Rerushing Question??
 

Hey guys! So I really want to rush with my best friend this year. However, she accepted her bid last spring recruitment but did not go with initiation due to family problems but things have significantly gotten better and now she wants to be part of greek life again. Can she rush again this fall or does she have to wait until this spring to try again?

She can rush again this fall. If she has a good relationship with her old chapter, she should discuss this with them in advance (before strict silence kicks in) to let them know why she is rushing again and that she'd like to be considered for membership, presuming she does. Ideally she'd be able to pick up where she left off, but as your friend has undoubtedly realized, that isn't how it works in real life.

Ok, thanks! Also, would she be able to join another sorority or only her old one?

If she accepted her bid in the spring, she is not eligible umtil next spring. It's a one year commitment.

Not if she actually accepted a bid, which is what it sounds like, here.

That's what I thought, Titchou and DBB.

Am I the only one thinking "the friend didn't like her sorority and wants to try for another"? Because if I'd had to "drop" or "resign" during my pledge period, and I was able to rejoin, I'd move heaven and earth to do so. *shrug*

I always thought it was "one year or until next formal recruitment".

If spring was not formal, I believe she's eligible for fall.

OP - your friend should check with the Panhellenic VP of Recruitment to confirm.

It is the MRABA that is bidding. If that was signed it is 1 year regardless of whether it was spring or fall.

Your first part is correct in that they are not strict on calendar years. If you pledge in the fall (August), but then drop out during your pledge period (September or October), you can rush the following August, even if it has only been 10 or 11 months. If, however, you sign an MRABA in the spring, you can not rush again in the fall.

I will defer. But I thought only formal recruitment counted for having to wait a year, especially since there is no guarantee that there WOULD be informal rush again the next year. I guess I'd ask the Greek Life office for clarification.

So - this is interesting, folks... Directly from the Unanimous Agreements:

4. A signed membership recruitment acceptance or a continuous open bidding (COB) acceptance is binding. If a potential member receives a bid under the preference system, she is ineligible to be pledged to any other NPC fraternity on the same campus for one calendar year.

But then we have

8. If through the primary recruitment process a potential member accepts a bid and then has her pledge broken by an NPC fraternity or breaks her pledge, then she is ineligible to be pledged to another NPC fraternity on the same campus until the beginning of the next year’s primary membership recruitment period.


So which is it, Recruitment/NPC experts? To me, the scenario described by the OP fits #8, not #4. She accepted a bid, pledged, and then broke her pledge.

UNLESS, of course, the OP is talking about locals, or non-NPC sororities (of which there are many, many, many). Then it would be a different matter entirely.

One last thing: :confused::confused::confused: Why ask the Greek Life office? It's the NPC MRABA that applies here. Greek Life has been known to make mistakes. I'd check with the NPC.

Both of these are Formal Recruitment specific. "Primary Recruitment Process" and "under the preference system" don't apply to COB.

I disagree. #8 specifies the primary recruitment process. She did not accept through the primary recruitment process. I think this is here to clarify the situation I described above: if you decline your bid on bid day which happens to be August 30, you can go through rush again the following year, even if bid day is on August 29.

Honestly, if the greek life office gets it wrong and the old chapter doesn't complain, that's what would matter, in a practical sense.

But we don't know if Spring recruitment was the primary recruitment, because the OP didn't state that. It is getting more and more confusing to me.

Looks to me like we have some saying no, you can't rush again; and some saying yes, you can. Very interesting!

And, when I look at it again: if the OP accepted a bid, then I see where it is really #4 that applies and not #8. So, I just changed my mind!

Re: the second part of your response, very good, that is your opinion, and I'm not interested in debating or arguing with anyone about anything. I'm just trying to figure out what UA would apply here.

The devil is in the details. My head is starting to spin. This is why I don't do recruitment. It's way too complicated. I'm going swimming.

Oh, you're right, I have a "formal recruitment is in the fall" mindset, so I was thinking spring is formal, but it could have been the other way around. Even so, #8 would mean she couldn't rush again until next spring. I don't see any way around this: if she had a bid in the spring and signed an MRABA, she can not rush again until next spring.