University of Kentucky Fall 2012 Recruitment
 

Just got home from moving my daughter into the University of Kentucky! She had to be out of her dorm by 7:30 AM this morning to start Day 1. They will each visit all 13 houses and are expected to be done tonight around 8:30 or 9 PM.

I will have the phone glued to me for updates!!!

Thank you to all the mom's who have been posting suggestions of do's and don'ts we have been checking here all summer.

I'm hoping for a happy daughter at the end of this process!

Any other UK mom's out there????

Good luck UK14Mom! Waiting is hard!

Hi UKMom, As my name implies, I am a UK alumnus and mom of a Alabama collegiate member. I know about 10 young ladies rushing at UK and Louisville this year. My small town had a Panhellenic meeting to meet the girls and tell them what to expect. We gave them a list of alumnae willing to write recs if they would give us their resumes. None did for me or my friend. I guess they know what they are doing! There are a few houses where most pledge. I wish I had a way to keep up with them throughout the week.
Good luck to your daughter. Keep us posted, I remember when mine went through. She is on the other side now and said it's tough there too.
Catfan

My daughter is also going through recruitment at UK this week. I talked to her this afternoon and she is having so much fun. She has liked almost all of the houses so far. She did mention that she was disappointed in one of the houses that she thought she would really like. This is exactly what everyone has said over and over. Do not go in with certain expectations and keep an open mind.

I just got off the phone with my daughter and she said she had a wonderful day today! She really liked all the houses. There were 6 that she really loved but said she would be happy to go back to any of them.

She is OOS and did have rec's for all houses so hopefully that will help her. She really went in with an open mind and hopefully she can stay that way as she goes through the process.

She is suppose to text me in the morning with the number of parties on her list. Hopefully all the girls can get some sleep tonight. They sound tired already ;) I must say I feel so much better now that I've talked to her!

Good luck to all the girls!

My daughter just called and is very happy. She was invited back to ten houses so she has a full schedule. She was only dropped from one of her top ten houses and it was at the bottom of the list so she is fine with that.

Just got a text from my daughter...she has 10 parties today :) She is thrilled. She was dropped from one of her top houses but she said that will only make her job easier. I love the attitude. Hope it stays that way. Good luck to all the PNM's!

Yea Moms! Keep us posted.

best wishes to both of your D's. Its great to hear they both have such a strong start and open minds!

I did not realize how difficult and nerve wracking it could be waiting for a call from my daughter. I just pray everything is going well. She has been very lucky with the weather. I think it is in the low 80s.

Nervousmom, I feel your pain!!! I did get a text from my d about 1 1/2 ago saying that she LOVED 2 houses today that were just okay yesterday. She said it is cloudy there but not raining. Hope it stays that way.

I hate this waiting!!!

Whoa. How did I miss this thread? Best of luck to all our UK Wildcat PNMs.

GO CATS!

well I spoke to my daughter app. 2 hours ago and she had a great day. She was just starting to tell me about it when we got cut off as she was walking back to her dorm. I have tried calling her multiple times but her phone just keeps going to voicemail. I can tell this is going to be very difficult for me worrying about her all the time. I know I wont sleep tonight if she does not call me back.

Not sure what dorm your daughter is in but when I talked to mine about 2 1/2 hours ago her Gamma Chi group was going to dinner together. Maybe that's why you haven't heard back from her.

My daughter also had a really good day. She really struggled with ranking her final 3. There were 2 that she was okay putting there but took awhile with the 3rd one which she listed first.

She said as of now she could see herself in 5 different houses. Hopefully she will get a full party card tomorrow which include her 5 favorites. Going to be another long day tomorrow.

Nervousmom -- I hope you hear from your daughter soon so you can get some sleep tonight.

I finally heard from my daughter and as I suspected her phone died. She did not make it back to her room till very late to call me. She is having a great time and sees herself in about 4 of the houses. Hopefully these will be on her schedule tomorrow.

