Originally Posted by NUalumMUmom
(Post 2323098)
Sorry I'm so late to the discussion, I've been trapped in a home renovation project. My daughter also went through recruitment last year at Mizzou. Many of the people posting on this thread are responsible for keeping me sane last year. MomofTiger is already miles ahead of me, just by coming here early and getting recs for 14 of the houses.
Even though I was Greek in college, I was wholly unprepared for SEC recruitment. We had NO recs, my daughter knew one person at Mizzou who was in a fraternity, but had been asked to leave the school for conduct issues. She had a good GPA, lots of involvement in high school and strong ACTs going for her, but that was it.
She did go into the process with an open mind, as she had no prior knowledge of any of the chapters. She was 2 weeks out from a pretty significant infection in her lymph node, so the left side of her face looked kind of like a chipmunk, and she had to nap over her lunch breaks. She did well after the first round of socials and had 5 or 6 chapters she really liked, but got heavily cut between rounds 2 and 3 and lost all but one of the houses she really liked. However, she kept her top ranked house, and each round fell more in love with them. On preference night she was in tears, she was so set on this house, the other two she went to did not compare. She wanted to suicide, but I talked her into listing at least 2 on her card, she just did not see herself in the third house and was willing to forego pledging in the fall if it came to that.
I was so nervous on bid day, I knew she was either going to be thrilled or devastated, and I live 450 miles away. Her roommate and two of her closest new friends on her floor had dropped before preference because they were not happy with their remaining choices, and they were all from St Louis. So at least she would have them for support if things went badly. When she did not get a call from her Pi Chi, she felt a little better. Thankfully on bid day she got her first choice and is very happy there. When they started recruitment training in the spring, she told me several times, "I have no idea how I got into my chapter" She has reached out to girls in her high school on social media offering to give advice to anyone considering recruitment so they do not go into it as clueless as we did. For the moms, I strongly recommend you get as many recs as you can, don't sweat the ones you can't, encourage your daughter to try to show her personality at the socials, without going overboard or overly "cheesy" Avoid controversial topics at all cost. Many sisters do have strong religious, political and social opinions, but this is not the time or place to discuss them. Dress appropriately, feel free to throw in something interesting or personal, it can be a conversation starter, but nothing crazy or wild. Think lunch or dinner at the Dean's house!
Most important of all: HAVE AN OPEN MIND!! Do not listen to the whispers of other PMNs or buy into rankings on the internet sites. Every house has something to offer, but some will just feel more comfortable than others. Good Luck, and I suggest a nice supply of wine in the fridge for you, mom!
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