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Okay, I am very new to this forum but I have been reading a lot about Sororities and rush etc. Everything I have read just makes me want to read more and know more about the different sororities. BUT I have many things that make me uneasy about the whole process. I feel like I am a little "old" (23) to rush formally or at least I think so, and I am married. Which I have been in contact with a friend of mine and they said there is a rule that no married person can rush. This is true? Is it just for that particular sorority or all of them? I did talk to a advisor and she had me fill out a COB form, but didn't really give me much information to that process. So being the curious person I am decided to email the sororities that are doing COB, and I haven't heard back and now I am afraid I have completely screwed up everything!

Another thing is that I am a senior, and formal rush has gone and passed. I could try Spring? or Just wait till next fall. See I switched my major and so even though I have the credit hours of a senior I am more like a sophmore with how many hours I still have left. Basically I have like 3 years left. I am also working, and I don't know how the houses would feel about that, since (at least right now) I am working during the day and taking classes at night.

This is something I have always wanted to try, I just feel like I have so many odds against me and I don't want to be disappointed by going through something and pretty much have NO chance of getting an invite even on the second day (which I feel would happen to me). I go to Oklahoma Univ. and they have a pretty good Greek Life there, and it has always interested me... So can anyone help? Anyone that has gone through rush at OU have some insider tips?

Thanks!

NotSure,
I'm not sure that anyone on this board can answer your questions or calm your fears without knowing anything about the Greek climate on your campus. Age, academic year and marital status can all be factors to not receiving a bid, especially on competitive campus but I also know of women in a similar situation who have received bids. If this is something you are interested in doing, continue to COB or consider formal recruitment next time it comes around.

Paging kstar!

Without trying to sound "stupid"...I am from Pennsylvania and don't know much Oklahoma schools...I was wondering:

Does Oklahoma University mean "Oklahoma State University" or "University of Oklahoma"? I know that people have made the mistake of calling Penn State "Penn" when in all reality-Penn is Ivy League University "University of Pennsylvania"....

If anyone knows the answer to my question-please help me out here....

Oklahoma University is University of Oklahoma. Sorry for the confusion. Just didn't want to put OU and expect everyone to know I was talking abotu Oklahoma :)

What is Spring Recruitment like? I know not all the houses take part in it, but how do you know if one is or isnt? Is Spring kinda like Fall just less formal? Does everyone get to know about Spring or is it word of mouth or you only get to know if you are close friends etc?

Check with your Greek Life office for more information on Spring Recruitment. If Fall Recruitment just ended, you might not hear anything for a while.

Some campuses publicize informal rush. Some don't and you'll only find about it if you've got friends in those sororities. It really all depends.

Again i'll say it, I hate when people say "I'm a junior/senior, but I have ___ years left of school" It doesn't necessarily work like that--at least not in my sorority. We count from when you first entered school, and you can go 4 years (possibly 5 depending on the chapter). So since you are a senior, even though you might have 3 years left, you would NOT get those 3 years as a collegiate.

I disagree. It's worth saying because they don't know how every organization works. For AST, we have no collegiate alum, no fifth year alum, nothing. If you are a collegiate and a member, you are active. So for us it IS definitely worth knowing.

Different NPCs have different policies regarding whether a 5th year can remain active. I believe this would be a (Inter)National Policy rather than a chapter policy, but I could be mistaken.

My sorority allows 5th years the option to remain active or go alum. My chapter had a 5th year remain active and live in the house during her 5th year.

Other NPCs require 5th years to go alum.

I'm not sure if any NPCs require 5th years to remain active until graduation.

Ahh ok, good to know. I didn't know if other NPCs allowed 6th+ years (and according to fantASTic, AST does), but my understanding was my sorority doesn't.

I know we allow 5th year students as well, but after the 5th year you had to go alum even if you hadn't graduated yet.

