Spring 2008 Live Recruitment Story
 

Hey all. I've decided to write my recruitment story because i know i found these stories very interesting when i was anticipating rush. I go to a non-southern school with deferred recruitment and 12 panhellenic sororities:

kappa kappa gamma
kappa delta
delta gamma
delta delta delta
alpha chi omega
sigma delta tau
alpha omicron pi
kappa alpha theta
alpha xi delta
alpha phi
alpha epsilon phi
pi beta phi

Because this is a live story, and because its always fun to guess in the end, I will give these sororities code names. In no particular order:

N*Sync
Backstreet Boys
98 Degrees
Boys 2 Men
LFO
Hanson
B2K
New Kids on the Block
O-Town
Five
Westlife
Blackstreet

Recruitment started today and we visited 6 houses.

98 Degrees: This was the first house i visited and based on what i'd heard, i went in with the feeling that i wouldn't fit in at this house. As soon as the door open the screaming begins and someone came over and grabbed me. The girl that grabbed me took my coat, and sat me down. Instead of sitting in a chair across from me, she sat down on her knees in front of me. This made for some very awkward eye contact. The conversation was slightly awkward and i had to reach for topics to keep the conversation from lagging. This was pretty much the same pattern for the other 4 girls i talked to at this house. They were nice, and their story was cute, but i left this house knowing it was definitely not for me.

Hanson: After the first house, i was on edge about whether it was me that didnt belong in recruitment or if the house i had just visited just wasnt a good fit. This house answered that question. I felt much more comfortable at this house. The conversation flowed and as superficial as it is, i found myself noticing how even our outfits had things in common. I'm not going to feel bad about this because honestly, you can't help but be superficial when you only meet a girl for 10 minutes. I really liked this house and found myself laughing and not wishing i could pull out my phone to check the time. I now understand what people mean when they say some houses just feel right.

B2K: I walked into this house knowing i would not want to join. They have a horrible reputation on campus, and as sad as it is, i can't force myself to ignore all the stereotypes. As soon as i walked into the house, i immediately understood the stereotype and saw that it was completely based in fact. The set up of this house was not conducive to good conversation. Because membership in this house is SO LOW, each girl took 2 pnm's and sat down with her for the entire time. All the other houses I visited I talked to 4-6 girls, which kept the conversation from lagging. I did not enjoy the stories they told, and found myself wishing i could leave.

Backstreet Boys: After lunch, we headed over to another house with a not so hot reputation. I tried really hard to go into rush with an open mind, but as I am meeting this girls, I find myself agreeing with everything i had heard. The stereotypes here are surprisingly accurate. The 3 girls i talked to were slightly awkward, but nice. It was obvious they really enjoyed being in the sorority, but i got the slight impression that it was not really their first choice. I started falling asleep and yawning, even though i tried my hardest to hide it. I was so tired at this point, and still had 2 houses to go.

LFO: The next house i visited was LFO. As soon as i walked into this house I could feel the energy, and it woke me up immediately. Unlike the first house, where i was tapped on the shoulder and directed as to where i should sit, when i entered this house i was literally GRABBED AND DRAGGED to my seat, and i was smiling the entire way. The bond in this house was so clear and I had a lot in common with the sisters i talked to, and they all made sure to come and say goodbye before i left. the story was really funny and i found myself leaving this house thinking that recruitment might be worth it after all.

Five: Finally, the last house of the day. I was so tired at this point and ready to get this day over with. The set up of this house was really cute, a little more preppy than the others, which is nice if thats youre thing. The conversation was slightly forced in the beginning, but flowed nicely with the last 2 girls i spoke with. The story they told was funny and from some of the conversations i had, i definitely got the feeling that this was a party house.

Tomorrow i visit the other 6 houses. After the final house, i list the 3 i dont want to go back to. Thursday is house tours and we can see up to 9. I walked away today with LFO as a clear favorite, but enjoyed my time at Five and Hanson too.

Go Hanson and Blackstreet!

I'm totally pulling for N*Sync right now!

new kids on the block had a bunch of hits
chinese food makes me sick

GO LFO!!!! lol

Haha I love the code names! Good luck!

Go O-town. I loved them in high school. Haha.

I absolutely love the Backstreet Boys!! Yay for them!

BSB is my ultimate fave from 7th grade up until now so I'm PRAYING for a turnaround! GO BACKSTREET BOYS! (But I will take 5ive as a close backup cos I love me some British boyband!)

Go *N Sync ... They are definently my all time favorite

Second choice Boyz 2 Men cuz I'm a philly girl of course!

