I don't understand why anyone would "look down" at a way to get great members! And just because it may not be a "cool" thing to do at your school doesn't mean that it hasn't been very successful and "cool" at other schools.

I think that anyone that looks down upon a way to get new sisters, that in most cases lets you get to know them much better than in formal recruitment, has major problems and needs to take a fall off their high horse. Looking down your nose like that only makes you live up to the sorority stereotypes.

And COB certainly isn't easier than formal recruitment. The COB PNMs (for lack of better term) a lot of times spend MORE time with the sorority than they would during recruitment. They don't have the BS things to talk about like how they like rush so far, blah blah blah. They're not going to talk to someone for 5 minutes then have a bump to a new sister. There's less going on and it's more about them and the sister, not the decorations, skits, etc.

Some of you are talking out both sides of your mouth. You're saying oh, any way to get new members is great, then you turn around and trash talk that it's not fair b/c it's easier to COB (which is false, btw) or whatever else you're knocking COB for.

Re: Spring Rush
 

Unfortunately, they quit doing that before my time. Now the only formal rush is in the fall, but groups can COB at any time throughout the school year. My chapter had a Spring Rush the semester after I joined, but it was only us doing it and it was actually a week-long COB event because we were new and had spaces to fill.

Unfortunately, that's the way it is. My chapter's like, "Yay, new members!" for COB. We have fun with COB events, and it's a good time for all. IMO, it's definitely got advantages over formal recruitment because a) it's less stressful on active members and b) even though a PNM has to maybe go to more events where she feels more carefully scrutinized, by the time she is extended a bid, she already knows plenty of people in the chapter. I'm not saying COB doesn't work well for us or other chapters here or elsewhere, or that it's easier than formal recruitment; it's actually working very well for us this semester and it's been a lot of work. Certain situations, like Auburn's uber-competetive PH atmosphere, just make it more difficult because of the conotations other sororities place on it (explained below). And believe me, at least a few girls from other sororities have told PNM's "You're COBing? Let me tell you, you don't want to go to ABC chapter. In fact, why don't you go through formal rush next fall? I can help get you into my chapter," and such.

Some chapters here see it as "Oh, you mean you didn't make quota during fall recruitment?" or "You don't know you're going to be able to replace your graduating seniors and then some during fall recruitment?" These are also the chapters that have been here 75+ years and have oodles of legacies (and double and triple and quadruple legacies whose great-grandma was a founding sister here or something) just dying to get in that they have to turn away (or else they have bid lists full of nothing but legacies and still legacies turned away). They know that they can pick and choose who they want because everyone wants to be an XYZ at Auburn because every woman in her family has been for the last 3 generations. The only time I can even imagine those chapters doing COB is a situation like we had right before DG came back onto campus and AU PH told everyone they could to get up to total.

The situation does suck for us and other chapters here like Gamma Phi and DG. Completely. That's the biggest problem with COB at places like Auburn. There's that, and the fact that it's so hard for people like me to meet new girls to bring to events. Most girls I meet through classes and campus organizations are either a) already in a sorority or b) decided long ago they didn't want to be (said it earlier in the thread, I don't care).

Re: Re: Spring Rush
 

I should have added that UK's 'Spring Rush' was informal. Formal was in the fall before school started. However, at the start of the spring semester, there would usually be an announcement in The Kentucky Kernel and the monthly Greek paper (Greek Columns?) by UK's Panhellenic Council announcing open rush. Frankly, I didn't pay attention as to whom or how it worked for the system as a whole or what kind, if any, structure was in place campus wide. What I do recall is that some chapters would have open houses while others had invite only parties.

And by the way GO CATS!

TSTeven: Girls who get snap bids should never know they were "snap bids." Snap bidding occurs between the end of bid matching and whenever the PNMs meeting their sorority commences. The girls who were snap bidded are with the new pledge class just like everyone else. Although in ubercompetitive rush atmospheres, I'm sure that among the sororities there can be looking down upon those who have to "resort" to it.

COBing happens outside of the formal rush window.

