A Vacation Destination Recruitment
 

A vacation destination recruitment! (mostly because its cold)
I’m currently a sophomore in college at a small liberal arts university in the South. When I rushed my freshman year, we had six sororities here, Paris, Maui, Barcelona, Melbourne, Rio, and Sydney
My first year, I was so excited when spring recruitment started. All of my friends were going through the process, and it was something we were happy to do together. The first day, we all got ready, put on our mandatory t-shirts, checked our makeup at least twice, and went off to find out pi chi groups. The rounds were great. Every group had something special, and while I knew that I wouldn't be terribly happy in certain ones, it was still a great process. I’d had great conversations with girls in Paris, bonded over my similar upbringing in with a girl in Maui, and was exceedingly happy in my favorite round Melbourne. It was great.

Actually, it was great until it wasn't. For the second day, most girls have five rounds. I was only invited back to two:Melbourne, where I had my best round, and Sydney, where I had my worst. I put a brave face on, and I went through the motions. I had a great round again in Melbourne, talking with girls about high school classmates and hugging the girl I talked to the day before. In Sydney, it was different. The girls were awkward, and I just felt uncomfortable. However, I was still looking forward to the next day.

The third day was crushing. I was only invited back to one house, and it wasn't Melbourne. Sydney, the house I had attempted to drop for several rounds, was the only one who wanted me. I wanted to drop then and there, but my pi chis convinced me to stay. It was absolute torture. My time to visit Sydney was the fifth round of the day, and I was stuck in the building we were using to meet our pi chi groups in for the rest of the day. I sat there for hours, and as people were streaming in and out they kept giving me looks. I was that girl, the one who wasn't good enough to be invited back by more than one sorority. I still went to the round, and while it was alright, it just wasn't the place for me. I knew that then, and I still know it now. I withdrew that day.

I didn't know why I was dropped, and I still don’t know. I didn't have recommendations, but they are very uncommon on my campus anyway. My grades were great, and I had a 3.6 my first semester at college. I made the dean’s list. I didn't sleep around, and neither did I gossip. I even like to think that I’m pretty. I’m not the perfect PNM, but I definitely thought that I would be fine. The rejection hurt. Every single one of my friends was extended a bid, and I was sitting alone in my room, bawling. It hurt, and it still does. I moved on, and I made some wonderful friends, especially in my boyfriend’s fraternity. I've made college mine, and it’s okay that I’m not in a sorority, even if every single female friend of mine is a sorority.

Fast forward to Fall Semester. It’s so much better than freshman yea, and I’m really doing well without being personally involved in greek life. My best friend tells me that her sorority is going through COB—the sorority that was my favorite during formal recruitment last year, Melbourne. She thinks that I should do it, but she doesn’t push me, and she tells me that it’s my own decision. COB was wonderful. I enjoyed meeting new members of Melbourne, and I was so excited by the opportunity. I knew that I might not get a bid, and that was okay.

I was the only PNM to complete COB. However, two other girls had gone to one of the events, and they had to choose one of the three of us. They chose me. However, they had one more vote. They had to choose whether or not to continue with initiating a new member. They chose not to take me, and the vote was a after I had jumped through hoops for them and I had gotten my hopes up. It was devastating. These girls who I loved had, again, decided that I wasn’t worthy of them. Even worse, they had played with me, like I was a pawn, and then thrown me away. I wasn’t worthy of even being treated as an equal, I was a PNM. The reasons they decided against initiating a new member? There were two: some girls just didn’t want to go through the ritual again, and some girls didn’t like the association that the organization had with my boyfriend’s fraternity. I cried for hours, but I moved forward with my life.

Ever heard the phrase third times the charm? Well, it was for me. I mentioned above that there were six sororities when I rushed my first time. Monte Carlo was colonizing on my campus, and I went through a type of recruitment for a third time. It was terrifying, and I almost didn’t go through with it, simply because I feared for my emotional stability at a third defeat. The first step in the colonization was an interview, and I was really excited. I met with a member of the extension team, and I had a wonderful experience. We then had two days that were open to everyone, where we chatted with members from local chapters of Monte Carlo. They were wonderful, and I was excited to learn more about their philanthropy. The third day was invite only, and I was on pins and needles the whole night before. Thankfully, I was invited to their preference round. It was great, and they shared some wonderful moments from their sisterhood.

CONGRATULATIONS!!! Great story and I really appreciate that you didn't drag it out for weeks, too :)

Congratulations on ZTA!

Congratulations on your bid to Zeta Tau Alpha!

Congrats! Being a colony founder is a unique experience. Enjoy every minute!

Congratulations sister! You will have such a wonderful and unique experience as a chapter founder. It will be hard work, but it will be worth the effort.

I'm guessing this is non-NPC?

No, I think the OP just doesn't have total understanding of the terms and how COB works. They were probably voting on whether to have her pledgeship occur in the fall or to have her as a holdover. In other words, I don't think she got a bid and was actually in the middle of her pledging and got voted out.

^^^ That was my take, too. If they only had room for one new member before hitting total, they likely decided it wasn't worth the trouble to go through new member education, initiation, etc. for only one new member. I think that's pretty common.