Sorry, I just wonder these things. I guess yall come prepared with umbrellas. But, ewww rain on top of heat + bad hair days galore.

Well, I guess everyone would be in the same boat. I didn't mean to add another stress. I really was just wondering.

yes. From what I interpreted, if any of your top 7 choose not to take you back tomorrow, your bottom 3 will then be replacing them in order of preference.

We aren't outside alll the time, but for a good amount we are. The houses set up tents outside on their lawn (or on the fraternity houses/lawn if they don't have a house) and we sit under the tent after rotating a house. We then learn the sorority cheer and then line up to go into the house.

It can most definitely rain. Last year the girls had to go through recruitment with all of those hurricanes. You can bring an umbrella for precaution, but bad hair is almost inevitable with just the humidity alone.

Don't worry about adding another stress, recruitment has been anything but!! It was made out to be a lot more worse than it actually is, which is a pleasure.

fingers and toes for you.
see what comes next and keep hydrated...

when I went through in '03 it rained! And I luckily had an umbrella, but still it was a mess! Because its so muggy afterwards, it makes your hair frizz to the extreme!

But if it rains while the girls are in the house--to the point where they cannot leave, once the party is "supposed to end" the girls are separated---the PNMs stay in one room while the sisters go into another.

Luckily its just been hot hot hot, and no rain!

<3

wait...so the PNM's sing coming into the house?! wow...that's different!

(haha im like answering all these questions)

They sing a chant BEFORE entering the house--ie like the cheer "we've got spirit yes we do, we got spirit how bout you"...and then the sorority sings whatever chant it is for their house back to them...

its like an entrance song (theres a thread about it)

:):)

Heya from another UCF PNM. Good luck tomorrow :) Hope you get invites back to all the houses you liked.

hello hello.

well i just received a phone call from my Rho Gamma saying I was only going to 6 houses today instead of 7, meaning one sorority cut me. So I'm kind of bored right now haha.

I don't know which one it is, but I think Ivan cut me. I would consider them a "reach" since I didn't really look like them by means of fashion or status. They were also one of the few sororities where I really talked to two of the girls and they were able to get a good enough feel for who I am to legitimately cut me, if that makes sense.

I don't really take it personally since I don't want to be somewhere that I don't fit in or feel welcomed. At least I only have to cut one sorority at the end of today to make it 5.

I'd be surprised if it wasn't Ivan. I hadn't cut them since they were really nice to me & I was able to have that conversation with them, but I knew that it would be unlikely for me to make it to Prefs with them.

It's weird to have 11 sororities cut down already to 6!

Well, 6 is still a lot to see so congrats! :)

I just want to give you a little word of warning though, since you only have 6 parties today, that actually means you were cut from a couple more houses than just one. If it had just been one of your top seven (for instance, Ivan), then they would have filled the 7th party slot with one of your "bottom" groups. So it could be more of your "top" group that cut you, too, or it could be all of you "bottom" group. I don't want to be a 'Debbie Downer', but I just wanted you to be prepared when you see your list that some others will not be on there as well.

But again, 6 parties is great and you'll have a blast I'm sure!

Good luck and have fun!

So I ended up visiting these 6 today:
Frances
Dora
Agnes
Michelle
Donna
Jeanne

I was cut from:
Ivan
Mitch
Dennis
Charley

It was a bummer to find 2 of the sororities that I had originally cut, back onto my list since 3 of my top 7 had dropped me. I really wanted to get to know Charley, but my chance has passed. I told myself to keep an open mind and a positive attitude, so I did.

Daily Synopsis:
Frances hasn't disappointed me yet. I haven't met anyone I didn't like.
Dora is really nice, I just have a small grudge against them since I was cut from them last semester during spring rush. I know I shouldn't hold the grudge, but I feel like if they take me now, it's just not the right reason. That's just something personal that I don't think can change.
Agnes was a little disappointing. One of the sisters I was talking to wasn't really interesting or holding a conversation with me. I tried to think of all the other girls that I loved in their chapter, but it just wasn't as great to see them today as it was yesterday.
Michelle. Oh boy oh boy. I have a bad feeling about Michelle. The sister that I was paired up with was absolutely not interested in me. She didn't look at me at all. I got a really bad vibe from her, and I wouldn't be surprised if I wasn't invited back to the chapter. The sad part is the next sister I talked to, after she successfully escaped me [she was very eager to do so] was really nice. She was a lot more down to earth, so I'm confused. Granted I want a chapter that I can love all the girls, so I don't know if this chapter is too bi-polar in personalities for me or what.
Donna was nice. I'm not really interested in their chapter, but the girls are nice. Just nothing really clicked.
Jeanne and I do not match. I had a terrible time in their chapter, and I can't foresee any sisterhood with them.

