RFM and Quota
 

A long time ago when I was hearing about RFM for the first time, I thought someone told me that if a chapter didn't follow the numbers recommended for that chapter, it had to forgo the opportunity of QAs. Is that true?

Is that generally what has happened in the instances that traditionally really strong recruiting chapters end up with exactly quota?

I realize that there are other ways the numbers could work out not to yield QAs, but it seems kind of unlikely that multiple strong recruiting chapters at a big campus would end up with no additions.

Or does it perhaps mean that the chapters under performed for themselves and had to snap bid to get to quota but couldn't go beyond quota because they were already above total?

What's the usual scenario when a SRC ends up with exactly quota?


(It's funny to me that I've become so used to seeing numbers about quota that I now wonder what's up when I see a handful of chapters "only" at quota.)

I'm glad you brought this up, because I just deleted a post where I was questioning nearly the same thing. If a PNM did not attend your pref party, how on earth does she get a snap bid? Does the RFM expert revert back to former flex lists? Would that be how they get quota?

Generally, QA's exist because, try as we might to predict return rates, nobody has a crystal ball, so some chapters can end up with more PNM's than expected at pref and/or more listing them as top choices. SRC's typically have done very well historically, and don't have as much room for improvement, so it's less likely that their return rates will be considerably higher than a previous year.

In addition, QA's are often given to the smallest chapter on the PNM's bid card. So, one reason an SRC may not get quota additions is because they are larger going into recruitment than other chapters.

Snap bids are not made/decided by the RFM expert, and the snappee need not have attended pref. (In fact, it is unlikely she did, because if she maximized, she will be placed and unavailable to be snapped.) The chapter (probably the recruitment team only) decides who to offer a snap. The RFM expert does decide QAs, and as noted by DBB, will likely place them with the smallest (and possibly weakest recruiting chapter) on the pnm's pref card. The SRCs are therefore less likely to receive as many QAs.

That sounds to me like it could be treading on the chapter's sovereignty regarding membership selection.

The basic premise is not valid. Chapters are not "fined" QAs for inviting fewer women.

Why do some schools ask PNMs to put ones or twos by the sororities after parties instead of ranking them in order of favorite to least favorite? Is that an advantage to the PNM?

I think the thinking is to say to minimize the idea of keeping or cutting. Rushees don't get to cut any chapters. All they can do is say these are the ones I am most willing to release. And putting them in order would be a brutal decision for many girls. They may have their favorite 2 and their least favorite 2 but do you really want to be put in a position of stating house #10 at IU or Bama? Especially when it doesn't make a difference one iota. Speaking of hazing the rushees, making them put the houses in order would be enough for some girls to drop out.

I always assumed that stronger recruiting chapters are attracting strongly recruited PMN's, so they are receiving a bid to another chapter before being available to be a Quota addition.

QAs
 

In order for a chapter to get QAs there have to be "extra" people on their bid list once the chapter has matched to Quota. So let's say a strong recruiting chapter has 150 people at preference and the same 150 on their bid list. Let's say they match quota at position 143 on the ranked list. That means there are only 7 "extra" people on their list. If all 7 of those are matched to another chapter, there are no people left to add as QAs. If a weaker recruiting chapter has 250 people at preference and they match quota at position 200 on their list, they still have a lot more people that could potentially be QAs if they aren't matched elsewhere.

Not sure that would be a great loss. If that little stress makes them go cry in their Cheerios ....

Well no, that's not the reasoning. If they have to keep ranking and thinking about it every round, they're going to be a lot more disappointed with cuts. If 5 out of your 10 #1 chapters drop you, you can deal because you still have 5 left on the same level. But if 1-5 drop you, you'll be much more bummed. That's human nature.

So it is possible to get a snap bid at a house that cut you early on?

Possible - yes, probable- no.

My first thought in seeing this wasn't ranking, but simply alphabetizing them in Greek! (So it goes from Alpha Gamma Delta to Phi Sigma Sigma, not Alpha Chi Omega to Zeta Tau Alpha)