Rushing as a Junior
 

I am thinking about rushing as a junior and want to know if I have a chance at all.

I have been going to the same University since freshman year and am about to finish my sophomore year. I have wanted to rush and join a sorority since starting college. My freshman year, I was intimidated by the process and could get none of my friends to rush with me, so I decided not to go through with it. I regretted that decision almost immedietly. The entire year I kept wishing I had gone through rush and decided that I woudl rush my sophmore year.

I did rush this fall and went through the entire recruitment process. The problem was that the sorority that extended me a bid was the sorority I had placed at the bottom of my list after every day. I signed the bid and went to the meet and greet with the sorority. I was almost in tears I was so upset about the sorority that I had recieved the bid from and the very next day I informed them that I didi not want to go through the pledge season.

I still want to be in a sorority though and have gone through this entire year wishing that I had gotten a bid from any of the other sororites on campus.

I had heard that their was a glitch in the process last fall and that some girls did not get pledges from their first picks even when that sorority had also extended them bids, but I do not know if that is true or not.

I would really like to join a sorority next fall but wonder if I have a chance at all of recieving a bid considering it is my junior year and since I have already been through the rush process. According to Greek Life at my college if you accept a bid and later drop it you are banned from rushing for a year. This fall will be the end of that year so I would be eligable.

I have enjoyed college, but I have felt like it has been incomplete. I want that deep sisterhood friendship that sororities can bring and the sense of belonging.

Any advice or perspective on this would be most welcome! Thank you!

There are several threads about rushing as a junior. Please use the search function and you should be able to find a lot of information.

Good luck.

The sororities have already given you a chance and let you know where you fit. The chances of there being "a glitch" are 99.9999% improbable. That kind of rumor is usually the work of girls who didn't get the bid they wanted and ended up at a chapter "below" them.

Even at non-competitive schools, a re-rushing Junior who did previously receive a bid would have a very hard time. Unless something has dramatically changed for the better in the last year. If you decide to rush, make sure you are truly emotionally prepared to not receive any bid this time.

^I'm not sure why the "glitch" rumor crops up constantly; it is EXTREMELY unlikely to the point of being a completely frivilous accusation. If you decide to go through again be prepared to be asked:
1) Why didn't you go through recruitment before junior year?
2) Oh, you went through already? What happened?
If you want to have a chance at being successful, you should seriously consider what you have improved upon or changed since sophomore year and how you are a better candidate now. Also -- are you prepared to accept the group you turned down already should they offer you another chance? They wanted you before and may want you again, but you are going to have to show some serious signs of maturation. Good luck.

I guess I should add that my school is not very competitive when it comes to rushing. It's a relativly small public state univeristy in the midwest. I personally don't believe the glitch story either, but I just wanted to share everything I had been told.

You were given a bid. It was not your favorite. You went to meet the sorority on bid day.

Just how badly do you want to be in sorority? You are contradicting yourself by saying you want to be in a sorority, but, when one gave you a chance, you declined. Sounds like you want to be in sorority that meets your idealist needs. It does not work way. You screwed yourself.

There are countless stories on Greek Chat of those who did not get their first choice, pledged and found something. One member can make a difference. You never gave those women a chance.

You won't know unless you try. Realize though, if you do rush again, you may have several strikes against you, depending on the greek life system on your campus. On some campuses, even not super competitive and smaller groups may see you as damaged goods or think that you think that you are better than their NPC sisters that you declined a bid from.

I would suggest that if you have friends in sororities, talk to them about potentially re-rushing. Ask them to be honest and not blow rainbows up your butt.

I think the stigma of "re-rushing" varies from school to school. The bigger question is why a chapter that didn't want you as a sophomore would want you as a junior.

Why would a chapter want sloppy seconds? Especially (as you describe) from a less desirable chapter?

Rerush. It is one week out of your life. If you aren't liking your options after preferentials, DO NOT sign the bid card. Then you will be free to attend informal recruitment events for sororities throughout the school year and possibly be bidded by one of them.

If you're at a school with only a handful of sororities and a non-competitive recruitment, chances are you will get a bid somewhere.

Also, please remember that you are basing your Top Choice on an org where, on average, you have spent less than hour speaking to only a few of its members. If you're a fairly average person, chances are you can find a way to fit into any group of 50+ people.

Go in with an open mind not expecting anything-- just plan to find something you like about each sorority each day of recruitment.

Like I said, all you have to lose by rerushing is a few bucks for registration and a week of your life going to parties and meeting people. If you do that, you will have no regrets about missing out on anything, and if it doesn't go as planned, you know you tried. Go for it, I say.

Which is why I said unless something has dramatically changed for the better in the last year. :) Seriously, I don't get why a woman thinks she will change the minds of chapters that already rejected her as a sophomore. Unless of course she discovered the cure for cancer or was the person responsible for finding Osama Bin Laden since last year's recruitment.

To be fair, the OP didn't say "this is the chapter everyone had at the bottom of their list." It was the one at the bottom of HER list. For all we know, it was a chapter everyone else loved and she didn't want to pledge there because the columns on the house frightened her or something.

This is 100% not true. If the Greek system and the sororities are that small, more than likely each chapter has a very distinct personality and if you don't fit, you REALLY DON'T FIT. Non-competitive does NOT mean everyone with a cervix gets a bid. :rolleyes:

OP - if that's the case, you should have been working over this past year to make friends with members of the other sororities. If no one in the groups knows you as a junior AND you have already declined a bid, no matter how non-competitive the school is, the chance of your attaining sorority membership at this point is slim.

My point is this-- why in the world would you want to get an entirely new group of friends your junior year? You said you've been there since you were a freshman, and you have already gone through recruitment once, so what is going to change to make this year different? It would be different if you hadn't gone through recruitment and you were still unsure of whether or not you fit in somewhere, but you have. And the process works (most of the time). So I'm at a loss.

If you are interested in going into recruitment again with a truly open mind, I say go for it with your whole heart; then you won't regret it. Otherwise I would suggest that you invest your time into other interests and passions of yours, and with the friends you already have. You were offered the opportunity to join a sisterhood once and you let it pass you by, I suggest you don't do the same again if you really want this. Good luck to you.