Have fun and try to keep up your stamina! I know it's hard to stay alert after so many ridiculous conversations. Some chapters have better recruiters than others. It's not always the case that bad recruiters make bad sisters and in fact the opposite can often be true. I have done recruitment training for chapters around the country over the years. If a chapter doesn't have alumnae nearby who really know how to coach the girls properly, this can affect things, but it does not reflect on how great of a sisterhood they have or how great of an experience they can share.

Also, as I am sure you know, early impressions can change so it's good that you have gone in with an open mind. If it's one thing we've heard time and time again from PNMs and NMs on this site, it's that people can do complete 180s just a few days into recruitment and that they end up really loving houses they didn't care for early on (as well as vice versa). Stay the course!! Can't wait to hear how it all goes.

So today we continued and visited the other 6 houses:

Boys II Men: This house has one of the best reputations on campus and i went in thinking that this would be the house i would want to join (bad, i know). I was highly disappointed. I didnt feel as though this house lived up to the hype at all. The conversation was slightly forced and I didn't find their story the least bit funny. This was not the best way to start my day.

Westlife: This house was the opposite for me, it had a not so hot reputation around campus and an unattractive house (the actual physical structure). It was at this house that i had some of the best conversations i have had all rush. I had several things in common with most of the girls i talked to and was finally able to stray form the traditional, mundane conversations i had been having for the past 2 days. But, their story wasnt funny and I have a feud with one of the sisters in the house.

O-Town: This house also has a very positive reputation and this time it lived up to it. I knew a few sisters in this house and they all made sure to come up and say hi. The girls were friendly and full of energy. The conversation didnt lag, the story was funny, and the house is beautiful. Nothing negative to say about this one.

N*Sync: I went into this house without any preconceived notions, as i had heard so many different things from so many different people. I thought the song they screamed/sang upon entering was really cute and catchy. The sisters were friendly, but the conversation didnt keep me all that interested. I also did not find their story funny, and had to force myself to laugh at certain parts. I was tired at this point, and left the house as indifferent as when i entered.

Blackstreet: The next sorority i entered was kind of far away from the others and i was not a huge fan of the exterior. However, the girls i talked to in this house were really friendly and the conversation was good. I had a few things in common with a lot of girls and they seemed to take a genuine interest in me. Theyre story was cute, but not as good as some of the others. At this point i've realized that the stories are a great way to gauge how similar your sense of humor is to the house, and that is really important to me. I left this house pleasantly surprised.

New Kids on the Block. FINALLY. The last house. I was so tired at this point that I just wanted it to be over with. Luckily the girl who grabbed me grabbed my friend as well, so there were two of us to one person, this took some of the mental pressure off since i was definitely lacking at the moment. The girls i knew in the sorority went out of their way to come over and say hello, which was much appreciated. The conversation was decent, but I did not find their story funny in the least.

At the end of all 12 houses we went back to a room and got our preference cards. For house tours tomorrow, we can visit up to 9 houses, and marked 1 next to the 9 houses we would like to return to. We then number our least favorites 2, 3, and 4. I ranked as follows:

2. B2K
3. 98 Degrees
4. Backstreet Boys

We get our sheet of houses tomorrow morning. Im anxious, excited, and pretty nervous. I cant wait to see the houses!

I don't get the funny stories?? Are they doing skits? Or is it just like a story one member tells?

Good luck with recruitment!! Can't wait to hear more.

its a story one girl tells that has a "moral" at the end. kind of like: and the moral of the story is a Backstreet Boy will always have your back. It's basically just an experience that one sister has had that defines what it means to be a sister in _________ sorority.

I'm not sure what these "stories" you mention are exactly. Recruitment is tough because the parties are aimed at one type of person, but if you aren't into cutesy skits and a little cheese, you have to ignore a lot of the fluff that defines recruitment not sorority life! Good luck with the rest of recruitment.

oh that sounds cute!!!!
good luck today!

After reading mickey's recruitment with all fo the 80's bands this ones more my era! Let's hear it for 90's boybands haha!

I'm most definitly rooting for nsync and hanson! I was obsessed with them when I as younger!

good luck today! :)

All I have to say is GOOO Hanson, and GOOO *NSYNC!!!!!!!!!

I'm so rooting for Hanson since they're from Tulsa where I live! :D

no update yet? how did your day go today? can't wait to hear!

my favorite was always nsync!!!

I'm rooting for Hanson... my favorite band of all time!

