when do you give out bids?
 

When do you normally give out bids? The night before the invite-only ??(I think most people do some kind of invite-only event for all the people who got bids) During an event? Do you show up at people's dorms/apts with the bid card?

I'm in favor of bidding anytime and anywhere the opportunity presents. In my opinion, the best was is to evaluate our potential pledges, choose the ones we want and then go find them and pledge them on the spot, without waiting until they come to an organized function.

We do rush in the summer and try to identify as many of "our type" men as possible. We'll get some - maybe 15 or so - to sign bid cards in the summer for the fall. IFC Rush lasts one week (five nights) in the fall and that's when large numbers of rushees plow through the houses. Like all the other 21 fraternities, we try to evaluate, then to interview, as many of the guys we like as possible. Once we decide we want someone we go after them, maybe track him down during the next day. Rush happens fast, and you have to make decisions fast because you're competinig against your rivals for the same men.
Our undergraduates are most comfotable with issuing bids at the house, in a special room. I'm always concerend about the bottleneck and the chances of slowing down the process, but they like it and they do fine with numbers.

On our campus, Sigma Chi and Lambda Chi both have invitation-only banquets during rush week. It seems to work fine for them. We do not; we don't want to put all our eggs in that basket. Rather than holding an invitation-only function, we concentrate on: 1) leg work during the day, 2) identifying the men we want, and 3) pursuing them as quickly and aggressively as possible. Lots of rushees walk through the door and we're nice to everyone. But we only concentrate on our rush targets.

On Bidday

Firehouse-Yeah I've noticed that a lot of fraternities have been starting to give them out spread out throughout the rush period.

cracker barrel- you dont give any out early? So at your bid day event does everyone who was invited know that its bidday?

I haven't responded to this thread, I think you mean Elephant Walk.

We give out at bids over the summer and at rush events during the course of the week. We have an invite party on the last day of rush week, but we are done rushing by then except for maybe a kid or two sitting on bids. There aren't any more bids being given out that late in the week here.

Yeah I meant elephant walk. I guess I was just thinking of some other thread that you replied to.

We do formal rush.

Like sorority style formal.

edit afterthought: We give out early bids...but they're only for psychological purposes, they're not binding if you sign them.

This made me giggle. Do you wear pink tee shirts and give them balloons and flowers, too?;)

We give out bids as we go along too. There is not really any formal rush period, and by "rush week" you should have your pledge class pretty well in place and just be working on anyone who has received multiple bids and has not made a final choice yet. Ideally- here anyway- you want at least half your class locked in by the end of July, preferably more.