rush as a sophomore @ IU...
 

ok, here is my story.
while looking at colleges as a senior in high school, my parents made it pretty clear that they did not want me to go greek even though my mom was in a sorority. when i finally decided on a school (Indiana University), me rushing was still pretty much out of the picture and i thought i was ok with that.

i thought wrong.

seeing girls go through the rush process last year and coming home to my best friends that LOVED it and love where they are, i just feel like i made a huge mistake and i am going to go through rush this year regardless of my parents opinions.

my concern is that i keep hearing "some houses won't even look at you if your a sophomore" which i knew going into it, but i was wondering if anyone knew which houses at IU were like this. unfortunately i already have my "favorites" (houses where i know a few of the girls, houses i just like, and a house where i am a legacy, that i actually do really have an interest in) and i don't want to get into the process and be completely crushed. i would rather just know so i can go into it more open minded and maybe get some of my own bias out of the way. i know my thoughts about things will change when i actually go through rush, i just wanna know which houses won't even give me a chance so i know not to be heartbroken.

i don't know if this even makes sense, but i am just so EXCITED to rush this year and i just want to know more about what i am getting myself into.

thanks!!! : )

I'm not sure anyone can tell you which houses care less for sophomores. But IMO, it's better for you not to go into recruitment with the idea that you're not good enough for XYZ in your head. It is more likely that the "top" chapters on campus, the ones who fill quota easily every year, will be disinclined to take a sophomore. However, even the top chapters take sophomores if there really is that connection.

Even freshmen can get cut hard, so go in with an open mind (and heart) and no matter what happens be willing to give those chapters who invite you back a shot.

IU doesn't use a quota system. Chapters decide on how many membership invitations they offer.

Barbara, should we also tell everyone that over 1,700 women were registered last year (2006) for panhellenic recruitment at IU? I think so! A couple houses only gave out 40, 41, 42 membership invitations. Please correct me if I am wrong, since I don't have the numbers in front of me, but I think around 800 PNM's received bids.

It boggles my mind why Indiana insists on recruiting this way.:mad:

It's my understanding that there are only so many beds in the chapter houses, therefore, they set their quotas in order to keep the houses full.

Nebraska (Lincoln) doesn't use quota system either.

I don't remember the exact numbers, either. Unless they are online? Haven't looked.

Thing is, there are LARGER campuses than IU that use quota system and keep the houses full (with waiting lists!). I agree, it boggles the mind.

Their houses are HUGE, too. http://www.indiana.edu/~pha/phachapters/
A lot of the chapters are single-letter chapters.

But it's a choice on the sororities' part to say that everybody has to live in for X number of years. Lots of chapters thrive with only the sophomores and officers (for example) living in.
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LILY_CARTER CAM

Indiana isn't like other schools. I don't know why this is, but it is. There are no Panhellenic rules to prevent them from doing things this way, and I'm sure if it was crippling the system it would change.

Someone more familiar with housing and the Greek culture overall at Indiana could probably give more insight.

I think that there will be a move to change it to a quota/total system in the next couple of years. NPC is aware of it and it really limiting the opportunities for women who want Greek Life.

The other problem is, it is filling beds, but more so the strongest chapters set their quota a good 20 - 25 women LESS than other chapters. This overall is about 60 - 75 bids that could be given out in a quota system a year that aren't. They want smaller PNM classes in order to have the cream of the crop. It's going to be a hornet's nest but I think you'll see IU move to doing quota/total.

To the OP who is originally posted - Don't let being a sophomore discourage you. I would suggest that you think about the reasons you want to be greek. It sounds like you have - sisterhood, friendship, lifetime connections to each other and campus. If you go into recruitment looking for Groups that match the same things you are looking for, I think you will be pleasantly surprised.

The reality of the situation is that IU hands out limited bids so having a strong GPA and I would say recommendations might give you an edge. But there are plenty of sororities on campus that provide qualities that it seems that you are looking for, regardless of status, that you can't go wrong. You might also want to check out informal recruitment.

Good luck!

I was wondering if this had something to do with it - if it was a status thing to say "well, WE only took 30 girls because we are more elite."

On the one hand, I think it is silly to bypass total & quota - esp at a school where even "smaller" groups could have big chapters - but on the other hand, I think it would be very freeing to be able to say "we filled our house. We like the girls we have. We don't want any more. We're done with rush for the year. Leave us be." I mean, if you don't want a big chapter, you don't build a big house. It's similar to how the fraternities operate.

It just kind of surprises me that the HQs of the sororities haven't pushed to go to a quota/total system - especially those who have chapters there who would have no trouble filling it.

Right now, they do keep all the beds full. I would imagine in a quota/total system, the less-popular chapters would have trouble doing so.

I just hate that it fixes the size of the community regardless of demand. With a quota-total system, no one forces a chapter to take quota. Ok maybe they get pressure from HQ to take quota, but ultimately, they can cut more than the number recommended with the RFM. If a top tier chapter only wants to take enough to fill their chapter house, then that would help the middle and lower tier chapters by creating more spots in the chapter although not all members would live in the house.The quota-total system, while imperfect, is designed to place the maximum number of women and maximize the size of the chapters. I can only see their community growing as a result of a quota-total system. Until they change, there will be tons of women who ARE willing to join any chapter who can't for no reason other than space. Indiana is probably one of the few places where all of the members live in the house. If they have more sign up than chapters can take, that means that there are plenty of women who want to live in the houses.

/rant