I spoke with my daughter this morning and she was invited back to all her top 7 houses so she has a full schedule again today. She is beyond thrilled but exhausted. She doesn't have her first house for app 2 hours and she would love to go back to bed and get some sleep but she has already curled her hair is doesn't want to have to redo it.
If that is the worst thing that happens this week she is very blessed.

Good Luck to of the UK PNM's!! Go Cats!

I got a text from my daughter and she has a full party schedule today but she lost 3 of her top houses. She was actually okay with it. She said there are still 4 houses she could see herself in. Tomorrow is Preference Day so they will go from 7 to 3 ...YIKES...no sleep tonight for this mama!

UKMOM14 & nervousmom you are wonderful at encouraging your DD's. I was in you shoes in 2001 and waiting for the phone to ring made for a long day! Both of your daughters are going through the process with a open mind & heart such a mature way to approach recruitment. Good luck to your daughters & all PNM's at UK.

We Are UK!

My daughter is going through the recruitment process at UK and went in with such high hopes and excitement, only to be invited back to 4 houses after the first cut. Two of those houses were among her top picks, but both of those were cut as of this morning. That leaves her with two. She is crushed. I, myself, did not go through rush and had no idea it was so cut-throat. It reminds me of middle school. I just don't understand it... my DD is a beautiful girl, but she is on the shy side, so has never been extremely social or in the "popular" crowd. One of her main reasons for doing rush was to make friends and develop socially. We are encouraging her to go to the two houses she has left and take a better look. Maybe she got in those last two houses because she wasn't as nervous and didn't try as hard as she might have at her top picks. It is a heartbreaking process for all involved. I'm very happy for the ones that do make it, but to have such a big let down right before classes begin is not a good thing at all.

UKCATFAN
MY heart was breaking as I read your post. MY daughter has had a great experience so far but it could just as easily have been her that had the rough experience. It could still go bad at any time.
I pray that your daughter will still find the house that was meant for her. As they say it only takes one house.

You gave her great advice. I'll add, that she needs to really look at those two houses as if they're the only houses on the UK campus. If she goes all the way through the pref parties and decides that neither of the remaining are truly for her...then is the time to withdraw. However, those groups remaining are lovely women who saw something special in your daughter. Keep encouraging her!

Two things:

1) It only takes one.

2) If your daughter is shy, she may best fit in a chapter with other women on the shy side. It is tough right this minute, because those chapters just can't compete with the really outgoing chapters for the PNM's affection during rush, but it means that she will ultimately end up in a more comfortable place.

As she has pointed out, maybe she wasn't trying so hard in the two she has left. Wouldn't it be nice to end up in a chapter where she doesn't have to try so hard or be anything but herself?

Thanks, ladies. We'll see how it goes. I'm not sure her self-esteem can handle much more, but we're encouraging her to keep it up. My husband was very involved in the fraternities at UK and still is very involved with alumni and his fraternity, and even he was shocked at how different the girls are from the boys. It's also frustrating for the girls to be told they need to be up and ready to go by 7:30 a.m., and then some find out that they don't have to be anywhere until late afternoon...

UKCATFAN my heart breaks for both you and your daughter!!! I hope she can get excited for her two parties today and it all works out for her in the end. I was not involved in greek life and have been reading posts on here for months and have seen where many girls were in your daughters position and everything worked out for them and I pray that the same will be for yours!

These are VERY long days and emotions run high!!!

BTW, is she guaranteed now to get into either of these houses? Can she still be cut from them? I just want to be prepared.

There will be another round of cuts tonight.

I am not sure how it works at UK if they attend all parties that they are invited to after tomorrow. I know some schools are guaranteed bids as long as the PNM maximizes all their options but I don't know if UK does that or not. Can anyone else help on this one?

If she attends preference parties and lists all options on her bid card before signing, she should be placed.

She could still be cut before preference, but the system is designed to make the heaviest cuts come early, and there's a good chance she will have pref invites.

I spoke with my daughter at lunch time. She is exhuasted but having lot of fun. She really likes at least 4 houses. One of them is not considered a "good house" at UK but she really likes the girls here and feels very comfortable with them.

