University of Texas- Austin Rush
 

Any general advice for rushing at UT?

Do freshmen enrolled in summer school in Austin have an advantage over those who do not?

What is the UT quota and does it include freshmen and sophomores?

I have looked at a few other threads but I am still not certain on how many recommendations are required at UT (and other big Texas schools) in order to have a good chance for a successful rush?

Thank you!

My cousin went to UT and enrolled in summer school prior to her freshman year. She was there because her high school grades were less than stellar. She said it did not give her an advantage during recruitment, primarily because, like the SEC, many of the houses target PNMs from specific high schools or suburbs.

Another cousin went through but dropped before Pref because she only wanted in one specific house, but was cut. I don't recommend going into recruitment with this mentality.

Certain houses could fill their new member classes with just legacies. Bottom line is that it is very competitive. Recs are pretty much required for most houses. I would have 2 recs per house.

Quota isn't set until recruitment is underway. I don't believe that UT has a separate quota for freshmen and upperclassmen like they do at (I think it is) Baylor.

I think they still use the 2 free juniors rule. Someone correct me if I'm wrong. As of Friday, 751 have signed up. The chapters do do a bit of summer rushing but summer school usually means your HS grades did not allow you to enter without summer school. Usually, there are few grade risks however because Texas only admits students in top 10% of class. Small town girls from , small unknown HS suffer the most.

Most of UT summer school freshman are kids that just missed the "top 10%" cutoff--kids in the top 11th % to about the top 18th %. Strong students & alot of them from extremely competitive high schools.
Summer rush is a double edged sword. It can be a huge advantage-if you behave yourself... It can also kill your chances if you make poor choices. There seems to be something going on every night. It's a great way to meet tons of girls from different houses and get yourself on their radar screens, as well as get a feel for the different groups. Also, who wouldn't love summer in Austin?

Not totally accurate - currently about 80% of the freshman class is admitted via the top 10% rule. Meaning that 20% are not.

How is the decision made for that 20% ( Family connections?) I had a feeling it wasn't just based on top 10% as advertised.

Athletes.
Only 42% of UT's football team graduate

Actually, according to UT President's newsletter, 91% of this year's incoming freshman class came from from the top 10%. That is why UT hates the "automatic admit for top 10%" rule. Then they have 5% reserved for out of state/foreign students. So you can see that it was extremely competitive to get in if you're not in the top 10% this year. Family connections don't seem to cut it like they used to. Now it's a combination of class rank, test scores, essays and letters of recommendations--as well as figuring out which specific college-i.e. natural science, education, business, etc would be the easiest route to gain admission. Very rare to see anyone out of the top 15% get in from our area.

Yeah - I know all about it. I think it was 87% for the class that entered in fall 2007. Didn't realize we'd broken into the 90th percentile on that. It's been rising and rising - I think when the rule was first put in place it was only 40-50% of the entering class. I believe that A&M only admits around 50% of their class with the top 10 percent rule.

There was a recent thread where we discussed the top 10% rule ad infinitum. I don't really know that we need to here again.

Good luck southerngirl55!

Thank you! Yeah UT is very competitive... I was accepted as an International student (although I have lived in Texas my entire life) and that is supposed to be even more competitive!

I am not in for summer school but I know there is a lot of rush summer events that help PNM to get to know some sorority girls. Visiting is still fun but I just wonder how much more attention the girls who are at Hardin House for the summer get...

Also, how beneficial is it to be a legacy? If you are not a legacy to certain houses, should you be realistic and not expect to get a bid?

I know some threads consider big southern texas rush to be superficial... but are we talking about a cute outfit and nice Tiffany jewlery? or all out Chanel, Gucci, Manolos, Saks, Niemans shopping spree?

Let's say a PNM LOVES XYZ ...and their colors are...Orange and White. Would it be a good or bad idea to wear those colors during rush? If bad, which colors would be OK to wear and not attract negative attention? I heard solid dresses are the best bet.

If I join a sorority I plan on being very dedicated and I want that attitude to show through my rush experience. I want to be prepared but I definitely do not want to/ or hopefully do not need to! go completely all out.....or do I?

Also, how beneficial is it to be a legacy? If you are not a legacy to certain houses, should you be realistic and not expect to get a bid? It helps but being a Legacy does not guarantee a bid.

I know some threads consider big southern texas rush to be superficial... but are we talking about a cute outfit and nice Tiffany jewlery? or all out Chanel, Gucci, Manolos, Saks, Niemans shopping spree? Cute outfit and nice jewelry (not necessarily Tiffany) is fine. UT typically puts out a Recruitment Guide that will help you. Also, many local panhellenics have teas for PNMs.

Let's say a PNM LOVES XYZ ...and their colors are...Orange and White. Would it be a good or bad idea to wear those colors during rush? Bad, Bad, Bad, Bad, Bad. Get the idea? If bad, which colors would be OK to wear and not attract negative attention? I heard solid dresses are the best bet. Wear something memorable, whether it's a print or a scarf or a cool pin, but nothing revealing.

