Sugary Recruitment Spring 2011
 

Hey all!

I'm a PNM at a smaller school where rush has become significantly more competitive over the years. We only have three sororities and over 400 girls rushing; we have been told that the maximum number of bids is 40 for each sorority, which adds some pressure! There is talk of adding a fourth sorority next year because demand is so high, but unfortunately for me, I enrolled in the largest rush class yet!

Recruitment begins in the spring, which I have been looking forward to since move-in day. I love the idea of a strong supportive community of women, and I can only hope that one of the groups will see me as a sister.

Recruitment began yesterday for us. Many of my friends are rushing as well, which is great as we can go through this experience together.

As there are only three groups, I will do my absolute best to conceal their identities. The names of the sororities are:

Skittles
Hershey's Kisses
Tootsie Rolls

Because recruitment is in the spring, I have met girls in all three groups, and have heard various things about each group.

However, I know incredible people in all three, and I would honestly be happy in any one. It makes no sense to listen to other people's opinions, especially if they have had no real contact with the groups. One girl's actions does not define the entire sorority, and I come to this recruitment with an open mind. I hope that I will be able to find a home in one of these groups!

good luck and hope you find a home.

Recruitment began yesterday, so I'll begin from there.

We first arrived at the center of campus where we were organized into groups. My group had about 60 girls; everyone was excited and we were all chatting as the Rho Gammas handed out name tags. None of my immediate friends were in my group, but I was happy to meet new people. A lot of the girls were so sweet and funny, and I was excited that I could be their sister. A couple of the girls though were disinterested in the whole thing! They kept saying how they were just doing this to meet people and how they weren't sure if they really wanted to be in a sorority. Umm, hello? The rest of us knew how competitive this was going to be, and it wouldn't be fair if a girl who wasn't really interested took a bid away from someone who truly did want to be a sorority. I tried not to let my annoyance show though; perhaps those doubting girls will make up their minds quickly and either drop out or commit to a sorority!

Anyways, the first group we went to was Skittles. All the sisters were really excited to see us, and as we walked into the building, cheered us through with their sorority chants. I think not enough sisters were there however because each sister took two PNMs with her to chat. I didn't like that feeling of direct competition with the other PNM I was paired with, and the room became incredibly noisy with conversation. A few sisters who just seemed to be floating around came up and talked with us, but I didn't seem to have much in common with them. Luckily, the last two sisters who I spoke to (the PNM with me got into a conversation about theatre with the original sister) were great; I had lots to talk about with them! I knew one of them from a campus cultural organization, which was a great surprise as I hadn't realized that she was also the President of Skittles! The last sister I spoke to was also very sweet, although the conversation was a bit stilted and awkward.

I left Skittles with mixed emotions. In general, the sisters I met were very sweet and welcoming, but I didn’t enjoy competing with the other PNM for the sisters’ attention. The conversations (other then with the President) also felt a bit forced.

Next up was Hershey’s Kisses. We entered the building to a group of loudly singing girls; as I walked through the door, I was instantly surrounded by smiling girls holding out their hands to introduce themselves. There were so many people that I didn’t even notice one of the sisters taking my hand to pull me aside to talk. Each sister was paired off with one PNM, which made conversation much easier. Their transitions were smooth, and every sister I talked to was excited about Hershey’s Kisses as well as interested in my activities around campus. I’m very involved on campus as well as volunteer every week and each sister seemed to appreciate that. They were all super friendly and outgoing, and I enjoyed speaking with each girl. Time seemed to fly by, and I was disappointed to leave such warm, friendly people. We left to loud enthusiastic singing, which was a fun surprise!

Finally, we came to Tootsie Rolls. I was already tired after the first two groups; I couldn’t imagine going to several in one day! As we entered the room, two sisters were instantly there to take our jackets and put them aside. We were welcomed to a group of excited sisters; there was no singing, but their enthusiasm was obvious. I can’t say enough good things about Tootsie Rolls. Each sister I talked to was so wonderful and funny and outgoing. They seemed to have great relationships with each other as well, which is such an important thing to see! They had put together a really cute refreshment stand, as well as played a slideshow as we all chatted. The only problem I had was that there were a few moments when I was talking to three sisters at once. I guess their transitions hadn’t been rehearsed (I’d like to think it’s because the conversation was so good!) but I never felt awkward or pressured. I asked about their philanthropy but the sisters seemed to want to talk more about me than that, which took me a bit by surprise. I wanted to show them how interested I was in their organization! Time was over so soon, and I couldn’t wait to see those girls again.

Tonight is another event where we will be meeting more sisters in each group. Then it’s time to pref them! As of right now, my choices in order are Tootsie Rolls, Hershey's Kisses and Skittles but I'm open to change! Maybe my opinions will change tonight!

I’m so nervous AND excited. I can barely do my psychology reading because of nerves!

As one of those girls who "wasn't sure she'd pledge but just rushed to meet people", let me put this out there for you.

1. There's some bluffing in that statement - that way, if they get cut after first round, they can save a little face.

2. Most people going through rush will figure out very quickly if sorority life is right for them or not. It's unlikely that they'll get that far into the process if they have zero interest.

3. A sorority's job during rush is to make you think that your life won't begin until you pledge PQR. They're very, very good at it - and it's possible that they'll charm one of the undecideds into pledging.

4. You can control none of this. Your job is to make sure that the sisters of PQR cannot live without you in their pledge class.

So, you know...

Knock 'em dead.

