UGA Recruitment
 

Any word out there on what's happening in Athens?

According to the UGA Panhellenic T w itter handle, over 1600 women are going through recruitment - that's the only thing I've heard so far.

First half of Round ! is in the books. The weather is awesome and all is well so far!

Are they posting all those pictures of PNMs walking around as they have in the past? If so, could someone please post a link?

On Instagram it is #UGARecruitment2014 Lots of pics there...

http://www.redandblack.com/rbtv/phot...a4bcf6878.html

Here is a link to the Red and Black - the student newspaper. They typically post recruitment (the still call it Rush!) pictures every day!

Thanks! What's with calling the PNMs "recruits?" Sounds like they're going through boot camp (although I can see some similarities between the two experiences).

Here is the link to Spotted Around Athens: http://spotted.onlineathens.com/gall...8#.U-wu3_ldUg0

Maybe I missed it and that wouldn't be the first time but, when is bid day?

August 18th (Monday!)

Ah! Thank you!

Think long and hard before your daughter rushes at UGA
 

Our daughter is an incoming freshman at UGA. She graduated at the top of her high school class. Early admission at UGA. Hope scholarship. In short, a very good student.

She's a good, sweet kid. A little shy, but a nice sense of humor and personable. A leader in many of the organizations she's been involved in. Never in any trouble, no "social media" issues, etc.

We dropped her at UGA this week and moved her into her dorm room. We've never seen her so happy and excited. We were thrilled.

She decided to participate in sorority rush. Late last night, she received a call and was informed that she had been "released" after only the second round of recruiting meetings.

The most time she spent with any one sorority was 40 minutes. (20 minutes in round I and 20 minutes in round II.) During those 40 minutes, they decided she wasn't worth meeting for another 30 minutes (round III), let alone receiving a bid. Quite a system.

She is absolutely crushed. She doesn't understand what went wrong (neither do we). She has gone from being totally enthusiastic about starting her college career at UGA to second guessing whether UGA is the right place for her. Helluva start, that's for sure.

My advice to parents who have daughters that are thinking about rushing at UGA is to give this a lot of thought before committing to the process. In particular, they need to be prepared for the consequences of being definitively judged based on 20 minute group meetings.

Best of luck to you.

Did your daughter have recs? I ask because the sororities wouldn't know of her academics without them.

I do hope she finds happiness at UGA. There is much more to college than being in a sorority.

She had recs. Thanks.

That is a bitter pill to swallow and I'm sure you and your daughter are confused and angry. I don't blame you.

I will say, the "system" at UGA isn't any different from that at most large schools. Recruitment is an imperfect tool to move a whole lot of people through in a short amount of time. Despite its flaws, it works for most people. It doesn't work for everyone. Like a job interview, the PNM has a short amount of time to show why she should be selected. We all know of great girls who slip through without making that impression. It stinks. This isn't exclusive to UGA - it is a distasteful by-product of large recruitments. What is different about UGA (and many other competitive schools) is that freshman formal is a PNM's only real shot at joining, since COB is uncommon and upperclassmen are undesirable.

No one will be able to tell you or your daughter why this happened. I'm sorry it did and hope she can find a niche that brings her happiness. Good luck.

Thank you. We're not angry, we just feel bad for her. We also understand that no one here can explain why this happened.

In retrospect, I wish my daughter's first substantive interaction with UGA had not been with their Greek system. My post was meant to caution others who are looking to go down that path. There's a real downside and you won't get an explanation for the outcome.

I agree. I am a huge supporter of Greek life, but wish they would move to a deferred recruitment. While it is true that there is selection in all aspects of life, it is a lousy way to start your life at a new school. I know two other girls going through at UGA who got that same call last night...

rs, sent you a pm.

I underscore what irishpipes said about recs being important and until this year, I thought recs were the only way to know about a PNM's academics.

But this year I learned that if a PNM is thorough and detailed on her UGA recruitment registration form, academics as well as all sorts of involvement, awards, leadership, etc will also be made known to all the chapters.

Also, there is a separate upperclassmen quota now in place at UGA so non-freshman are not as "undesirable" as they have been in the past. I personally know three young women who went thru formal recruitment as sophomores after very disappointing freshman recruitment experiences and all three got their top choices the 2nd time around.

