Question on Membership and Transferring Schools
 

Say I get initated into a fraternity. If I end up transferring schools to a place that has another chapter of that fraternity, will I be able to be considered a member of that chapter or no?

Sounds good, Jocelyn. Thanks. :)

With respect to Sigma Chi Fraternity.

Statute No. 3 Membership

A. Designations

3.02 A member of any chapter may, upon enrollment as a student at another institution, become an affiliate member of a chapter at that institution under conditions set forth in the bylaws of the latter chapter.

Note: A member is a person who has been duly initiated by an active chapter.

Haven't you transferred a few times already?

Re: Question on Membership and Transferring Schools
 

You are a member of the Fraternity, but the chapter will have their rules on how to become a chapter member.

Typically, you would be considered a 'transfer member' and the chapter would have their rules on becoming a member. Typically something like getting voted in, prehaps some kind of 'transfer program' to learn about the chapter, etc.

As noted, this process will very from fraternity to fraternity, and from chapter to chapter within said fraternity.

Hope this helps.

Did you initiate yet? Does it look like you will initiate? Pledges can be eliminated . . .

If you are not initated before transfer its kind of a moot point.

we had a guy that was pledging Phi Sig at Western Illinois last spring that transferred to IU this fall. We let him finish his pledgeship at our house and we initiated him a few weeks ago.

I'll admit this is becoming a growing area of concern for me. No, I haven't initiated yet as the chapter here doesn't initiate until the end of the semester.

But I'm not feeling the sense of closeness and fraternity that I should with the members of the chapter. Oh, they're courteous and polite and everything and I'm the same, but it doesn't feel as though it really matters if I'm around or not.

I wouldn't say that I've formed any friendships in the house... everyone just seems to be an acquaintance and nothing more... I have to admit it's got me pretty depressed, further compounding the problem of my being unhappy out here.

Have you made a concerted effort to come around, meet the brothers and get to know your fellow pledges? If not, make the effort.

Talk to your big brother or pledge educator about how you are feeling. Maybe a brotherhood bonding event is just around the corner.

You were very excited to get your bid to this group. Think back to what first sparked your interest about this chapter and pursue it.

If you are still pledging and unsure, drop before initation. Once you've initated, you can't pledge and join another fraternity (unless under very special circumstances-- and those are slim at best!)

Well, I wound up depledging. Not because of the fraternity. I was getting along well with the guys and everything.

But I finally figured out what I want to do with my life, which is to coach collegiate athletics.... and this university doesn't offer that in any way, shape, or form.

So because of that and because I'd like to go to a less expensive school, I'm transferring to a university in my home state where tuition is a lot cheaper and they do offer a program for coaching.

They do have fraternities there, but not a chapter of the fraternity that I pledged, which is another reason I depledged, because I want to be in a fraternity that I'll be able to stay in.

Furthermore, I didn't feel that it was fair to the rest of my pledge class if I wasn't going to be around after this semester and I didn't want them to feel like they were being held back because of me.

I'll admit, it was a damn difficult decision and I had tears in my eyes as I turned in my materials... but I knew it was the right decision, given the factors above.

Now I just hope I can get into a fraternity at my new school in January through COB/COR. I emailed the Greek Life advisor and they told me that all four fraternities will be having informal recruitment in spring, so here's to hoping.

Plain and simple, You have to re associate again with a different Greek Organization.

Just make sure You find the right one!

Greek Chapters and Organizations are made up of many Members.:cool:

Thanks. :) And I definitely plan on going through COB/COR.

I just wonder if I should mention the circumstances at my old school. I realize that the conventional wisdom says not to mention it as that affects your chances for getting a bid in a negative way, but on the other hand, I feel depledging in this case was justified and I wonder if perhaps a fraternity might appreciate my being honest in the matter.

To Be Honest, from what You have said, it is past History.

So go into a New Greek Life.

Hope You Find The Right One!:)

Oh, as I said, Look at The Members ! :cool:

If it were me, I wouldn't say anything outright. Your depledging was justified, but it might make you sound like you're not committed. I've had friends who re-rushed sororities after depledging (at the same school, so it was a known fact) and they got cut almost instantly.)

Dude, are you sure you can handle Rushing again? You cry an awful lot for a non a pre-pubescent male.

That being said. They don't need to know you pledged before, so if you tell them its on you.

I do? I didn't know my name was Dick Vermeil. :D

That being said, I loved Rush. It was one of the greatest experiences of my life and I look forward to doing it again, even in Informal form.

And good point.

Good point. I'll not mention it then unless directly asked about it.

I wouldn't mention it at all. Unless of course they ask if you did anything with greek life at your old school or why you didn't pledge then. Then you can just say you knew you were going to transfer so you decided it wasn't the best choice to cross over. But I wouldn't say anything unless it is brought up, and chances are it won't be.
Good luck and I hope you find what you are looking for.

