[ChioLu]

Only 1 university I know of where it is possible for upperclass women have an advantage: UCLA. But under certain circumstances.

But you have to get in first (10% acceptance rate), though UCLA does accept many transfers students (due to ppl dropping out and Director of Admissions wanting to keep graduating classes the same size as the previous year, or larger).

The 1st year women ALL have fantastic credentials as that’s how they got into this US News & World Report Top 25 school! Freshman make up 67-75% of the NMs that go thru recruitment.
The sophomores/juniors/seniors (25-33% of the NMs) who go thru recruitment here fall in 1 of a few categories:
A. Existing students who excell in grades, good conversation skills, present themselves well (no designer labels needed), community service, student activities/leadership and made friends with some current members. Even if these women went thru 1st year but did not join a sorority. This group tends to do very well.
B. Transfer students who posses the 1st 5 from above, whether or not they know any members — though it always helps to know members. These NMs tend to do well.
C. Existing students who had any combination of: less than stellar grades, not joining any activities or doing volunteer work, not getting to know current members at all, or — more likely — UNbecoming behavior (think ... being drunk in public EVEN ONCE, bad reputation, dress like they are going to a club during recruitment, embarrassing social media, talking bad about other sororities). These women tend to NOT do well at all in their 2nd recruitment.
D. Existing or transfer students who might have great grades and have activities/charity work, but don’t stand out in a crowd (i.e. don’t present themselves well, very shy/pauses in conversations/not great in crowds). These NMs can struggle in formal recruitment but can do well in COB (Continuous Open Bidding) or Informal Recruitment.

Last year, New Member classes were around 75,with approx 50 freshman and 25 upperclass. That’s 1/3 of the NM class! And most groups take quota additions!

I advise for my chapter at UCLA and we usually have a handful of UCs that either didn’t go thru formal, went thru formal but either didn’t get a bid or got a bid to a different group and realized that group wasn’t a good fit.