Transferring Questions!
 

Hey! I have a few questions they are general greek life questions in general, not specific to one organization so i'm hoping to get some good feedback! :)

Heres the sitch;)
Im a second semester sophomore, i'm going through deferred rush in a few weeks but im not sure the school I am at is right for me, but i'm hoping this semester to change my mind. If not, i'm going to transfer to an SEC school (small liberal arts at the moment)

1) (assuming worst case scenario) If I rush this semester, get a bid, try it out & decided I still wasn't happy, DONT initiate, & transfer, do I have to wait a full calendar year to rush again at the SEC school

2) I will be a Jr. when I rush again at the SEC school (non deferred rush), I know it is unlikely for a Jr. to get a bid, however is it impossible?

3) The SEC school I am transferring to will also be the school i attend for graduate school. Can you be active while in graduate school? During rush should I share this fact with the greek ladies? & Is this like fraternity life when you can be an active for for four years,(that may be wrong), but I know a fifth year sr who rushed as a sophomore who is still active.

That covers it for now, thank you lovely ladies:)

Presuming NPC, 1-no, you don't have to wait a calendar year to rush again if you change schools.
2-nothing is IMPOSSIBLE, but I might put it in the unlikely category, especially if you don't have lots of connections in the sororities at the SEC school. If there would happen to be a colony starting at that school, your chances would be much better since they try to gather a more or less even spread across all 4 years, but I'm not aware of any colonies at any SEC schools in the near future.
3-I think those rules might vary by sorority. I believe my sorority limits active membership in a collegiate chapter to undergraduates.
4-and the question you didn't ask, if you pledge at your current school, initiate and then transfer and your new school has a chapter of the sorority to which you are now a member, you are NOT automatically granted active status. That is also a possibility but I wouldn't join a sorority with that in mind or you could be in for a world of hurt.

AXiD allows graduate members with full privileges. We've had some at my school.

It really varies with each organization, and then beyond that, with each chapter--just because Theta Phi allows graduate members, for example, does not mean that every chapter is willing to accept them. In general, expect to be transitioned to alumna status when you graduate, even if you stay at the same school.

Per the expansion thread, I think U. South Carolina will have a colony of AGD this fall? but that is the only SEC colony I can think of right now.

3- The "full participation by graduate students" rule varies by sorority and also by chapter. Some NPC groups have chapters that will encourage early alum status for members that have not completed an undergrad degree but enroll in, for example, the pharmacy program. Also, in some groups, women are encouraged to take two or three years off after they graduate before volunteering as an advisor at a school in which they were actives.

4-I agree that pledging with the intention of transferring to a bigger school with that some sorority could be disappointing. You would have to be approved by the chapter to which you are transferring to be granted active status. I have seen heated debate over accepting a transfer student into the chapter. These usually revolve around housing concerns and/or someone going from a small school to a big school/big chapter.

Not true for every NPC GLO.

Also not true for every chapter of a GLO that does accept transfers. My group allows the chapter to decide whether or not to accept transfers.
Also many choose to accept no transfers, period, even if they adore you.

I would think at just about any of the SEC schools they would reserve the right to not accept a transfer because the chapters are so large and the MS is so stringent. When I was in school we took a transfer from Texas and I don't recall there even being a discussion. But I can't imagine the reverse being true. I don't recall anyone from my chapter ever trying to transfer to another school. And since we are virtually unrepresented in the SEC, it's moot on this point.

Suffice it to say, again, it's possible but not necessarily probable.

And correction taken on South Carolina. I can't even NAME the schools of the SEC so I just tend to clump all big southern schools into the SEC. Even using that umbrella, I still don't think there's as much expansion right now as would seem feasible. But that's a discussion for another day and another thread.

If the sorority bylaws (I'm talking Headquarters or Nationals or whatever term is used) spell out the policy for transfers, then that's what applies. The constitution/bylaws are the legal documents that govern each chapter. There's no "reserving the right" or anything else. I think it's reasonable to say that if a given chapter chooses to flagrantly ignore or violate its own constitution and bylaws, there would be some pretty significant repercussions.