Thanks for the well-wishes.. and as for where I'm transferring to, I'd prefer not to say right now... the whole discretion being the better of valour bit. I do plan on making a recruitment thread about the experience of Informal Rush, though and if/when I get a bid and accept into one of the fraternities there, I'll reveal it then. :)

Incidentally how is COB/COR/Informal Rush usually done fraternity-wise? From what I've read around here, sororities seem to have specific events set up, but I know they tend to be more stringent as a whole as opposed to the male side of things, so I figured I'd ask for a general overview. :)

If it is the campus I think it is, they'll put flyers up. You'll hang out at their house or go do some other activity with them.

Also, if it is the campus I think it is, be very very wary of the local organizations.

I prefer the tradition and networking possibilities that a national fraternity offers and that's all the campus I'm going to has.

But thanks for the advice. :)

You pretty much just outed where you were going. I'd still be weary of hazing, it's a big problem in Wisconsin.

GeekyPenguin is way right be careful of hazing. One downside to casual nature of Greek life in WI is that it can go pretty unmonitored. I've heard some interesting stories from HS friends who stayed in state and went Greek.
Good Luck and stay warm!!!!!!
:)

I totally miss WI so I'm way jealous...

Jestor, I really think You are out in left field.

Try the Military. Need some growing up to do.

You have the Problem and only You from what I see.:(

Either Your are Full of it or you dont have a clue.:confused:

Tom, what in the world are you talking about? Jestor realized he didn't like his school and wants to transfer, but still wants to be a part of greek life. What's the big deal? He is just seeing what is out there. He is weighing his options. Sheesh. Sometimes people on this board act absolutely ridiculous. Jestor, follow your heart, with your school, your major, and if you decide to pursue greek life or not.

This will be the FIFTH school Jestor has attended. That is a substantial amount.

Yeah, it's the fifth school... but the first school I went to was a total mistake, the second one was a case where no place else would take me after I screwed up the first one... third one was after I finally bombed out of the second one... and that's where I got my Associate's degree (as it was a two year school).

Fourth one would have been my last one, but like I pointed out earlier, they didn't have the major I was looking for when I finally figured out what I want to do with my life.

Look, I screwed up majorly twice early on in my college life. I know that. There were some personal difficulties I had to work and as a result of some unwise choices during those early periods, I've had to battle uphill ever since, both in terms of other schools and in terms of other people, the former whom have natural red flags up, the latter of whom have reactions similiar to what Tom voiced.

For what it's worth, the last three years I've carried a 3.5 or better all six semesters, and as of right now, I have a 3.25 going this semester.

So yeah, I'd say I've turned it around. If Wyoming offered anything like the major I'm looking for, I'd stay here, but it doesn't and I can't help that.

Sorry if I came on strong here, but that did bother me a bit.

Also, thanks for the warning on hazing. I'll keep an eye out for it as I'm going through Informal this spring.

Sorry, Tom. I didn't realize that Jestor changes schools quite often. However, I don't think saying the military is a very nice way of telling someone they should grow up.
Jestor, maybe college is not for you? Have you thought about taking some time off, or even using your Associates degree in a job? I may be wrong but it seems as though you are trying to find a way to fit in and you see greek life as being a good way to do that. Although it is, greek life is not everything. I love my sorority more than anything and I do not regret my decision to join, however there is a lot more out there in life. Just a thought.

Jestor, you have to be pretty old compared to most of the other guys going through rush at this point. Truth be told, if I doubt that based on what I know about you, even with your good grades, I don't think I'd want to give you a bid. Most of your pledge brothers are going to be 18-19 year old kids. Your pledge trainer will probably be around 19-20 YO.

Greek life isn't for everyone.

Are you sure you want to do Greek Life? Because, quite honestly, it seems like you have a lot on your plate and a lot of decisions to make. If I were you, I would concentrate on getting my academic life together, as it looks like that should be your biggest concern right now.

Beyond the grades, the fact that you've been at 5 schools already shows that you have other things you should be taking care of first.

This is highly dependent on the school and on the Greek system. My school has a pretty laid-back system and there are frequently pledges age 21-25, particularly military guys or transfer students. However, 18-19 is still probably the NORM; it's just not entirely abnormal to be older.

My Main thought, is Why Change schools so many times?

School Pamphlets tell what Degrees show, what is offered for Programs and Degrees. If they dont have one, why go to that school?

Granted, I went for 7 Years, but I changed Schools and Majors only once.

Your GPA doesnt seem to be the problem, Your choice of making up Your mind is the problem.

You need some sort of leadership and It is not Greek. That is why I suggested the Military. Direction which You seem not to have.:(

If not a trade school, how about a Tech School?

I don't see anything wrong with attending as many schools necessary to insure someone gets the education that is best for them. There is even a recent thread on Greek Chat about that. Half have attended more than one college???

Jester, best of luck with what ever your choice may be.

There's a HUGE difference between going to more than 1 school and going to FIVE different schools. That statistic is also highly skewed, because it counts kids who took college classes in high school, or a summer class at a local college between years in college.

Jestor, you need to figure out what the hell you want to do with your life. I'm not sure how old you are, but you're no spring chicken. It's time to get on with your life. What do you have to show for these last few years of your life?

Any org that looks at your rap sheet here will think that you have a major commitment issue. You may be all dead set on whatever you want your major to be, but after you're there a month or two you may end up wanting to transfer again. Why should they put their time, energy, trust, and money into you?

