cross cut?
 

can someone please explain how a crosscut happens?

I have heard this term used to mean that a PNM has been cut from all of the houses she preffed.

If a PNM attends pref at a sorority and is not high up enough on their bid list when they are doing bid matching, she will not receive a bid. It is possible that this could happen at each chapter she prefs.

Something else to keep in mind, NPC policy is if a PNM participates in the entire Recruitment process in good faith and maximizes her options (meaning no single preferences i.e. suiciding) she is supposed to receive a bid from somewhere. Perhaps as a quota addition. The question then becomes is that Panhellenic organization following NPC policy?

While I don't know about that, if she was on two houses bid lists, it would be VERY rare for her not to get a bid. Not saying it doesn't happen, but the numbers involved don't work that way often.

In 1999, 6 of my 11 PNMs were cross cut (I was a recruitment counselor). I'm still traumatized from those phone calls!

Couldn't it also be termed a "mismatch" if the PNM did not get a bid from any of the houses she preffed at and she did not "suicide" on her pref card? How is a crosscut different from a mismatch?

Let's say Sally PNM ranks her preference chapters this way:

#1 - aaa
#2 - ccc
#3 - fff

Let's say that that the bid list number where the groups list Sally is as follows:

AAA - list 3
CCC - list 2
FFF - list 3

If any of those groups fill to quota from their first or second lists, Sally PNM can hope for, at best, is either a quota addition or a snap bid from a group not on her pref card.

ON that thought.. what is a quota addition?

I've heard this term (crosscut) used anytime a girl is cut by every house she visits during a particular round. I've always heard "mismatch" used after prefs because houses have to put every girl they pref on their bid lists somewhere, so technically they are not cutting anyone, even the girls at the very bottom of their last lists.

Back in the day, it referred to when a girl would rank ABC first and DEF second after prefs but ABC would put her on their second bid list (which they would never get to) and DEF would put her on their first and she'd end up bidless.

In that situation, why wouldn't she be matched to DEF?

Yes, they probably are. The question then really is whether it's a bid she wants.

I think that was back when they were perfecting the matching system. I seem to remember something about if you were on the #2 bid list of your #pref, you could end up getting matched with them, even if there were spots at your #1 because of a flaw in the system.

She put them second (in carnation's example). They would first go through all the women who put DEF first and THEN go to those who put DEF second only if DEF still had spots.

The process is set to match all those who picked each other #1 so that the most women (and groups) get their first choices.

Ah... got it. Thanks.

But shouldn't they have gone through the women that put DEF as number 1 AND that DEF has one their 1st bid list... Then listed first and on second bid list, then listed second and on first bid list.. or something?

If Sally PNM had put ABC as #1 and ABC had Sally on their #2 list, it is entirely possible that ABC would fill to quota before they got around to Sally PNM again. At that point, with ABC full, they would ask if DEF still had an open slot. Since Sally didn't have DEF as #1, it is probable that DEF filled to quota with the rest of their #1 list and some of their #2. Leaving Sally without a bid (unless quota additions are allowed OR if ABC or DEF were under campus total, in which case they could snap bid).

Make more sense?

Again, what is a quota addition?

And whose number 2 goes first... DEF's 2nd list with girls who rate them as #1 or DEF's 1st list with girls who rate them as #2?

it's the allowable number of new members a chapter can take above quota. Shouldn't be more than 5% of quota. So if quota is 50, they can take up to 3 women over quota. This is to insure the maximum number of women get placed with a chapter.

I don't understand the question...are you talking about a PNM or the chapters accepting the PNMs? When you do bidmatching you go through all the membership acceptance cards one time. Those that don't match on first round are set aside for the second round and are run through again. A PNMs first choice will be asked for repeatedly until their first choice chapter has reached quota. Then on the next round, the PNMs second choice will be attempted for the match.

A chapter cannot move down to it's #2 list until their #1 bid has been trimmed down to zero, either by matching girls or by names being taken off the list because they pledged elsewhere. #1 list is in alphabetical order, #2 (and 3) lists are usually in order by preference. If quota were 3...

List #1
a
b
c

List #2
z
f
g

List # 3
l
o
d

Thanks I think that makes sense.
:)

Well as much sense as this kind of thing ever makes ;)

Still Confused
 

I still don't understand cross-cuts. What is it? Can it happen at any time during recruitment or only during pref rounds?:confused:

It can actually happen during any time in recruitment, but is usually more common during bid matching.

In a rush where there are 1200 in the recruitment, how many at a big school rush where there are only 12-14 chapters do you think are cut at the first round?

if the campus uses the "new"(actually about 3 years old) npc release figures, how many pnms a chapter would release would be based on their past return rates-the more pnms the chapter had clamoring to return to that chapter for the next party over the last few years, the higher percentage that chapter would have to release. the thought is that many of these girls would have ultimately not been invited back to that chapter later in the recruitment, so by the chapter releasing them early on, they will continue in recruitment, visiting the chapters who have invited them back and who will offer them a bid.

I pulled up the Recruitment stats issued by Panhellenic here at the University of Alabama from 1998-2005. According to these stats no women were released/cut after first round in any of these years, although sometimes a few withdrew. With 14 Chapters participating, last year we had 1112 PNM's start the process and 1004 in 2004.

ETA Note: 2005 was our first year using the new Release Figure system.

I think in 2005, at bama, 83 were cut, or "no bid" and 138 withdrew.

that's total...after 1st round, 6 withdrew.

You're right. I was only answering the poster's question about women released after 1st round. FYI - if anyone's interested the Bama Recruitment stats are available on the UA website in the Greek Life section.

I think those are pretty awesome numbers Zillini! Bama seems to be doing a great job of getting as many girls that want to be, into a sorority.