GPA Requirement to get into a Sorority
 

I am currently a second semester freshman and I definitely want to rush next semester as a sophomore. I've had a hard time getting used to college and my first semester GPA put me on probation. I'm trying to get myself back on track and this semester I hope to get a 2.3 Overall though my cumulative GPA isn't great and I know that sororities definitely look at that during recruitment. I am taking one course over the summer but that can't boost my GPA.

I was always a good student in high school and involved in lots of activities. In college though, I'm struggling and am only involved in equestrian club.
I regret not joining a sorority this fall and since then I have been waiting and looking forward to rush. I have to say ZTA is by far my favorite chapter on campus. Is there any chance I could get into ZTA or any chapter for that matter with my GPA as it is? I don't want to wait until junior year because I'll miss out on a whole year and I really want to get involved more than anything. Basically what are my chances with my current GPA and recruitment in the fall?

By the way I go to James Madison University in Virginia :)

Please please please do a search. Actually, if you had even looked at any of the recent threads in this forum, there's a ton on GPA.

A 2.3 may very well not even be high enough to rush, let alone get a bid. And you haven't even earned that 2.3 yet. You're conjecturing that's what you HOPE to get, which means your first semester GPA was below that. You may want to be more concerned with getting good grades so you don't get kicked out of school.

You're also doing yourself no favors by focusing in on ZTA. Your best chance at getting a bid would have to come after you gave ALL chapters a fair shake. You have the cards stacked against you, thanks to your grades.

Most campuses require a 2.5 GPA to apply for recruitment. Many chapters require a higher GPA than that to be considered for membership. A low GPA coupled with a upperclassman standing will be challenge to success. As Dani recommended, there are many GPA related threads on this forum...read them.

Here's the harsh truth. Your statement here sums things up for me. You're struggling with grades and only involved in one club. Adding another organization, especially one as demanding of your time as a sorority, is probably not in your best interests right now. You need to focus your time and energy on your education. If you're kicked out of school for grades it won't matter what club or group you join.

Agreed

Is there any possibility of taking a few classes this summer? Especially if you re-take one of the classes that you didn't do well in before?

I'm assuming that because she said her summer classes won't count toward her GPA, she is not taking them at JMU. If she was taking them at JMU, any retakes and new classes WOULD be able to boost her GPA.

Zillini, I think that the OP's GPA is really the only thing working against her (but it sure is a big thing working against her). At JMU, a sophomore with a good GPA and involvement with one club would have a good chance of getting a bid, even at strong chapters, assuming she fits in otherwise.

To the OP, a 2.3 may not even be high enough to register for recruitment. Individual chapters will no doubt have higher requirements. Chapters can make rare exceptions to their chapter minimum, but they cannot bid a PNM with a GPA lower than their National minimum, and a 2.3 could very well be below the National minimum for many groups.

I wasn't talking about her chances of being successful in Recruitment or even whether she might make a good member. I was referring to her ability to remain an enrolled college student and not be kicked out of the University for failure to achieve their minimum GPA requirements. The OP is already on Academic Probation. It would be one thing if she said last semester was a struggle but she's she's doing a bang up job this spring. That's not what she said, rather she hopes she'll earn a 2.3. While no longer probation level that still sounds like struggling to me.

Is it wise to add the time demands of a sorority (chapter meetings, new member meetings, sisterhood activities, Panhellenic speakers/events, philanthropy events, social functions, etc.) on top of that? Don't get me wrong, I'm all for going Greek. I wouldn't be an advisor if I wasn't. But just because someone wants something doesn't mean it's the best thing for them. We can never forget that the primary purpose of going to college is to get a good education.

I misinterpreted what you said, thinking that you meant that sophomore status and involvement in only one activity would be two "strikes" against a PNM at any school, so I wanted to clarify that those wouldn't be "strikes" at JMU like they would at an SEC school like Bama.

I absolutely agree with everything else you just said.

If the OP could miraculously get 4.0s the next three semesters, she might have a shot at getting a bid as a junior (though she'd have fewer chapters from which to choose). She'd almost certainly have a better chance than she would as a sophomore with a *hopefully* 2.3.

i know a lot of sororities require a C+ GPA to be considered for membership & a lot of schools require one to have a 2.5 (like everyone else said) in order to register. some schools are higher, some are lower...it all depends.

having a low GPA definitely limits which house you're able to become a new member at.

i was in your same situation. my first semester of college was one of the hardest times of my life. it was my first time being away from home, i had a terrible roommate, a horrible situation with a boy (i know i shouldn't allow it to screw with me, but it did!), & to top it off, my grandma ended up passing away after a sudden stroke. i only managed a 2.0, which did not reflect my intelligence or my ability in the slightest bit (i was in the top 10% of my high school class). i ended up getting a 3.6 GPA my second semester & that only brought my GPA up to a little over a 2.6. so, to even begin to bring your GPA up (since you're on academic probation i assume your GPA is under a 2.0), you'll have to get way higher than a 2.3.

some schools are changing their system to allow anyone, regardless of GPA, to register for recruitment and to leave it up to the chapters. for example, at IU someone can write an excuse to why their grades aren't higher (i.e. death...or you had an extremely hard class that brought down your GPA) but that didn't even help me much.

granted, your education is the reason why you're in college...not for the greek life or activities. buckle down & raise your grades first, then think about recruitment. after all, future employers will look at your GPA & if you're competing with someone that had a higher GPA, they'll probably get chosen over you.

a way to start fresh is to transfer schools. i did, so i didn't have a GPA. i went through recruitment right away & couldn't imagine myself anywhere else.

good luck!