Unfortunately this is a story I hear much too often at UGA. Not really sure what the deal is, but as a Georgia resident, I have seen parents at UGA devastated when excellent students with lots of activities and pre-recruitment preparation DEVASTATED when their daughters get dropped. I have also seen parents of legacies in tears when their DD is dropped by their chapter. On a couple of occasions, those girls have gone on to have successful second recruitments, but many times they are scarred and do not try again. It is sad to me that UGA's recruitment comes off this way. It is unfortunate that so many girls at UGA start off with such a negative experience. In my eyes (and in the eyes of those parents), the system isn't working.

UGA does have a local sorority, Xi Delta. We are smaller and unhoused, so we rush separately each semester. I loved my time as an active and encourage girls to check it out.

This will sound hollow, coming from someone who pledged a sorority at UGA, but Greek Life is not the be-all, end-all at Georgia. I had just as many friends who were in a sorority as not. I was involved in a lot of other clubs and activities, and of course, getting a degree. All of those things were a sliver of the pie that was my college experience.

Most of the Freshmen entering UGA this year were super-stars of their class. Good grades, lots of activities, the whole package. It's harder and harder to get into UGA, which is great in a lot of ways.

But it makes a young woman going through Rush have to work that much harder. If the person walking in next to you has the same stats, you have to make an impression in a very short period of time.

Do I think it sucks that there are great young women falling through the cracks? YES!

And it's hard, because these women are going away from home for the first time, and they're getting rejected out of the gate, likely for the first time ever. This generation grew up being told how special and unique they are, and this is a bitter pill to swallow, especially without Mom and Dad there for support/comfort.

Yes, it sucks.

And no, I don't know what could be done.

I think large school recruitments are especially tough on women who are on the shy side. When members are having to remember so many different women, the quiet ones are likely be lost in the shuffle.

The way NPC is setting chapter total after recruitment based on average chapter size does mean there are more likely to be COR opportunities where a more shy young woman would be more comfortable and social though.

Even if it isn't the first time a young woman been's rejected (college application processes have become brutal for some schools), she is in a vulnerable state when she's just left home for the first time.

I agree about NPC setting total to average chapter size after recruitment. It's going to help. We have just 3 NPC groups at the campus I advise, and mine has been smallest for a while but is closing the gap. I do believe this will help. Last year total SHOULD HAVE been raised but doing so would have meant the other 2 chapters had to COB when they didn't want to so it wasn't raised. I like that we won't have those things happen anymore.

Dear rs086872,
I understand the frustration that you have as this happened to my daughter as well when she went through recruitment at UGA during her freshman year. I just hope they've changed things a bit so that your daughter did not get the phone call at 2:?? a.m. on that Saturday morning to inform her that she had been "released from recruitment." The thought of the recruitment system at UGA makes my stomach flip each fall. That precious young women are subjected to the humiliation of getting up at 6 a.m. to meet their Pi Chi (or whatever they're called) to be in front of a group of women who will in 20-40 minutes decide if they want to invite them back (as well as the sororities know some girls they already want to get to know better) is down right cruel. These are 19-22 year olds deciding this....the brain doesn't fully develop until a little later. I think the Navy used to call it running the gaunlet......

That being said (and to calm down some of the readers) it is a system that over time has proven itself. And as systems go, it is not perfect. Georgia's sorority homes are like eye candy to these young women and they all do a great job of promoting themselves during the week. While returning to recruitment (should she desire) as a sophomore is an option, it is no guarantee and the odds are not really that great even with the UC quota. Lot of very qualified transfers are admitted in at UGA in addition to any upper classmen who make the decision to go through recruitment. I know because my DD tried again....and she's no slacker of a student, etc., etc., etc., and graduated this Spring, double major, magna cum laude, and headed to DC to begin work with a consulting firm on September 8th. I've often thought it is easier to get into UGA than to join a sorority there. Can you believe that?!

But now back to your DD....she is a precious young woman, she is important, she matters to the world, and she is loved by you. There isn't a trio of Greek letters out there that can substitute that. What can she take from all of this? Life can suck at times and then you move on. It's also about relationships that you develop with other people...you mentioned she was shy...maybe this experience will encourage her to put herself out there a bit more. I'm not going to lie, it was painful as hell both times and the production in Athens up and down Milledge (and Lumpkin) on Monday night will be tough. Give it a few weeks and then it will begin to die down. There are many great organizations at Georgia that need new members each year.

Can Georgia improve their process? I think so. To slap this right up against first day of classes, the focus for all moving in last week was "I'm hear for recruitment" and if you weren't, then it was "what the heck are all those buses doing moving girls from house to house?" That's just one idea.....I have some others that I'll keep to myself.