So today wasn't the greatest of days...some good, some bad.
We cut it down to 5, so my list is:

Top 5 (in no order):
Dora
Agnes
Frances
Donna
Michelle

Bottom 1:
Jeanne

Small note: Everyone in a chapter isn't going to be someone you absolutely love. Get any large group together, and you're bound to get a range of personalities. :)

Huge ditto. If anyone says they absolutely LOVED and got along wonderfully with all of their chapter sisters, they're lying through their teeth. It's just not humanly possible.

I'm curious as to what happened that you could have a "terrible" time at a rush party (i.e. what you said about the Jeanne group). You don't mention anything bad happening. I don't know understand anyone could have a "terrible" time at a rush party. Maybe you were getting tired or something, but you really need to make the best of it! Perhaps some of the people you said didn't seem interested in you appeared that way b/c you weren't acting like you were interested in them?

I don't think I've ever seen a rush thread where the rushee doesn't like so many groups. I'm not making a judgment -- just an observation.

Please, please don't hold a grudge against these ladies!!! I'm assuming spring rush was informal? In COB situtations, the chapter only has so many open spots, and many more wonderful girls go through than they can take. There's a chance you could have been cut simply because they had spots for 10 girls, and you were number 11 on their list.

Also -- we had an awesome sister who came through twice before getting a bid on her third try. The first time she had to drop out of fall recruitment. She came to a spring COB event, and we simply didn't have open enough spots to take her. She came through again in the fall, and we got her! Timing really is everything sometimes. :)

ETA: I'm rooting for Donna, b/c, well, that's my name!

I wish I had a rush thread when I was going through I can hear myself now
"the girl I talked to smelled horribly- I couldn't wait to talk to the next girl because I sincerely was about to wretch from the stink this girl presented. "
"the shoved a photo album in my lap and said HERE! Look at us!- uhm I dont know these girls and these pictures mean nothing to me.."
"This girl asked me if I was a piece of furniture what would I be and why- what's up with that!?"

Out of 7 chapters only three did I really like, and of them 1 was iffy at best.

HAHA that's awesome.

Now that I think about it, it's kind of cool to hear about instances of someone NOT liking some of the groups -- at least it's honest, and not "blah blah blah OMG EVERYONE IS SO GREAT!!!!!"

I was invited back to Jeanne, Dora, and Agnes.

It wasn't the greatest of days for me, since Frances [my favorite] dropped me. We watched the sisterhood videos and none of the 3 really struck me as a home. I'm really discouraged.

I'll be going through Prefs day, probably back to those 3, assuming none of them cut me tonight.

I'll give it my best shot to keep an open mind about them.

This isn't quite the week that I expected, so it's hard to keep morale up.

Booo IVAN I didn't like them anyway. Just kidding. Listen next year this time you will be able to look back and hopefully realize that everything that is happening has worked out for YOUR best. I think I got cut from the sorority that I thought I NEEDED to be in and I look back now to realize that wasn't my HOME.

I hope you don't loose hope and I hope that you enjoy your "pledge" class, cause those are the sisters you REALLY remember. Find out which sorority out of the ones you have suits your needs. And know that there are as many different girls in that sorority, as there are sisters in the chapter.

Also, from what I understand you need to keep writing the sororities down that you are willing to take a bid from. For instance, @ UNA we have 4 sororities we were told to write all 4 sororities down every night in the order of our preference. Even if you didn't go to the theme or pref, cause like I have said before you never know how those lists fall.

Don't forget to tell the sorority that you are the most interested in that you are interested in them. I know you are nervous and you don't want to sound desperate but, if they don't know you are interested and they know another pm is interested in them then they will rank accordingly.

That is all for now. I don't want to sound like a broken record but HAVE FUN.

big deep breathe time...
keep going, let things unfold and see what plays out.
i know that sounds simplistic, but right now you are tired and wee bit down.
just keep looking around at the other girls and think they might be your new class sisters. (i know you can't say pledge anymore)
lol

I'm sorry your favorite didn't work out and you didn't feel a major connection with the three groups that are left. However, I think it's great that you're still going to prefs to see what happens.

(Just so that what I'm about to say makes sense: I went to a small school with a small Greek system, just three sororities) Personally, I was a little bit similar to you in that when I went through, by the middle of recruitment I only really liked one group- and that one dropped me. But you know what? I stuck it out through prefs and found a great home. Sure, I could've been happy with the other two groups. But honestly I think that the way everything worked out was great for me. Sometimes the sorority women can see things that PNMs can't- they have a better feel for their group than you do, obviously, and they may think that you'd fit in best elsewhere. From my experience, they were right! Of couse, that doesn't necessarily apply to you. Just some food for thought. Above all else, just follow your gut! And remember- you'll never know if you don't try ;-) Have fun, and good luck!

I have been lurking on this web site for almost three years and this is the thread that made me actually register. WOW. I'm a UCF alum...if you couldn't already tell and there is sooooo much that I would love to tell you. I don't even know where to start.

First, major snaps for you in keeping a good attitude and staying positive. It's the best (and in my opinion-only) way to make it through recruitment.