OP, I'm pretty sure I can tell what school you're from- and I am usually awful at guessing but this paired with a recent thread on recruitment at your school, I'm pretty sure I know...and with only three chapters it's really easy to know which is which.

Just make sure you're careful what you say! Good luck with your recruitment :)

Considering I think there is another thread on GC about this school, I think everyone knows which one it is.

Good luck, OP!

You seem really sweet and open-minded... good luck with your recruitment!

Good luck, keep an open mind and enjoy the experience!

I honestly don't have a clue as to where your school is, and that's fine with me; hope that you keep getting asked to return and remember, it only takes ONE bid :-) Keep your mind open, and best of luck to you!

Seriously? I'm disappointed in you - I knew from the first paragraph of the first post! :p

:rolleyes: and...;)

(I'm in a recovery group focused on overcoming Fear of Smilies)

I would take the "only 40 girls can pledge each group" thing with a grain of salt. That's not how recruitment works, and VERY few campuses limit quota before the number of women remaining in recruitment before preference is actually known. With RFM, the goal is to place AS MANY PNMs as possible, so just go in to the parties looking for your best fit, not worrying that you won't be in the 120 that will actually make the cut.

Me either...I have no clue. If someone wants to PM me and clue me in... :confused:

My guess is that they're thinking it's Yale. But it isn't.

The maximum number of bids thing is bullshit unless your school employs some sort of psycho cap. If 800 girls make it through to pref, quota is 800 divided by 3. Period.

Oh, and I don't know what school this is either.

i don't know the school either-i think that is half the fun.

Excuse me? I have never, ever, in my entire life been accused of playing it cool. You can verify that with one of your sorority sisters.

And, FWIW, I think it's bad form to out a PNM.

Agreed! Move over, there's still room on the sofa.

Whoops, I guess some people saw through my attempts to disguise where I am! I'm not from around here, and just figured there were enough schools here to not be obvious. I took away some more identifiable details, and will continue to post my rush experience.

Thank you for all the support! It's good to hear that a max number of bids isn't necessarily true. Yesterday my group was even bigger then before, which felt a bit daunting!

I will post the philanthropy night later today. Despite my group's large size, I'm still having such a blast. The sisters are all so great, and the other PNMs are such fun, sweet people. Even if it doesn't work out, I'm so glad to have met all these great girls!

YAY for you, sending you positive vibes wherever you are. Your attitude is great.

This is indeed the rule at the OP's campus. The chapters all free strongly that pledge classes larger than 40 would be unmanageable and detrimental to sisterhood.
________

Am I confused? I thought *that school* was one of the "absolutely guaranteed placement we promise" schools... how does that work with a 40 pnm cap? Someone can PM me if they don't want to name schools... and I can take this off, too, I'm just confused.

I don't think she was addressing you. Rather, the OP had mentioned women who act like they are not that interesting in joining a sorority. Some may be on the fence, others want to be able to say "eh, I didn't care anyway" if they don't get a bid.

That's a real shame since they won't even consider expansion until everyone hits total. At least one group cannot hit total with a pledge class of 40.

But that group can COB...

Or they could just lower total and then expand.

If they're going to have the 40 person pledge class stick up their asses, the smallest group needs to get on the COB train and take care of it outside of formal. They probably would be overwhelmed if they took too large of a class at once anyway, if the too large = Satan thing is so written in stone at the school. Since formal rush and the first time freshmen can rush is the spring, just have an all-sophomore class in the fall.

But they won't COB if they have a group of 40 NMs, because it's detrimental to sisterhood...blah, blah, blah. In the end, that leaves a huge number of girls with no where to go. If Yale has 205 women going through recruitment, that leaves 85 women or 41.5% without a bid. That's HUGE! Yes, they could lower total, but according to the article in the other thread, Panhell won't open for expansion until all groups reach total of 111.

Psst .... it's NOT Yale. Those who were thinking it was were wrong.

I think it would be the same kind of situation that you find with competitive schools. The one struggling chapter that is always under quota is also the one that prospective COB participants consider the OMGBBQI'DRATHERDIETHANEVERPLEGDGETHATHOUSEANDWOULD RATHERNOTBEGREEK! chapter. So it the system perpetuates itself.

She just said it was.

No, you missed a deleted post where someone had outed the school. That's what she was responding to.

I saw that one, but she responded once that one was deleted. Maybe she is at the other school, but I can be forgiven for making the mistake.

Aaaaaand this is what I get for not being on GC 24/7.

I knew I should have QFPed the entire post, because then the referent would have been obviously clear. In the spirit of diplomacy and tact, I did not.

The post I quoted a sentence from was removed after my response. Would that it were the interpretation that you offer, rather than the one I responded to. It had nothing to do with PNMs remarking on their participation in recruitment. It was specific to people guessing the OP's school, and in the post that I only quoted part of, she (not the OP) elected to name a specific university.

Hence, my remark about "outing" a PNM, which I still stand by. Thanks for letting me clarify and set the record straight.

I very much hope this young woman has a successful recruitment, wherever she is enrolled.

I think the school is Howard University.

When will the senseless and cruel outing stop?! *clutches pearls*falls to the floor in a crumpled heap*

yikes. why not just let CranberryKiss have a good time during her rush experience instead of obsessing about where she might be rushing?

You're kind of new here aren't you?

You missed the joke. Howard doesn't have NPCs.

And good Lord, hopefully there are fewer than 400 girls in recruitment!;)

LOL

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...heSideEye2.gif

sure am. :) and my bad on my previous comment ill keep that in mind