I think the OP meant that with the grades she thinks she can/will get this semester, her cumulative will go up to a 2.3.

1) Not to be blunt... but, if a 2.3 is the best you can do without any other distractions, I think you should focus more on getting yourself back on track academically before you even consider Greek Life...'cause that is why you are in college in the first place.

Being in a sorority takes a lot of time... especially the first year or so. If you can't do any better than a 2.3 without those distractions, I question how well you will do in the next few years.

2) I wouldn't keep your heart set on any one sorority going into recruitment. If you put all your eggs in one basket and they cut you for grades... well... that doesn't get you anywhere, does it?

3) If you are SERIOUS about wanting to boost your GPA, I would highly recommend re-taking your lowest classes during the summer to bring it up. Even if a 2.3 is the minimum at your school in order to rush, chapters have minimums of their own and if you don't do anything about your GPA, you may get cut pretty hard after the first round.

4) No one on GC can tell you what your "chances" are. We don't know you. If you just want a bunch of people to blow sunshine and tell you that a 2.3 is awesome and that you are brillant and you would be an asset to ANY chapter there, well, the chances of that happening don't look so good.

definately retake those classes and hire a tutor to help you get a good grade.

If you are telling her to transfer schools so that you dont have a GPA just to go through recuitment.... uhhh... yea.

Even if you transfer, don't you still have a college GPA that the sororities will see? (The answer would be yes.) I transferred schools and still had to put my college GPA on my recruitment application.

I am not sure about your situation with 'not having a GPA after transferring', but I think this is bad advice to give to other people. No sorority is just going to believe that you don't have a GPA if you transfer after the first semester of freshman year.

Not only that, but it pains me to see anyone suggest transferring schools just to be Greek.

If a girl wants to transfer schools, let it be for valid academic reasons...not because she might have a better chance at recruitment.

I agree with smiley. That's some bad advice up there.

I highly suggest that you seriously take what other people here are saying to heart. You need to be releastic.

I would go as far as to say not to even think about recruitment until next spring at the earliest. You don't want to "barely" get in a sorority (if that is possible). Work on your grades and make yourself highly desirable academically. Get as far away from academic probation as possible! Take advice from someone who experienced academic probation very early in college. I went through a lot of hardship in college and had to take 7 years to finish a 4 year degree. I had to wait until junior year (also known as college year number 5) before I even had a successful recruitment. I won't go into detail but I had to concentrate on school before I could realistically consider rush.

Do yourself a favor and don't be so concerned about recruitment until you are "not struggling" academically.

I agree with those who are pointing out that your education should be your priority. You don't have to forget about Greek Life, but taking the time to improve yourself academically would be a win-win for you. First you would improve your academic standing and you would be a stronger candidate. Good Luck!

I agree... but the poster who suggested that appears to have a small history in suggesting transferring schools in order to be greek

You may want to inquire if they look at cumulative gpa or last semester's gpa. It is hard to bring up a cumulative quickly, but one good term shows your level of academic commitment. It is worth asking your panhellenic adviser on campus about.

Good luck.

According to JMU's sorority recruitment application / registration document:

"ACADEMIC RECORD RELEASE: I understand that to apply for recruitment, I must be a regularly enrolled, full-time student in good standing with James Madison University with a 2.0 or better cumulative GPA. Every chapter's GPA requirements will be listed in the recruitment booklet you will receive at the orientation session. I authorize James Madison University's Student Organization Services Office and Panhellenic Council to verify my academic eligibility."

https://secureapp.icsrecruiter.com/I...%20Recruitment

So it looks like JMU takes "cumulative" into consideration.


Edited to add: What I find a little unnerving is that JMU's Greek Life and/or Panhellenic evidently has "every chapter's GPA requirements," but they aren't giving them out until the orientation session -- is that right? Unless several chapters have a 2.0 requirement, I can just imagine the fun when a few PNMs show up at orientation, only to discover that they have, for all practical purposes, no chance.

Maybe JMU is just following the classic verse by Thomas Gray:

"Yet ah! why should they know their fate?
Since sorrow never comes too late,
And happiness too swiftly flies.
Thought would destroy their paradise.
No more; where ignorance is bliss,
'Tis folly to be wise."

Something else to keep in mind ... Assuming that you have the grades to apply for recruitment AND assuming you do not get cut because of grades AND assuming you are offered AND accept a bid, you will still have to make and maintain a minimum GPA academically to become initiated into an organization. I'm sure that it varies by organization but many only allow you to be a provisional member for so long (maybe 2 semesters) before you are released due to grades. You're then stuck waiting another calendar year before you would be eligible to go through the process again (would this be your senior year?).