Sorry I couldn't update yesterdat, 11 hours of walking around kicked my butt and i was out like a light the second i got back to my room. Today is a later round and i dont have to meet my rho chi until 12, so i'll update yesterday right now.

Like I said, we could get asked back to a maximum of 9 houses. I got asked back to 9, but was cut from three that i had preffed, and had to go back to the three that i cut. The three that cut me were: LFO, Blackstreet, and Boys 2 men. The only house i was sad to see go was LFO, because i thought i had had such great conversations. But, i still had houses i was really interested in, so it didnt affect me as much as i thought it would. So i started my 11 hour day very early and saw the following 9 houses:

New Kids on the Block: I still liked this house. It didn't quite jump out of me, but I was still comfortable in the conversation and the girls were still really sweet. We went on the house tour and it was a really nice house, but i know have to remember that they only show you the best rooms and cleaned up for this. Nothing in this house really stood out for me, but i enjoyed myself.

N*Sync: I was surprised to be asked back to this house, even though I preffed it. I thought the conversations I had had during first round were slightly awkward and i felt the same today. So many girls love this house, but it just doesnt feel right to me. I was slightly bored during this house, but once again, the house was nice. The girls have a bit of a party rep, which is cool with me, but it really hasnt come through yet and i find that slightly disappointing.

98 Degrees: This is one of the houses that I had cut. I found it much more enjoyable this time around, however. The girls I talked to had much more energy and i was very entertained and had a genuine smile on my face most of the time. During the house tours, this is one of the houses that stood out in my mind, it was really pretty. I wasn't wowed by this house today, but glad i went back to visit. My experience the second time around was much more pleasant.

Hanson: I was really looking forward to returning to this house because i had such a great time the first time. I love this house (the physical structure), but the first girl that grabbed me was slightly awkward at first. When the conversation finally started flowing, a girl that i had met during first round runs over and informs the girl i am talking to that i am her rush crush and she absolutely loves me. She definitely makes me love this house. The second i see her i am completely comfortable and we always have so much to talk about. One of her sisters had to come up and tell us that we had to leave because the round was over.

Backstreet Boys: This is another one of the houses that i cut. I was very surprised to be asked back here as well, because i pretty much fell asleep during first round. My time here was much better the second time around. The girls and i laughed a lot and i was there until the very end. This house is way too far away though, and a lot of the girls scare me a little.

Westlife: The girls in this house are nice, but I am not really intersted in pledging here. The house tours just reinforced that. Not only did the house tours reinforce that, but the conversations this time around werent so good either. I left unimpressed.

O-Town: I was really happy to see this house on my list. Whatever i had liked about it before, multiplied today. I had 5 girls sitting around me at one point telling me that i was the most entertaining person they had talked to all week, which is always nice to hear. We were laughing about the silliest things and never had to do the stereotypical questions i had been answering for the past 60 hours. The house is beautiful and really showcased their sense of humor, which i love.

B2K: This is the last house i cut that i was forced to return too. I have no interest in this house, but was excited to see it during house tours because they have the MOST amazing house you could picture for a sorority. Full-sized beds, fireplaces, etc. Still not worth the walk/the girls in the house. I was so tired and hungry and this point that i was actually delirious. I was just cracking jokes left and right, trying to keep myself sane. please please dont ask me back.

FINAL HOUSE OF THE DAY!!!! which made me so happy.

Five: These girls were tired too, so they understood that we were dragging a little bit. I dont have much to say about this place. They had a nice house, but i was still bored. So many people love this house, but i really just dont feel comfortable there. Perhaps its a little too preppy for me...?

So at the end of the day we met up with our rho chis and could pref 6 houses, and if we had 9, rank the other three 2, 3, and 4. I ranked my three lowest: Westlife, Backstreet Boys, B2K. I am very nervous for today, which is skit round. Everyone says this is when you "know" what house is for you.

sometimes you don't "know" until the pref. parties, so don't dispair if you didin't get the "feeling" today. hang in there.

how neat that your opinion changed about some of the chapters. that happens a lot.

good luck today-hope you got invited back to your favs.

Hope you had fun today!! Skits are a great way to see the personality of the chapters. I can't imagine doing 9 parties at once-- the most my school does is 6 in one evening, and that is tiring enough!

oh how exciting i love love love 98 degrees! at least you got a chance to visit the most beautiful house on campus.
i hope youre having such a good time and good luck!!!:D

This thread makes me think of my own recruitment thread where two of my group names were "Five" and "Backstreet Boys". :) Good luck!!!

