Auburn Recruitment 2011 - 17 jewels!
 

I thought I would attempt to document the experiences my daughter goes thru during her upcoming Recruitment (hard not to call is Rush!!) at Auburn University. I will be using 17 jewels and gemstones to represent the sororities at Auburn, in no particular sorority order or significance. I know some of these have meanings to different sororities, but they are random!

Amber
Amethyst
Aquamarine
Diamond
Emerald
Garnet
Jade
Lapis
Moonstone
Onyx
Opal
Pearl
Peridot
Ruby
Sapphire
Topaz
Turquoise

I will be vague on some of my details, but will post as much as I can via my daughter. My daughter, "A", is excited, but nervous at the same time. We will move her this weekend. She will have a informational meeting Sunday night, and then officially get started on Monday!

I've gotten a lot of good information from this site and hope that our experiences will help some others coming behind us. My #1 piece of advice to A has been to keep an open mind and options open. She knows a few girls in some of the different sororities, but also realizes just how competitive it will be.

"A" has two good friends also going thru Recruitment - I'll just call them B and C. I'll try to post some info on how their week is going as well.

This will be quite a journey, I'm sure. I'll update again soon!

good luck to a, b, and c(and to you too, auburnmom85-it can be just as hard on us moms). hope they all find the perfect place for each of them!

I just got home from moving my daughter back to Auburn. She is a junior this year and I stayed a couple of days to help with pre-recruitment chores. For the three days between sorority move-in and pnm move-in, it feels like the entire town is full of only sorority girls! Guys are definitely outnumbered.

AuburnMom85, I was in your position two years ago. It is a really stressful week for everyone and the heat really doesn't help. The advice on GC is top notch: keep an open mind and stick with the process. My daughter has made such incredible, supportive friends that I can't imagine her being anywhere else.

Please keep us updated! I'm going to be a Freshman this fall at AU, and although I received a bid and pledged to a Fraternity, I will not really be going through rush in the fall, and I am very interested in to what goes on.

Best of luck to your daughter and to yourself, although I don't think there will be much of, if anything, to worry about. I am an oos student from far away that came to AU not knowing a single soul, but I contacted the greek life website for socials/parties that certain organizations had over the summer. Low and behold, I hit it off with quite a few fraternities, and I was very blessed and fortunate to receive four bids, two of which were from organizations that rarely took kids from outside the MS-AL-GA area.

The people involved in the AU greek system are so incredibly friendly and welcoming. They don't care where you're from or how much money your parents have, etc. They care about you, Ralph, or in this case, Regina the Rushee, and what kind of person you are.

God bless and War Eagle! :)

My daughter is down in Auburn now getting ready for Recruitment. This year she is not the PNM but a sister in a sorority she loves!! The best advice is tell your daughter is not pay attention to the tier rankings of the sororities. All of the soroities at Auburn are fabulous and go with what feels right and shewill find her sisters!! Best of Luck to All!!

The PNMs move in today, right? War Eagle to all of you as you get to know all the "jewels"...remember, all kinds of things can happen but keep your eyes on the prize!

good luck to a b and c on finding their homes!

How many PNMs for Auburn?

As of July 30, there were 1311 girls signed up for recruitment. I don't know if they allow last minute registration or not.

Whew! What a day! We got A moved in today. It is so hot right now.... I hope all the girls stay hydrated. She packed an umbrella in her bag and plans on using it to help with the heat. Forecast in Auburn next week are mid 90's, but heat index of over 100. I just talked with her and she sounded so excited. She met with her Pi Chi group tonight and really liked everyone in her group a lot. She said there are 15 in her group. Her leader said that they will have probably three groups that will visit the houses together. Tomorrows schedule is a killer. They meet in the arena at about 8:30, then the assembly starts at 9:00. They will begin visiting the houses at 11:00 and will go strong until about 6:30 pm. She doesn't know which houses she will see tomorrow....she will find that out in the morning.