However... it is also good to note that if you do wish to enter into alumnae status, you have the option of doing so after you've either:

1.) Completed 4 years of school, or
2.) Been active in the sorority for at least 3 years

So even with this, I could see how chapters might be weary of initiating someone, thinking that they could essentially leave at any time that they wanted after they've finished 4 years of school. As for my chapter, we don't really care. If someone really wants to be part of the chapter, whether they're a freshman or not, and we really like them and would like for them to be part of the sorority, then we allow them to join.

Again, it all depends on where you go to school, and how each chapter views your situation.

Are you sure? I looked in the Collegiate Chapter Handbook and I believe it said that if you are a collegiate, you must be active and that AST has NO collegiate alum policy. But my CCH was from the early 1990s...so I could be out of date!

Ok, sorry... I accidentally put that you had to complete either one of those, but in reality, you have to do both. So you would have to complete 3 years in the chapter before you could be an alumna. But yes, we have people all the time who complete 3 years in the sorority, might have an extra semester or year of school left, and then can choose to go into collegiate alumnae status. I attended school for an extra semester (because I changed my major 3 times. haha), and I had the option, but I chose to stay active.

It's Standing Rule #10 in the Collegiate Constitution

Recruitment at the University of Oklahoma is competitive, and the the vast majority of greek women on that campus tend to be of traditional age and circumstances. That is not to say no one in your circumstances could ever get a bid, but it would be more difficult at OU than at a school with a different environment, such as a school with a large commuter or non-traditional student population. OU sororities have big houses, and you will also want to investigate live-in requirements and what exceptions, if any, are made to any expectations for women to live in.

Talk to the Greek Life office--they will know who is COBing, and they may have a realistic sense of your chances. However, as a married 23/24 year old woman, you might find that going to Grab a Dates, Crushes and fraternity mixers with 18 year olds less fun than you think. Close friendships, service opportunities and fun times can also be found in community sororities, such as Beta Sigma Phi, or service or leadership organizations, and clubs/interest groups on campus. OU is a big place with big opportunities.

Would it better if I waited and tried to initiate as an AI? I really like the idea of being in a NPC sorority, I have read a lot about the different ones on their websites and just find everything so fascinating. I just dont know how difficult this would be to get in either.

ABSOLUTELY NOT.

Even though you really can't compare the two, it's often said that AI is HARDER than sorority recruitment. Read some of the AI threads here. A lot of women have experienced joy and heartbreak over the years. Some have started their AI journey years ago but still...nothing.

AI should be treated as an HONOR given to a select few women, not "a way in" because you didn't rush in college.

I don't usually answer these because I don't want to sound like a hypocrite, but...

No. Having a fascination with sororities and wanting to have a collegiate sorority experience are perfectly unacceptable reasons to consider AI. I'll be one of the first people to say that there are viable reasons for AI, but those reasons are not any of the ones you have listed. Please take the advice given above of alternate ways to get involved on your campus if you do not receive a bid or continue to choose not to go through recruitment. There is no way ever to recreate a college experience, and AI is in no way shape or form about the college experience.

AI is not a way to capture the collegiate sorority experience missed in college.

Again, you should talk to your greek life office to see about COB opportunities, and a realistic talk about your situation/chances. I wasn't telling you not to attempt it, just noting that OU is rather competitive and traditional. No one here can do anything other than offer some semi-informed opinions. Sorority women on your own campus and the greek life office can tell you more.

Close friendships, social opportunities and philanthropic ventures are available from a lot of organizations, not just greek ones. If greek life doesn't work out, there would be a lot of other options in Norman. Options that could include your husband as well.

But I am not necessarily looking for the collegiate experience...

I plan to find out about Spring recuritment and talk to some sorority girls that I know. I plan to try at least. :)

Good work. Thanks! :)

As an OU grad, I will be honest with you....I really do not think you have much of a chance at getting a bid. Rush is competitive, and it's hard for traditional rushees to get into top houses. We have one of the largest rushes, so no houses are hurting for pledges. I just can't see many (or any) of them extending a bid to a married rushee. Also, in my sorority once you get married, you move to alum status.

If you are not looking for the traditional collegiate experience, I'm not sure why you would rush. I would honestly look into some other similar organizations, such as Junior League.