Sorry for such a ramble. I wish the best to you and your daughter.....

Sorry....meant to say "here for recruitment" not "hear"!!!!

I 100% understand what you are saying but the base of disappointment in ANY Greek System during recruitment, IN MY OPINION, is our societal norm that we never allow children to fail. Trophies for every kid, ribbons for everyone one who isn't first, second, or third, etc. Some of these girls walk through doors of these houses never having had experienced major life disappointments. They arrive at the college they wanted, in the car they wanted and are staying in the dorm they wanted. When that is the case and it is coupled with a disappointing recruitment, it is a perfect storm and a horrible way to start a new chapter of one's life. I certainly do not have the solution, but I do believe this is a huge part of the issue when it comes to how the disappointment is handled. I see it every year. The girls that are actually released, the girls that "self" release and the girls that simply cannot accept that her bid card says ABC instead of DEF. You could literally line up the majority of women in the majority of houses, strip their letters, shuffle them up and you would never know the difference. Because of that in the deep part of the brain that is our reasoning sector, the girls have to realize it was not personal, no matter how it feels.

DD had a rocky recruitment at UGA but eventually ended up at one of her lower choices. She has told me many times that unless you are extremely connected or have a major "hook", you have to have someone inside that will fight for you. That means making a strong connection with someone during a party or already going into recruitment knowing someone inside.

I HATE that so many girls start out their UGA career with this experience. I'd like to suggest that your daughter check out some of the philanthropy organizations at UGA. They attract great kids and the experience will look good her resume

Hi ladies -

Hope you all have been doing well! The UGA board seems a bit smaller this year!

I'm back again to extend an invitation to anyone that has a "rec girl", daughter or friend that was released from Panhellenic recruitment this past week to come out and meet some great young ladies, of Xi Delta, a local sorority that was founded at UGA. Many of them also participated in Panhellenic recruitment and found their home with us!

We're always looking for wonderful additions to our sisterhood and formal recruitment starts soon. They're having a casual picnic tonight for PNMs, which may be late notice, but pls message me directly if you're interested, I'll be happy to send you additional information.

Again, I hope I haven't broken any rules about posting this, if so - apologies in advance.

Thanks sisters! :)

Bids should be given out very soon!!! Does anyone know what quota is?

UGA
 

Alpha Gam got 84!

I'm hearing Quota was 73. Sigma Kappa took quota plus 4.

Does UGA post a bid day list?

Delta Gamma took 77 (quota plus 4)!

Rush anywhere can be heart-wrenching. Yes, the big SEC schools are probably more competitive. However, not being in a sorority or fraternity does not have to define someone. I encourage all the students I know to get out, make friends, join clubs, and have fun.
As to the good grades, UGA has become so academically competitive that almost all sorority/fraternity rushees have all made great grades loaded w APs, etc.
When my daughter went through rush, it was eye-opening for me, even though I was in a sorority at UGA. I would advise anyone going through to do their homework, meet people who are in the sororities, rehearse or at least listen to advice from members, get recs, and most of all have fun.

UGA
 

als463,

It may change this year, but UGA has not posted bid lists in recent years. Some chapters do place a banner outside with the names of new members.

Nope. Individual chapters sometimes post lists on their own websites.

I went through rush back before the everyone gets a trophy mentality, and it was still a difficult experience. I suspect that it's even harder now, partially because the kids have less experience with setbacks growing up like you note, but also because the group of girls rushing at UGA is so much more "competitive" for lack of a better word because of UGA being harder to get into.

So many of them would have been absolute top rushees back in the day based on GPA and resumes, and now they are just average for the process. (I see this sometimes when I look at legacies and their moms' chapters. The daughters are probably more accomplished than their moms at the same age but end up in "lesser" chapters because the whole pool is that much more accomplished than previous UGA generations.)

I agree with you that it's not very personal, even though it feels that way.

I couldn't agree more. I think that this is also why it is so hard for some parents when their daughter either 1. doesn't get a bid or 2. doesn't get a bid that she wants. They've always given her everything, and now they can't just give her this.

As evidenced by this thread on THAT site…

http://www.greekrank.com/uni/85/topi...-side-of-rush/

It always makes me a little mad/sad that these women (at least say that they) are willing to drop all ties with their sorority because their daughter didn't receive a bid from their chapter/sorority. That's clearly not the answer. Things are obviously much different than they were 25 years ago, and as has been said, it's not personal.