Here is the schedule for the week - I am copying this from the Auburn site:

Recruitment Schedule for Potential New Members
Dates are set, but times are still tentative for 2011 Recruitment!
Everything on the schedule is mandatory, except for those women involved in marching band, an athletic team, or other Auburn University activity.* Remember that you will meet with your Pi Chi group each night.* This is also mandatory.
Sunday, August 7*
6:00 pm*********** Optional Meeting
*
Monday, August 8
During this round, each potential new member (PNM) will visit each of our 17 chapters.* There are 18 party times, so each PNM group will sit out for one party time.*
9:00 am************** Potential Members’ convocation
Ice Water Teas Begin
Parties 1-5:** 11:00 am - 2:15 pm
BREAK small snacks provided to PNMs
Parties 6-11:** 2:35 pm - 6:30 pm
Pi Chi groups will meet that evening on their own
**
Tuesday, August 9
Parties 12-18:** 8:00 am- 12:35 pm
** after party 18, potential members will submit rankings with their recruitment groups
Pi Chi groups will meet later on their own
***
Wednesday, August 10
During this round, each PNM visits up to 12 chapters.* There are in 14 party times, so each PNM will sit out at least two party times.
*
Parties 1-5:** 8:30 am – 12:25 pm
BREAK
Parties 6-10:** 2:00 pm – 6:25 pm
Pi Chi groups will meet later on their own
*
Thursday, August 11
*Parties 11-14:** 8:00 am – 11:30 am
*** after party 14, potential members will submit rankings with their recruitment groups
Pi Chi groups will meet later on their own
*
Friday, August 12
During this round, each PNM visits up to 7 chapters.*
*
Parties 1-3:** 8:00 am - 11:35 am
BREAK
Parties 4-7:** 1:00 pm - 5:50 pm
** after party 7, potential members will submit rankings with their recruitment groups
Pi Chi groups will meet later on their own
*
Saturday, August 13
During this round, each PNM visits up to 3 chapters.* There are 4 party times, so each PNM sits out at least one party time.*
**
Parties 1-4:** 11:30 am - 5:30 pm
*** after her last party, each potential member will submit her rankings
Pi Chi groups will meet later on their own
*
Sunday, August 14
Bids will be distributed to all new members at 10am.** That location is still being determined.
*

Took me until my Junior year to figure this out! After I did, I came back to school early my Senior year and experienced "squeal day". Those great odds didn't do us much good though, because the actives were busy and the pnms weren't allowed to talk to us.

Good luck to a, b, and c.

LOL at auburn dad. i remember all the guys driving up and down the three streets that the sorority houses are on at FSU, hootin' and hollerin' at the pnms during rush! they had the uncanny ability to know just when parties would be ending, so they would get the maximum bang for their gasoline dollar!

Daughter is settled in. Up early to get ready and off with her roommate to the Arena. Bag of necessary things in hand and hoping for cool weather. Skyped with two best friends last night after we left. One is still home and the other moved into Valdosta State yesterday to attend rush later this week. Hope to be able to post on both experiences.

good luck to Gamomof2daughter(and her friends!)

2 parties down, 8 to go for the day.

Hang in there!

Good luck to your daughter! Please keep us posted!

God bless, and War Eagle! :)

Hey everybody, make sure that if you're going to post your recruitment story or your daughter's, you start a new thread or post it on the general Auburn thread (Auburn Recruitment Starts in 2 Weeks). We've had some posters who got upset when their thread was hijacked by a PNM or mom who's ranting about results, cuts, etc.

Don't worry that it'll make too many Auburn threads! There can never be enough Auburn threads! :D:D:D

we love rush threads!!!

Moving over to the "Starts in 2 weeks" thread. :)

or start your own !!! yay-more to read!!!