I always thought girls that were snap bidded knew they were snap bids, but the sisters in the sorority never knew who they were. At my school, for example, if a girl doesn't sign her bid card, but a chapter that had her on their bid list didn't make quota, she could get offered a snap bid and choose to accept it. She knows she's a snap bid but no one else in the sorority should except for possibly the recruitment chair.

You're probably right...I think I was just trying to say that by the time public bid matching happens, if there is one, everyone's together.

Quota additions are not known outside of whoever does bid matching. Snap bids are offered to a girl from a chapter that had her on their bid list but she did not have them on her bid card.

I know for a fact this is what happened with a high school friend of mine when I was a sophomore and she was a freshman.

She attended the three preference parties and ended up suiciding ABC. When she didn't receive a bid from ABC, she was offered a snap bid by XYZ.

She called me in tears wanting to get my impression of the XYZ chapter. She reasoned that since XYZ offered her a snap bid, then they must not have made quota. She then 'made the leap' and assumed that something must be wrong with XYZ. The interesting thing is that XYZ was one of the "top" chapters on campus. So I assured her there wasn't anything wrong, etc. and she accepted her bid.

Once she walked in the chapter's door, she never regretted joining and continues to enjoy her sisterhood to this day.

What a great story! I wish more people would be open to the idea of snap bids on my campus. Since the Greek Affairs advisor has been at the school (8 years) she has never had someone accept a snap bid.

<--- snap bidded. I got the "Did not match" call, but was called monday (bid day) and was offered a bid by my no. 1 choice (which, incidentally, is not considered the "top" chapter on campus in anything but grades and never takes quota by choice, but to hell with that...I'm a sister, not a number :) ).

My PERSONAL opinion of COB is that I hate it. My chapter is fairly successful at formal recruitment, but it seems like every single time we try to COB (and I'm talking when we need to have a spring pledge class, not just pick up one or two girls), we go through it slowly and painfully. Greek Life is not a huge draw at our school, and sometimes it feels like the only people interested in joining sororities at all are those who go through formal recruitment.

Also, it is easy to accept freshman girls through fall recruitment who had nice 3.2 high school GPAs. It is a different story in the spring, when those girls get 2.2s their first semester and are not eligible to be picked up.

HOWEVER: We have gotten great girls through COB. The end result is never really much different- COB sisters are just as active, successful, etc. on average as formal recruitment sisters. But the stress of planning COB events, not having girls come out, meeting a girl you love and then finding out she doesn't have the grades, filling your pledge class one at a time for months, having the same girl who you've already voted on and dropped continue to come to your open events... AHHH! I really don't like it.

I am willing to admit that my chapter's attitude towards COB is probably a huge part of the problem, because I know there are others who feel like I do. It brings down our morale when something we are normally strong in (like Recruitment) suddenly becomes a struggle (like COB).

I also wanted to add that, like 33Girl, I do not consider snap bidding to be under the COB umbrella. Because my chapter has made quota since I've been here, I tend to think of COB as a spring semester activity.

Whether or not COB is viewed as negative depends on your campus and how well they monitor total. At my school, we just recently raised total by 5, after total being stagnant at 50 since the Greek system began in the 80s. With quota usually around 20, there was usually no need to COB, because most chapters were sitting above or at total. Since raising total to 55 as of Jan.1st, this is one of the first semesters in a LONG time where each chapter is COBing. Conversely, another campus in my state with a Phi Mu chapter has total around 70, but they have quotas of around 15. This creates a situation where EACH chapter needs to COB every semester, and few chapters are at total. In one example, constant COBing is viewed as negative or a "numbers problem". In another, it's a way of life.

If she "suicided" ABC, I don't think she should have technically been allowed a snap bid. Only those ladies who optimize their chance at sisterhood, but still didn't match with any of the groups they listed are allowed a snap bid. Anyone who knows better, please correct me if I'm wrong.

However, whether her snap bid was within the rules or not, it's wonderful that your friend accepted her bid from XYZ and has been happy in their sisterhood.

As far as it was explained to us for recruitment in January, anyone who does not match during bid matching is eligible for a snap bid, regardless of whether they suicided or completley filled out their pref card.

Is that a rule that varies from campus to campus? I seem to remember that when I went through, if we didn't rank every sorority we preffed, then we were ineligible for snap bidding.