Second, this is your experience-so own it. So many people talk about the way that you SHOULD feel during recruitment, but everyone is different. Try looking at it from a different point of view. Look at the chapters you visited today and think about what you could bring to them. So nothing struck you as home, but what could you do to make it that way? For example: Is this a chapter I could see myself helping in terms of leadership, etc.?

Throw out that preconceived notion of "home" and really dig down to the basics of what you really need in a sisterhood. What are the bare essentials for you in a black and white picture? You may be surprised at all the superficial things that fly out the window.

During one party my senior year, I had a potential member comment to me that she hadn't really felt comfortable at many of the houses and one of my sisters jumped in with a very honest response. She told her that all of sorority life is not recruitment. Recruitment is a show. Forget about the houses and the pretty outfits and the peppy door chants for a second. If you had met these women somewhere else (like class, the union, work, whatever), could you be friends with them? Sisterhood has to start somewhere. It's something that grows and develops and changes. Don't feel like you have to have it all from the very beginning. It will come.

Above all, keep that open mind. It seems to be working pretty well for you! Three invites on video day is not at all uncommon at UCF. I only went to three that day. In fact, the only days I had a full schedule were UCF spirit day and Prefs.

Best Wishes for the rest of recruitment!
Sorry that was kind of long! I got going and just couldn't stop!
-Knight Alumna

I just wanted to point out that Dora and Agnes were in your top 5 at this point and you did say that there are some girls in Agnes you really love and that your main problem with Dora is that they didn't COB you last year. Pref has a way of making things more clear, and I hope it works that way for you.

Dee

Please don't give up hope... you will notice that pref parties are more intimate and serious than the other rounds. You will probably start to see what the organization truly stands for. During my recruitment at each party we had a pref "date" which was a sorority member that we had gotten to know during the week, and this one girl rushed us the entire time. In AOII, my pref date had written me a lovely note which had said how much she had enjoyed getting to know me and hoped that I felt the same way about them. Then they had a small ceremony which completely put me in tears, it was so touching. I think you will really like pref parties, PLEASE keep an OPEN mind. I agree with the other comments made, recruitment IS a big show but if you could see yourself being friends with the other girls in other situations, why not give it a chance?

As always, FOLLOW YOUR HEART.....


:)

reading through your thread


I understand your disappointment and hestitant in going to to these other parties.

2 things that I really want you to think about.....

1) Informal and Formal recruitment are two different animals, as you well know. Most chapters when doing Informal recruitment only have a certain numbers of spots to fill, you could have been #5, when they only had 4 spots open. Look at this way, you might be on the top of their list.

2) Although looking at the current chapter to see if you fit in with them is a good thing. Look at the girls that are in the party with you. These ladies could be your pledge sisters, can you can see youself being sisters with these ladies?

Take some time, see which houses you get invited back with pref......really listen to the ceremony and see if those values are talking to you.

Talk with your Gamma Chis or an impartical party to talk out your thoughts....you may come back with some better insights that had not occured to you before.

Good luck in whatever you decide.

One fall, my chapter had only 5 spots open for COB girls...and 21 girls who came to enough COB events to be eligible for a bid from us! While we were excited that we had a lot of great girls who wanted to become a member of our sisterhood, it was SO hard to let 16 girls down. Needless to say, many of them went through formal rush in the spring and got bids from us then--one of whom is my grandlittle!
Please don't hold it against this chapter--for all you know you could've been the 'next one' to receive a bid if they had been able to. As many have said before me, it may not have been you personally...sorority life can be a numbers game unfortunately.
If you've made it this far with them, they obviously DO like you, or you would've been dropped early on like a hotcake. Please give them a chance.

Your chapter must have been AWESOME on COB/COR!!!!!!

Hey-- don't get too discouraged-- just make sure to give everyone a chance, but if push comes to shove, don't join something that you don't really want to join. Good luck at pref-- don't give up hope just yet!

hi everyone,

thanks for all your kind words.

I feel a lot better about going back to the chapters tomorrow and I really hope that I find a place in my heart for one of them.

I think I was getting caught up in a lot of what other people think about the chapters, because each PNM has their own opinion and often voices it during rush.

I really do hope that all of the houses I went to today invite me back to Prefs & I get to know them better.

So here's to new beginnings & new homes!

cheers "clink" clink" clink"

cheers :)

pop...
and the bottle of bubbly apple cider is open
and we toast to wonderful days to come

this is the most wonderful thing i have ever read on gc!!! it is absolutely the truth at any school, too! thanks ucfalumna!

amen to ucf alumna's wise words(or those of her equally wise sister!)

hi girls.

Dora was the only sorority that I put down on my bid card.

I know it's a suicide decision, but I know that Dora is the place that I can be me and do great things. The women there are phenomenal and I have already began admiring them.

I don't know if I'll get the bid or not, but life will go on either way.

This week has been crazier than I could have ever imagined. I've had my disappointments and my excitments...but from now on, it's out of my hands.

After all,
You only need one.