You admit to screwing up, that's fine. But it's time to focus on making things right. Worrying about extracirriculars such as Greek life should be the least of your concerns right now.

That's the thing. I *didn't* know for sure what I wanted to do with my life until midway through this semester.

Now I know for sure what I want to do with my life and I'm transferring to a school that offers that particular major. I can't believe it took me this long to figure it out, but it did, and that's that. And hell I'd rather take until 26 to figure it out than be like some people who don't figure it out until their 30s and 40s and have to start over again or worse, who never figure it out.

Now granted, had I known before this semester, I wouldn't have transferred to Wyoming, but I didn't and so I did. But I don't regret my experiences here. It's taught me a lot about myself and given me a lot of my self-confidence back.

I realize you all mean well here, but frankly I have to say I'm a little angry at the sudden backlash. But it's a good kind of angry... The angry that makes me determined to prove everyone who seems to be doubting wrong.

The military thing, ironically enough, relates to this. I couldn't join the military even if I wanted to (though up until my sophomore year in high school I seriously considered joining the Navy) because of my hearing impairment.

Growing up, I had quite a few teachers who doubted my intellectual capability because of that impairment. That only pissed me off and motivated me to prove them wrong, which I did.

If I was still not certain what I want to do in life, then yes, a lot of this advice would be much more applicable, but again midway through this semester, I finally figured out and experienced one of those "Duh! Of course!" moments.

And as for the age thing, I was 26 this fall semester and got two bids during Rush... so I'm obviously doing something right.

Atta boy blue!

Seriously though, many national organizations actually have rules against pledging guys your age -- pretty sure mine does. Well good luck or whatever. We're clueless as to what kind of guy you are on here, the fellas out there giving bids have a better chance to get to know you.

Also, 2 bids in fraternity rush isn't all that amazing. Often, there are chapters that have to bid anyone with a heartbeat just to pay the bills. What the hell do I know though? You could go to one of those organizations and be an asset.

So this school has an event planning major? I didn't even know such a thing actually existed. And I didn't know you had to have any particular major to get a job in that field.

You just seem like a person who can't commit to anything. You've bounced from school to school, and made no progress. You've been in undergrad for what- 7 years now? And you're still not done? I think you actually started college before me, or at the very least at the same time... and i've been done and have graduated from law school.

You were SO into pledging Sigma Chi, but had doubts after a month and then quit. What's going to be so different about a new group at a new school?

You've gotta be able to see why people would think you have committment issues. What we're saying here is what people will be saying or asking you at your new school.

Yes, you got bids at this school, but that has no effect on whether or not you'll get bids at this new school. You might not get any bids.

I think people, including myself, get so frustrated with people who bounce around like this. Especially when they want to join one of our orgs. Most of us here have worked hard for our orgs, have dedicated much of our time. People who can't commit sometimes join. We try and try with them, spend so much time and effort on them, and then they quit or transfer or just never do anything.

You're going to face negative reactions until you prove yourself. So far, you haven't done anything to prove yourself. We don't know you, so it's not personal, you're a character on the screen. YOu don't have a ton of posts, so all we're going on is what you've presented to us.

Good luck to you with getting your life together, but really think about if Greek life is right for you. And if you'd be right for greek life. Because if you can't commit, don't get yourself into it to begin with.

Ok. I really wasn't going to comment, but looking how out of hand some of these comments are getting . . I will.

You are male.

Your age is not going to matter much IF the chapters like you. I mean if you are prematurely gray, your face is lined, maybe you are balding . . well that can interfere with your social acceptance . . . but its probably not that bad because you did get two bids from your previous school.

Remember ladies, that NIC groups usually don't socially discriminate like NPC groups. And men are usually less socially superficial than women.

You going to 5 colleges is not really going to be a big deal for a NIC group either. And before everyone judges him, remember that many of the most successful people in the world dropped out of college or didn't go.

So who cares if he jumps around? How is that indicative of horrible character?

Now. People are giving you (JEstor) a hard time, and I think they are giving you a hard time because they are dancing around what might be really bothering them.

After all, you already got bids, so they should have no reason to suspect you wouldn't get one at a new campus right?

Ok. Well here is the unpleasant truth. On these boards you come across as someone that is kind of whiny and effeminate.

Now if you just love the Cock, thats ok.

If you are just stereotypically effeminate, thats ok too.

But you have to realize that most people have a "concept" in their minds of what a fraternity male should "look" like. And usually that idea is pretty masculine.

Wheras you appear at times to be the kind of guy that may have gotten really upset because you didn't get My Little Pony and a Betty Crocker oven.

You cry at male bonding situations and you want to be a wedding planner. OH, and you haven't fallen into a wedding planner career, you actually want to go to school for it.

So what I think is going on here, based on some conversations I have had with people, is that you are catching passive/agressive flack from people that are more uncomfortable with your seeming effiminancy then any genuine resume issues.

A bit of displacement.

So ignore all the feedback about your age, or changing schools, and consider that a lot of people are generally uncomfortable with men that demonstrate too many feminine gender traits.

I am going to submit this before I become more awake and delete it.