Best or average time to get a lil???
 

I was just wondering; after being initiated, what is the avergae time to wait before asking for a lil??? I cannot wait for my lil because I know it's a wonderful once-in-a-lifetime bond. :) I know there isn't a specific "time" but I was just curious.

I got my first little the semester after I was initiated into APO.

I think it all depends on the chapter and certain other tangibles. I didn't receive my diamond sister until my senior year (three semesters after I was initiated) because I studied overseas one semester, and our chapter had so many women ahead of me in line to take a diamond sister (we go based on seniority). Technically, I also should not have received a diamond sister the semester I did, because (from what I was told at that time), the Membership Education VP (and NMC, from my understanding) is not supposed to take a diamond sister during her term of office. Since I only had that year left as a Delta member, however, I was able to take a diamond sister.

I am totally ready to take a lil sis. However, it has been hinted (by various girls in my chapter) that you should wait at least a year before taking a lil sis. And it has not been a year since my initiation.

Edit: Hope the "hinting" thing doesn't so weird or mean. It's been said that it's just better to take a lil, after a year of initiation b/c you are more comfortable with the hang of everything. It has never been a requirement, nor are there any requirements (except being in good standing & stuff), I guess that's just the average time with some girls in my chapter.

Out of curiosity, how do they "hint" to you that you should wait a year?

In our chapter, most girls take a little the semester after they get initated (or the next time we have an Alpha class... like if they were initated in Fall and we didn't take a Spring Alpha class they normally take one the following Fall)... but in our chapter it also depends on things like if you made grades and are in good standing with the chapter and stuff like that.

Geez - we had the opposite problem. Because we were growing in size, we sort of HAD to take a little every year, and could only beg out if we had legitimate financial concerns and couldn't afford all the gifts that were involved.

We have deffered recruitment at the beginning of second semester - so if you get initiated in the Spring, generally you pick up a little the next Spring. The informal recruitment girls get initiated in the Fall, but that's a smaller class. Generally, the girls who got initiated in the Spring don't pick up littles the next Fall, but it has happened before.

Example: I was initiated in Spring 2002. Most girls in my new member class picked up littles when we had our next formal recruitment period, in Spring 2003. However, one girl (from my NM class) had her best friend in our Fall 2002 informal class, so they became big and little.

I got my little a year after I was initiated. But my big got me the semester after she was initiated. We also go based on seniority.. it just makes it a lot easier.

We're hoping for a rather large pledge class this semester (we've had over 30 girls signed up for interest.. that would DOUBLE our chapter!!) So, maybe I'll get another little! :D

i had to wait a year and half due to going abroad, usually a year is pretty common, or around there anyhow.

worst time, depending on the people is the semester you graduate. My best friend had her big graduate like 2 mo after we initiated. and it was tough cause she never really got that bond. (mine deactivated, so that is a bad time too...if you are thinking of doing that)

I took me a year and a half to have a little sister. My little sister had to wait two years. I think a one year wait it good.

Our Big/Little system is slightly different from most chapters that I know of. Each of our new members get a different temporary big sis (or temp big) each week of their pledge period (6 weeks) and close to the time of their initiation they choose three people they could see as their big. Then on big/little night they find out which girl they actually received. I think this is such a great system because the new members get a big they feel comfortable with and have established a connection with instead of someone randomly deciding with whom they would be a good match. Also, girls can take littles as soon as they're initiated which works really well for us.

Concerning what LittleE said about not taking a little because you're graduating: yes, it is hard to develop a really strong bond in such a short time but if the connection is there then you'll continue the relationship even after you graduate. My big graduated the quarter after I was initiated but I really couldn't have seen anyone else as my big. She's the reason I joined Kappa Delta and we still have the best relationship and talk often! So it can work if you really want it to. :)

I initated Spring 03 (I was in a colony) and took my little Fall 03. My little will be getting her little Fall 04 :)

Not necessarily. I had three littles during my time as an active member in APO, and the one I was closest to was my little during my last active semester. (I was just in her wedding this past June actually!) It all depends on the people, I think.

it varies
 

from sorority to sorority and chapter to chapter, but i wanted to point out that while some people do experience that "once in a lifetime bond", there are others that don't. it doesn't mean that you and your little don't like each other or get along, it just might mean that there are sisters you each are closer to. going into a big/little relationship with the "be all /end all" expectation is like going out on one date with a guy & expecting that you will hit it off so well that you'll end up getting married. it might happen, but then again it might not. it doesn't mean that he's not a nice guy and you are not a nice girl. it just means that there might be a more suitable match still out there.

You'll have to pardon me, but I had to giggle at the topic of this thread.

Time to get my mind out of the gutter and back up to sea-level.

We only have formal recruitment at my school, so we usually wait a year to get our littles. Everyone who joined the year before typically gets one, as well as some of the older members due to increasing class sizes.

We also have a program like KD Buckeye was describing. Each new member has a carnation sister during bid week, then an Alpha, Chi, and Omega sister as well as a junior or senior who acts as her mystagogue. After Omega week, big/little selection is held, and the littles find out who their big is a week later.

ETA: I got one of my littles when I was a junior and one when I was a senior. While my second little and I only had one semester together, we made the most of it and still IM and see each other whenever possible.

since we were a colony, we paired up and became twins

now each twin set will have a little (of course we have to wait and see our numbers by then)

Thats what we do.

We also do the temp. big sis thing--we're called Rosebuddies. :D

As far as taking on a lil sis, I tend to think that it's more of an issue of how comfortable you are with it. A friend of mine in another sorority took on a lil the semester after she pledged, and it worked out great. The girls we took on in COB that year (fall '02) were matched with older sisters. Dunno why, but whatever. I think exec didn't want people to get confused about how your "little" could be in your pledge class too.