GaMom – I’m glad your daughter has had a good day! Are you like me and anxiously awaiting updates? Hope she continues to do well!
*************************************************
I finally talked to A a little while ago for the first “real” time today. She has texted me a few times and had a rushed phone call before dinner, so I was glad to finally get to really hear about her day.
It was so hot and exhausting, but fun, she said. She has blisters on her feet, even though she took her flip flops to wear between parties. She saw 10 of the 17 sororities today, and will finish up tomorrow with the remaining Ice Water Teas.
She talked to B and C briefly (they are not in the same Pi Chi groups), and it sounded like they all had good days. I don’t know which ones they thought were their favorites, but hopefully as the week progresses I’ll know more about them too.
Here are a few of her comments and thoughts about each of the ones she saw today
· Turquoise – This was her first party of the day and she was a little apprehensive and nervous. She said she really only got to talk to one girl there, and the conversation was a little forced. She would like to go back to get a chance to meet some more of them to get a better feel of things.
· Amethyst – Her second party of the day. This one went smoother and she really liked the girl she talked with. However, she still didn’t feel that she met and talked to enough of the girls. She had a better feeling about this group, though.
· Pearl – Loved this group! She said she and the girl she started with really hit it off. She told me some of the things they talked about, which were pretty random and funny….just like my A. I know she would be thrilled to have a call back to this one for sure. A talked to her girl about their philanthropy, which means a lot to A. She said the girl she was with made a point of introducing her to the rush chair. Good sign, I hope??
· Diamond – Probably her absolute favorite of the day. She already knows a few of the girls here and I am sure that made her feel more comfortable. Also I can’t help but wonder if by this point A had relaxed some too. She said she talked to the most girls in the group and had several make comments like “we have heard some really great things about you”. Really, really loved them.
· Aquamarine - After two she really loved, this one was a little bit of a letdown. She liked them but they didn’t just wow her like Pearl and Diamond. This is one group she definitely would like to get to see again, though.
After a short break, she continued on the afternoon with these groups:
· Opal – Had a really cute girl that she liked a lot. A didn’t give me a lot of comments on this one, but just said that this group was one she would like to get a callback to for sure.
· Jade – Another favorite! She really loved the girls in this group and said they were so easy to talk to. One thing that bothered her a little (need some good GC advice here…) – she said that Jade had given a “random” order for the girls to enter. The others didn’t do that – they went in alphabetically or some other logical order. However, A wonders if this “random” enter order was really random. She thinks this was probably their pre-ranking order. If so, A was near the back of the line. L She does think that she got along really good with the girls she met and would put this group in favorites of the day.
· Peridot – this was the one group today that A really can’t see herself in. She said it was very awkward and forced and she just didn’t feel at home at all.
· Onyx – I didn’t write anything down by this group except for the fact that A ranked them higher than some of the others of the day. This is one she would want a second look at possibly.
· Amber – Last one of the day, and I’m sure A was wiped out by this point. Again, I don’t have many comments from her on this one.
All in all, a very good day. From the ones she talked the most about, I would say her favorites of the day were Diamond, Pearl, and Jade, followed by Amethyst and Onyx. She put several in the same category, and would like a second chance to get to meet some more possibly.
I again cautioned her from picking definite favorites so early on and to keep an open mind about each of them. She is trying, but I could hear her face just light up when she talked about some of them.
A big day tomorrow with the seven remaining!
More to come!

Congratulations to A on a good first day! Not sure what to make of the "random" order at Jade. Chapters on my campus all did truly random order.

I wouldn't worry about it either. We never sent the girls in in any particular order, except for preference. It's more work the other way and they may have just decided to throw caution to the wind and let the chips fall where they may. I certainly wouldn't fret about being toward the back of the line.

I wouldn't worry about the random order. My chapter lined up in our bump groups and we were matched up with specific girls for certain reasons (hometown, mutual interests, majors, etc). I remember rushing and my name being called near the end at some houses and that made me nervous, but once I got on the other side it all made sense.

Last day of Ice Water Teas!

Talked to A a little while ago. She sounded good, and was really happy to finish up earlier today. Yesterday was TOUGH! Also, the rains cooled it off a smidge too, I think.

She saw some really good ones today and I think she really debated on her rankings. She said they enter on the computer the five they feel less strongly towards, with 5 being the one she is least connected with. No surprise to me, A put Peridot as her #5.

The sororities she visited with today were:
* Emerald - her new favorite! Loved this group so much, and really hopes for a chance to visit more with them.

* Ruby - this was one of her favorites today too. At first she was a little worried because she spent so much time with just one girl, but after talking with B, found that was how her rush was too. She had a conversation with her and just hopes her girl felt the same!

* Sapphire - Going in to this, A thought this would be her favorite. She liked them a lot, but others seemed to really wow her more today.

* Moonstone - This was one of the two groups A didn't have a rec for, and honestly, she didn't feel a connection to them at all. I don't know if that was because she didn't have the rec and they didn't spend much time with her??

* Lapis - A good group, but A ended up putting them as #2 in her rankings. Honestly....there are so many good sororities at Auburn ranking ANY of them lower was hard on A!

* Garnet - Again....good group, but A ended up ranking them as #3.

So....Ice Water Teas are over! A is probably still napping right now before she will go out to eat with her Pi Chi group. They will find out which parties they are invited to in the morning. The most they will have is 12. I have talked to her and prepared her that is NOT usually the case, and to not be upset when she doesn't see one of her favorites on the list.

Her favorites at this point? Top seven right now are Emerald, Diamond, Jade, Ruby, Pearl, Sapphire and Topaz. She would honestly be THRILLED with a bid to any of these. The others are still way up on her list, but these are her "dream team", lol.