In terms of clothing, some very tasteful examples were posted by VandalSquirrel in another thread. These would be dresses that would be appropriate for preference night at Texas and most other schools:

http://www.greekchat.com/gcforums/sh...ad.php?t=97970

The Texas 2008 Greek Guide is available online here:

http://deanofstudents.utexas.edu/gle...s/GrkGde08.pdf

The Texas Panhellenic council website is here:

http://www.texaspanhellenic.org/index.htm

You can download the 2008 Panhellenic Recruitment booklet here:

https://webspace.utexas.edu/rau64/Re...f?uniq=-9dd49l

The clothing suggestions begin on page 20 of that booklet. Definitely follow their suggestion about packing a pair of comfy flip flops to walk between houses in.

Overall, in terms of clothing, I would focus less on specific brands and more on overall style and elegance.

Also, it's *possible* that your status as an International student could benefit you. You'll certainly have a lot to talk about during the parties - it's an instant conversation starter! :)

Well, some colors are commoner than others and hard to avoid. if you love Theta, don't be afraid to wear a black dress with gold trim. If you love KKG, don't be afraid to wear a dark blue dress with a light blue print - if those are the outfits you look the best in.

But if you love KD - don't wear green and white. Only green and white. For every single day of rush. :p Moderation is the key. But if you try to avoid every group's colors, you'll wind up nude.

LOL, unless you wear, as you "suggested" in another thread, wear magenta and puce. And take the armadillo as your mascot. :D

Haha "wear magenta and puce. And take the armadillo as your mascot. "... I guess I can't wear that outfit anymore, huh? Just kidding...

Well I have heard "obvious color outfits" might annoy actives but it can also be a hint that you'd love to join their chapter!

If a girl wore (for example) a red and yellow dress... Would it annoy all the other sororities except Chi Omega? It seems like it might hurt instead of help. I have searched through some threads and am still debating one of my outfits for this reason.

Yeah, that's a color combo that I think is on the line - I would skip that one.

Some sororities/members would find that type of thing flattering, but others would find it pushy and/or creepy. Unless you know the majority of the chapter members well enough to know their minds (which of course you don't) better safe than sorry.

I might also considering waiting until sophomore year to rush... would that be a terrible idea?

I'd like to get a feel of the school my first year before getting too involved.

But I heard rush is SO competitive for sophomores.... Does anyone know of any sophomores that had a successful rush at UT?

Yes.

That is true... So chances just go down the longer you wait? I am guessing juniors and seniors don't have a chance at all. Is rushing as a junior even heard of at UT? I thought sophomores still went with the freshmen quota. I will definitely rush this year, but I wonder if any sophomores make the cut?

I don't think it's impossible for a sophomore to get a bid, but like many of the other competitive schools, she would have to have good friends in houses, a stellar GPA, recs and support letters galore, in addition to being a leader on campus in other organizations. It's definitely not the norm.

Convocation for UT Rush was last night. 796 girls are now registered. Good luck to all!!
First round started today at 9:30 a.m. 14 houses to go to today. Yikes!

Yay! Let the games begin!!

My son and all his friends are setting up shop at a local eatery where they can sit on the patio and watch all the lovely girls go by!

Good Luck Girls!!!!!

Good luck, Texas girls! How I wish I could be there to see it. (and I wish our chapter was still there.)

Also, don't forget about all the highly qualified students from top private schools which don't rank their graduates. They cannot take part in the top 10% rule, so they are included in the small percentage of "non top 10%-ers" who manage to get into UT.

The current UT student is one smart cookie indeed. Which means most of the girls going through rush are going to be quite accomplished.

That is correct. The way it worked for us (and still does post-Hopwood ruling) is that you are automatically in UT provided you achieve a certain class ranking within your own school plus have a certain SAT score. It is a sliding scale, so if you have a higher SAT score- you can get away with being in a lower percentile in your class.

About 20% of my high school went to UT when I graduated, and that figure is about the same today on average.

Hah- I remember that well. When I was in school, I knew someone with a condo right by Hardin House and that is where we camped out a couple of years.

Good luck to the ladies!

I'm going to the Pi Phi house on Sunday to see a dress rehearsal of the skit! Whee!!! :)

That is so much fun! I went last Sun. to the Gamma Phi house at TCU to see their skit.

You and me both, Tiny Dancer!

I'm hoping to be updated a lot during this UT FR!
Good luck, everyone, and hook 'em horns!

UT recruitment
 

When is bid day? I wrote a rec for a girl going through at U-T and I want to know what their recruitment schedule is. :)

http://deanofstudents.utexas.edu/gli..._upc_sched.php

Bid Day is on Tuesday, the 26th.

My son went to the AXO house last night to watch their skit practice. He said it was all great fun until he went outside and someone had plowed into his car!!!!!!:mad::mad::mad:

Of course, no note!!!

So, in the past 2 weeks, my youngest, who had his license exactly one week - got in a wreck, then two days ago, my son's car (the one that got hit last night), was broken into, and now THIS!!!

Oh well, if bad luck comes in 3's we should be in the clear!!!

That's really bad luck, Srmom. I don't know what to say except I hope that it gets better. One year we bought a new car and it was almost totalled when somebody hit it. The insurance company paid to have it fixed, though, and just three months later it was hit again, and really totalled. I was in the car the second time, and I knew it was bad when I saw ugly green stuff pouring out of the engine area. However, the replacement car has never been hit, and its been nearly 5 years. Knock on wood for both of us. :)

Knocking furiously!!:)

But everyone is okay, right? Hope this is the end of your bad luck with cars!