I got my first little sister second semester of junior year and my second little my first semester of senior year. I had to wait a little longer than most because I kept getting screwed my first year.

I'd say with our chapter, a year after initiation is usually the average, maybe a year and a half. Total is 40, and we've gone anywhere from 28 to 46 members. The rule used to be that each girl was only allowed 2 littles, but a few people started breaking that rule, but I think we're going back to it.

In my APO chapter, new brothers generally are not given littles during their first semester as a member. We have lines every semester, so the wait is never all that long unless there is a high demand and small pledge class.

ETA: I think the BEST time to take a little is during your Junior year if the little is a freshman or sophomore....I think at least a year of undergraduate bonding can be beneficial to both Big and Little. My big was a second semester senior, but she lived in DC, near the school, for two more years afterward.

We KDs must think alike! Those sisters who want to be bigs sign up to be Pearl, Emerald and Diamond Bigs of the Week. Each week at the beginning of the pledge period, a new member gets matched up with a Big of the Week. They spend time together, like maybe going out to dinner or a movie. 4 weeks later, sisters rank their top 5 choices for who they would take as a little. The new members rank their top 5 choices for a big. The VP New Member Ed. does the matching. Then we have clue week and revealing.

Any sister can sign up to be a Big of the Week. Usually it is the last pledge class that takes the most littles. PC 2003 will take most of the PC 2004 as littles because the other pledge classes either have littles, or they have graduated. Everyone is allowed to sign up to take a little, but it's a mutual selection process. Seniority doesn't really play a factor because we usually have so many new members we need a large majority of the chapter to take them as littles, so everyone who wants a little will get one.

Most girls in my chapter take a little the semester after they are initiated. The semester I came through almost everyone HAD to take a little because I had such a large pledge class we doubled the chapter! I never took a little the 2 years I was there because I felt I had to really know the girl to take her as my little. The whole idea was important to me. I found out that my big sister "claimed" me to the other sisters saying that she would have me as her little, and then when she got me she basically ignored me for some unknown reason. I didn't want to do that to another girls. If I had been active more than 2 years I think I would have found someone I connected with.

I got my little Kami the semester after I was initiated and was sooo excited! I knew how much I loved my big Katie and hoped it was the same with my lil!

Me too! To contribute, though, I took my first little the summer after my spring initiation. We were just starting out so it was a necessary thing!

All of the women in my "family" waited a year to get Lil's and I think it worked out rather well. I was initiated in the fall and then fall of the next year I got a Lil Sister. I was definitely more prepared and had all summer to get/make all the gifts I would need.

Maybe we do things a little differently, but we let the littles choose the big sister, so it doen't matter when you were initiated. Some sisters end up with a lot of littles ( I had 3) and others don't get any. We want the NM's to be comfortable with their big sister.

My school only has spring rush, so usually you will get initiated in the spring and take a pledge daughter the next spring, if you want one. Since there were 10 sophs in my pledge class last year and a lot of us wanted juniors as our pledge moms, some juniors took a second daughter. However, in my chapter most people only have one pledge daughter.

We had "heart sisters" which were like temporary "bigs" or "pledge moms" each week starting on bid day and going until pledge mom week. Then each pledge ranks her top 5 choices for pledge mom and each potential pledge mom/big ranks her top choices somehow..


I can't wait to take a pledge baby.. or 2 (if i take twins!)

Depends on the lil. Tghere should be about a year difference. However, I kind of got screwed otu of two littles, so I was a seinor by the time I got him, he is cool though even if like 4 years younger thabn me.

Ours will depend a lot on our rush numbers. If we have a pledge class of 10, then we have to go with senority and your positions in the sorority (ie president is more apt to take alittle than someone with no positions). HOWEVER, if you KNOW you're going to have time commitments, then you SHOULDN'T take a little. I know we have a few nursing students that have clinicals and won't be able to make pledging events, so they more than likely won't take one or will take one with another sister with a busy schedule. Pledge mistress and asst. pledge mistress usually don't take littles but they can. Since we only have rush once a year, it's our only chance to grow our trees.

Since I'm at a campus with deferred rush and my chapter doesn't do COB, we only have one New Member class each year, in January. Everyone gets only one Diamond sister for their duration in ADPi. So the girls that were initiated last February will be the ones to take Diamonds this January. If someone is abroad, they can wait another year as well. Also, if your Diamond leaves the chapter, you are permitted to take another.

I'm confused: so does this mean you only take as many new members as however big your pledge class was from the year before? What about chapter growth?

Well, we take quota every year, and quota is usually approximately the same every year so the numbers tend to match up. We can't really grow any bigger than taking quota each year.

Example: Quota for the class above me was 55. My class quota was 56. Every girl in the class above me took a Diamond, and one girl got to take twins. (There's always one or two people who take twins- sorry if that wasn't clear in the last post.)

Yep. That's how mine is. We never make quota. If we took quota, we'd have more NM than actives. Chapter growth isn't everything. We kinda like being small.

Nah, I totally agree that chapter growth isn't everything. I wasn't advocating/bashing growth, just questioning how it worked.

ADqtPiMel, the scenario I was envisioning was like what you mentioned: maybe quota was 55 one year and 56 the next, but mabye you also had 1 girl drop from the pledge process the year before, or maybe one of those 55 was on study abroad that year. Then you'd have 54 girls able to take littles, but a quota of 56. I was envisioning the chapter purposefully not taking quota, because you could only have 54 littles b/c of only having 54 potential bigs.

You mentioning the twin situation cleared that up!

BOY WHAT A MISLEADING TITLE FOR A THREAD !