What is open rush?
 

The sorority that i'm pledging is having a open rush. They just had a fall rush, I don't understand why they are having a open rush. What is this open rush?

Hey pledge!!
Ok, I just pledged a sorority, but I think I can help you out bc my sorority had formal rush, and then we did an open rush a few days later. Basically, it is informal rush. There will probably be only one party, and you can only attend ONE sorority's open rush. It is probably a little bit more casual as far as dress goes as well, and it will just be a chance or the sisters to get to know the rushees and make a descision to add a couple more girls to the pledge class that just went through formal recruitment. Did I get that right? Anyways, hope this helps!

Open rush is an informal rush that chapters do when they have not yet hit quota. Typically, they are like ice breakers or sisterhoods.

Ok, i'm understanding you guys!!! Open rush is a informal rush and they have to it b/c they have not reached their quota. Does not reaching their quota means that they don't have enough pledges? Because, I know that there was a low turn out for the first rush, we had about 10 girls rush, maybe even less. My pledge class has six girls, including myself. The other two sororities have 10 to 20 girls in their pledge classes and I think that they had a bigger turn out.

I'm confused. I thought that I read in an earlier post from you that you already received a bid. And right here you say that there are six girls in your pledge class and the sorority is still going to have open rush. Has your pledge class already started learning about the sorority? :confused:

I did receive a bid and last week we had our bid night. There were six girls that accepted the bids, including myself. We have not started learning about the sorority yet. They are having another rush, this time it's a open rush.

Sounds to me like the sorority is just trying to recruit more members, similar to a COB situation for NPC orgs.. Kind of giving the girls who didn't come out the first time a second chance. I think its a great idea for girls who don't excel at formal recruitment.

I wouldn't say they don't have "enough" pledges. That implies there is some sort of minimum and that "something" will happen if it isn't met. Most sororities, however, do want to be at the maximum size campus allows, assuming they can get quality women to be at that size. So if a chapter or pledge class is smaller for whatever reason (bad luck, smaller going into rush, whatever), it is standard for that chapter to hold COB, informal, open, whatever you want to call it, immediately after. There are usually quite a few women interested in sorority life who either dropped out of formal, hated the idea of formal rush, or just didn't learn about it in time who are eager to rush.