B and C seem to be having a good rush, too. B is the only one of the three that is a legacy - to Diamond. She really likes them a lot, but also has talked a lot about Emerald, Ruby and Topaz. C likes similar ones, but also felt a real connection to Opal.

Please think good thoughts for A - I just hope she has a few of her favorites on her list tomorrow!!

Good luck to "A"!! I was in your shoes last year and it is TORTURE for us moms! Hang in there and keep us posted!

mom, please let your daughter know that different sororities rush differently, and just because ruby didn't rotate as much as others, doesn't mean a thing-especially since one of A's friends confirmed that her party went the same way. heck, even different chapters of the same sorority have different rush techniques.

good wishes to A, B, & C for tomorrow!

Thank you all for your support. This is so hard! I think she is amazing, but so do about 1300 other mothers, LOL. :)

Just got a text from A saying "I just have that feeling that "Emerald" is my home". I have preached until I'm blue in face...but she has already found a favorite. Good thoughts would be appreciated!!

I thought some might enjoy the handbook they gave out. It has some great info!

http://issuu.com/auburnpanhellenic/d...k2011?mode=a_p

Also, there is a facebook group called Auburn Panhellenic. You can view some pictures of all the PNM! (A and c are also in some of the pictures....:) )

LOL. I read AOIIs facts. Coke's colors are NOT red and white because the founder of Coke's wife was an AOII. The closest fact to this story is that the daughter of the first bottler of coke was an AOII. There is still no evidence to show that Coca-Cola chose red and white because of that. Heather Whitestone is not an AOII either. She pledged AOII but never initiated. I wonder if any alumnae checked this thing before it went to print?

Oh dear. A lot of the sororities' facts are wrong--their nationals would die.

Loved the pin left on the moon "fact"

AuburnMom85, your daughter is in my thoughts and prayers, although, I don't think there is much to be nervous about. The people at AU are so incredibly warm and welcoming and she will fit in wherever she is fortunate enough to receive a bid from. Coming to Auburn for Orientation as an oos student for the first time ever, I was completely blown away by how genuine and welcoming everyone was. It didn't matter to the people that were in my group and who I met that I was a "yankee", once you are apart of what I believe is the greatest university in the entire country, the phrase "Auburn Family" holds true. The same goes for the fraternity thet I pledged over the summer, as well as the others I was fortunate to receive a bid from. And that is what makes AU such a loveable place. Sorry for my rambling, lol, but it is such a great place and the people there, male and female, are beautiful inside and out. I'm very anxious to see how this process continues to go for your daughter, and when the school year is well underway, I'd love to know, with your permission (via pm or what have you) where she ends up, as my fraternity could possibly have had a formal or a "date night" type thing with your daughter's sorority. God Bless and War Eagle :)

Funny! I was just going to look for the myths thread to post the link to this booklet. I can't believe how many groups have incorrect "Fun Facts." Maybe we should email our myth thread to the Greek LIfe office!

mom, hopefully she will land in emerald. it is amazing how "emerald" can be a favorite one day, and cause all sorts of confusion the next and then diamond, pearl, jade or turquoise can take top billing.

if it doesn't work that she returns to emerald, she just needs to look at the sororities that did invite her back and pick a new favorite(wisdom of 33girl). they are all good groups at auburn and she really can't make a bad choice.

I look at that pamphlet and all of those amazingly beautiful and poised ladies and it just blows my mind that PNMs can not look and see just how every sorority has opportunity for them, let alone any of them being labeled as "superficially" lower tier.

Also, in keeping with the incorrect facts, I had always thought/been told that Vera Bradley was not a Kappa Delta although I believe one people involved with starting up the company is.

The Co-Owner/President of Vera Bradley (Patricia Polito Miller) is a KD.

Patricia Polito Miller, co-founder of Vera Bradley, is a Kappa Delta initiated at U of Indiana. I know this is 100% true :O)

ETA: Vera Bradley is not an actual woman. There were two founders, the other is Barbara Bradley Baekgaard

Whoops! Maybe I shouldn't have posted the link to that handbook. I didn't realize it had so many wrong "facts". I just enjoyed looking at the different pages, and thought the advice to the PNM was dead on. You can tell, though, that Auburn is full of beautiful and talented Greek women, and I'm so excited that my daughter will (hopefully) be a part of that.