It depends on each GLO's constitution, bylaws, policies and procedures. Each one is different. As AnchorAlumna pointed out, there is some leeway in her group. For other groups, that may not be true.

Thank you guys for the awesome feedback! it really helped! unfortunately, none of the sororities i have at my school currently are at the SEC school too, except for one, so unless a miracle happens, transferring while i am in a sorority wont be a problem for me. I'll be starting fresh :)

Thanks ladies, wish me luck!

Wait a sec. Are you saying what I think you're saying? Or am I just tremendously sleep-deprived?

You can't start fresh.

ar

Please clarify your remark.

Me too, except I was more like :eek: and there's no smiley for SMH where the "S" stands for SMACK, not SHAKE.

Well, you can start fresh, there really isn't a big database of who was in XYZ sorority and therefore cannot go through formal rush at another school. But that is very dishonest to your previous group, and I would suggest not deceiving people like that.

You, sir, know not what you speak of. Once again you are totally wrong.

For the love of Mike, stay out of NPC sorority threads.

Whoa whoa whoa ladies no need to smack me haha that is in no way shape or form what I meant. I'm not trying to decieve people. What I meant by that is there were many posts talking about me transferring if I were to have took a bid this semester and transferred after initiating. However what I meant by starting fresh was if I transfer and rush again I will not be an active in a sorority currently. Make more sense? I would never try to be in two different sororities at once I'm not that silly!

Starting fresh as in starting as an independent

Let me be clear: if you are initiated as a member of an NPC sorority you cannot ever be initiated as a member of any other NPC sorority. Once you're initiated you are a member for life, unless you resign your membership or are terminated. And even then, you were still initiated into an NPC sorority so you cannot ever be a member of any other NPC sorority.

So what exactly are you thinking that you can do? Are you not going to accept a bid at all (should you be offered one)? Or what? Maybe it's your writing that is causing all the confusion, so please clarify. Thanks.

and FWIW SMH = shaking MY head. Not yours.

I really don't see the point of rushing at all if you are seriously considering a transfer. It isn't fair to the women in the sororities and definitely not fair to any PNM whose spot you may take if you accept a bid you don't intend to commit to.

Who would need a database to find this out? People talk and check girls out. Especially when it comes to transfers. You'd be amazed at how much you can find out from friends and facebook.

Like AzTheta said, you need to stay out of NPC threads because you have no clue what you are talking about.

ay ay ay hehe ok let me try this again. If you will read my original post with my original questions i think a lot will be cleared up.
Is it really that bad that i'm giving my current school another chance? I want to stay there and I think greek life will open me up to new friends and will make my college experience there more enjoyable. That is why i'm considering rushing. I want to transfer ONLY if things do not get better this coming semester.
Okay and for the BIG topic of discussion haha Correct me if i am mistaken, but just because you accept a bid, doesn't mean you are initiated. There is a time period in between and you can drop before you are initiated and have no further permanent ties with that group. I want to try it out because I feel it will help me blossom in my current school so I will no longer want to transfer. If I was happy enough to initiate with that group, I wouldn't leave them. :)
My question was in fact, that if I didn't like my school after trying things out, if I even receive a bid at all, would it be impossible for a Junior (that is what i will be IF i transfer in the fall) to get a bid. The SEC school I am considering as an alternative has many options for greek life. Are ALL sororities that strict about receiving Jrs.?

Sorry if i confused you guys that was not my intention at all. The thread got turned to a topic I wasn't even considering (transferring WHILE initiated) which is why I brought up the fact that I will be "starting fresh".

Also, I would never try to decieve anyone. That is far far far from my character. And nothing is secret, people would find out (to the boy in this thread??) My boyfriend is in a frat and I know sorority life and Frat life is very different. Atleast at my school. You really shouldn't encourage someone to cheat. What if a pledge tried to sneak one on your frat?


Thanks you guys!

I will answer in red.