Good house shmood house. If she's in it, how can it not be good?

This. As a UK grad, I would say all the chapters at UK are good and have a strong sisterhood. Sounds like nervousmom's daughter is simply hearing the dreaded "tent talk".

So true.

Best of luck to all our newest members of the Big Blue Nation. That includes all you Moms and Dads.

Good luck to all of your daughters going through recruitment right now. I'm hoping for some Alpha Phi endings but any sorority at UK would be wonderful to be accepted to!

UKCATFAN, Two years ago a young lady from my home town was released from all but 2 houses at UK after open house. She stayed with it, and preffed at both, and pledged her favorite. It only takes 1! Many girls will only have 2 choices by preference anyway. Tell your daughter to hang in there regardless of the number.

That same year, a house with a normally high return rate missed quota by 2 and gave snap bids to 2 girls they had previously released. (This seldom happens, but can) A girl can only be considered for a quota addition or snap bid if she has maximized her options every round.

Hang in there mom, it's not over yet! Sending hugs to Lexington tonight.
catfan (btw I like your name!)

My DD just got finished with her two houses for the day. She still is not happy with either one of them. She said they are very nice girls, but she just doesn't feel like they are a good fit for her. We have told her not to join one just to say she's in a sorority... we want her to feel comfortable with the girls also. But it is her choice. This is so disappointing because all I have heard for the past year is how badly she wanted to get into this or that sorority and live in the house later. I am sad that she is starting out her college life with a very big disappointment. It's so hard to let your kids grow up!:(

Has she withdrawn, or does she plan to attend pref?

Can she articulate exactly why she doesn't feel like they are a good fit for her? Too wild? Too quiet? Too religious? Too diverse? Too cookie cutter? Is the idea of not being a good fit just a way of saying that she saw herself somewhere else? You said she wanted to get into "this or that sorority" for the past year. Obviously that isn't going to happen.

I hope she will at least finish the process. Many women have been surprised to discover their feelings changed over the rest of the parties, especially preference. After investing all this time and energy, it seems like she should at least see it through and then make a decision.

Your daughter may change her mind after preference. I know young ladies in almost all the houses, and they would all make wonderful sisters, and provide a great sorority experience at UK.
Like your husband, I am still involved with UK as an alum, and stay in touch with my sisters after 30+ years. I only preffed 2 houses, and was released the round before by my legacy house. Many of us have been where your daughter is now.

I just read this whole thread and already feel so invested! I hope it works out for all three daughters and I can't wait to hear how tomorrow goes!

UKCATFAN, please encourage your daughter to finish recruitment. One of my best friends goes to school on the west coast, preffed three houses and got her last choice. She almost didn't accept her bid, but she did and now she is the most gung-ho lover of her sorority of anyone I've ever met! (myself included, and let me tell you, I am obsessed with mine). So gently encourage her as much as you can. I'm sure where she ends up will be an incredible home for her for the next 4 years!

I am so sorry your daughter is having such a bad experience. It is so hard to let them go off to college without us. I know it must be even harder that you cannot be there to help her through this. I would encourage her to see it through. She maybe just needs a little time to realize the house she dreamed about is not the one for her and when she lets that go, then she might realize one of these other houses is what she needed all along. I pray that all goes well and that she has a very happy ending.

BTW, I still have not heard from my daughter today. Hopefully she will call soon.

We are definitely encouraging her to finish the process. She said she didn't even want to go tomorrow to pref. I told her to go and finish it and then decide for sure. She is going to talk to her Gamma Chi tonight and hopefully she will encourage her to do the same.

She can't pinpoint why she doesn't like the 2 houses, she said it just doesn't feel right... I'm sure a little bit of it is that she sees herself somewhere else and had high hopes for certain houses. I said she wanted to get into "this or that" house because I don't want to name drop or make it sound like we don't like certain ones because that is not the case. I don't know much about any of them, having not gone through the process. Does anyone know if there is a spring recruitment or is there no more until fall 2013? Do sophomores have a better chance?