So today was skit round, which i was really looking forward to because sense of humor is very important to me. We could get invited back to a maximum of 6 houses. I got a full schedule again today and was cut from N*Sync, meaning i had to go back to Backstreet Boys. I didn't really like N*Sync, so i could not have cared less and was very happy with my overall schedule. My day went like this:

Five: I like this house a lot better than i had the previous rounds. The conversations went much smoother and i felt a lot more comfortable then i had before. The skit was really funny in a very cute way. I was very pleased with this house as a whole.

98 Degrees: I've never really been a big fan of this house. I had one of the most awkward conversations of my life here today and hid in the bathroom for a good 5 min, just to get away. The skit was not funny in the least. Some of the songs were cool, but i was in the mood to laugh and it was clear that that was just not going to happen at this house. I left with no idea what the sense of humor of the house was and praying that they did not ask me back.

Hanson: This has been one of my favorite houses all along and i was excited to go back after the last house. I ended up talking to the same girl i always do, because we get along so well, but she made sure to introduce me to her closest friends so i had more than just 1 girl pulling for me. Their skit was hilarious and i definitely got the feeling that i had a sense of humor that would fit well in this house. I once again had to be pulled away from my conversation at the end of the round and left loving the house as much as always.

O-Town: I talked to several girls in this house and they made it a point to come up to me, already knowing my name, and say that they were told me that they just had to meet me. This gave me a really good feeling and i had really good conversations with some new girls, the rush chair, and some girls i had talked to the day before. This skit was definitely my favorite and i left feeling like this is the house i want to be in.

Backstreet Boys: I did not want to go back to this house and was sad to see it on my list again. The conversations went well enough, but i was not genuinely interested in anything the girls had to say and they had a horrible skit. I really hope i do not get asked back to this house.

New Kids on the Block: Finally...the last house. I was exhausted at this point and just ready to be done. I ended up getting grabbed by a girl i already knew, so that was nice. We talked about all the things we werent supposed to be talking about, and it was great not to have to rush censor myself. The skit was cute, but not up to par with some of the others. I left liking the house, but not loving it.

So i then headed back to my group and ranked my bottom houses 2, 3, 4 in the following order: New Kids on the Block, 98 Degrees, Backstreet Boys. Tomorrow is final round and we can get asked back to a maximum of 3 houses. I really love Hanson and O-town and an reaaally hoping to see them on my schedule tomorrow.

Ooh exciting! Good luck!

yes--good luck!

best wishes!!!

Where's the update? Don't we know yet?

sorry sorry. ive been so busy with pledging i almost forgot. final round was semi-formal and we could get called back to a maximum of 3 houses. once again, i got a full schedule, but was cut from O-Town. this means i would return to New Kids on The Block, Hanson, and Five. I was ok as long as i had Hanson, and Five wasn't a bad second option at all.

New Kids On the Block: I knew who would be waiting for me at the door for this ceremony, and I was glad to see that i was right. We had a long conversation where she spent most of the time trying to get me to tell her which house i was going to put as my number 1 and talking shit about the other houses. Nobody took the ceremony seriously and i was bored with the conversation after 10 min. I liked the girl, she was fun and nice, but this just isnt the house for me.

Hanson: I also knew who would be waiting for me at the door here, and once again, i was pleased to see that i was right. Our conversation was so easy, as always, and i just felt comfortable in this house. I didnt want to leave.

Five: This is a house full of sweet girls and its a lot of girls' first choice, but i just dont understand why. I had no idea who had preffed me at this house, and dont even know the name of the girl that met me at the door...which cant be a good sign. The conversation was actually really good this time and i had more fun than i thought i would. the ceremony was the only one where people actually serious which was kind of cool. I left this house pleasantly surprised.

So when i went down for pref, i felt like my decision was made so easy for me. I ranked my houses: 1. Hanson 2. Five and 3.Nothing I know I was taking a risk, but i didnt want to put New Kids on the Block if i knew i wouldnt want to accept a bid.

The next day was bid night, we didnt find out until 5:30, and it was torture. But i couldnt have been happier when opened my envelope and saw Hanson.






I am proud to say that I am a sister of Sigma Delta Tau!!!!!!!

EAT! LOL, sorry, I couldn't resist ;)

Congratulations!!!!!

Congrats to you and SDT! Welcome to the sisterhood :)

Congratulations to you and to Sigma Delta Tau!

I hope you enjoy your new member period and your new sisters!

Congratulations to you and Sigma Delta Tau!

Hooray!! Congrats to you and to Sigma Delta Tau!! :)

Congratulations! Welcome to Greek Life, and enjoy Sigma Delta Tau!

Congratulations to you and SDT!