Double cohort

[chscrew144]

As the Canadians, especially those of us in ontario are aware, the double cohort is on its way after next year. This will make getting into unversities harder and also increase the level of incomers every year for the net few years which i will describe below.

1) Obviously two graduating classes means more kids so you have all the kids coming out of hs right then

2) kids taking a year off to avoid the double cohort

3) kids going to college and trhen coming to university afterwards

4) kids in the military getting work experience before they go to university. This has been known to happen in the US

Even kids that dont go to school in ontario will end up increasing the enrollments at places like UBC and Mcgill somewhat tho it will be nothing compared to Queen's, UofT, Ottawa, Western etc.

Increased numbers of kids will get athletic scholarships to places like Michigan State (look at the number of canadian women on their rowing team) so that will have a slight effect on enrollment south of the border.

This can be a great time for the greek system because more kids = more PNMs. As i said above, it will affect not just this year's enrollments but the years to come as well, not to mention kids going to grad schools. This means that there will be a spike of incoming students my 4th year that will be larger than the spike of the kids in my class over the one before us and we have 1000 more people in 0T5 in 0T4.

How will this affect the greek system in Canada and the northern states (Michigan for example) in terms of membership and visibility. Do you guys think that the greek system can have an increased level and increased participation due to the double cohort? Will this be a spark of a renaissance of the greek system?

Is there a chance that perhaps Maclean's will include some thing in the annual issue if the head of that issue;s son becomes part of a greek organization or simply to put it in there to better benefit parents of the double cohort year?

Will the greek organizations recruit aggresively (I don't mean to say recruit in a negatuive way but make their presence known) and do you guys think that the level of membership will rise? UofT offers residence space to every incoming frosh but they still house kids in the Primrose so I think fraternities at schools such as mine can make a push to get themselves recognized or at least allowed more recruiting and point out that residence is crammed but fraternities still have rooms available some of which go out to boarders. Allow fraternity and sorority material to be in the acceptance packages as well as frosh kids.. let kids know about the greek system

If the university agrees to the above in the cohort year, do you guys think that maybe some universities will be able to establish colonies, thus somewhat offseting to a degree the problems that will be faced in residence accomodations? This would benefit all three parties involved: the student; the university; and the greek organizations.

Because this seems to be a golden oppurtunity for the greek system, will alumni activity and involvement increase?

I'm sorry that this is long but it all came out of reading that one thread on quotas. The largest fraternity here has maybe 20-30 kids living in the house and my sports team had less than 10 guys, most of whom were first year (one graduated this year and the other graduates after next year) while there were 40-50 kids on my hs varsity crew (all guys) and many frats in the states have twice the number of kids living in the house as does the local Beta Thete Pi chapter.

[Lady Pi Phi]

As a Pi Phi at the University of Guelph, I hope the double cohort increases the number of PNM's. At Guelph, greek life isn't very big, and sometimes we don't feel welcome on campus. We don't have club status, and at my school, that mkaes it very difficul to inform people about Greek life. We have one soroity and frat. Maybe the double cohort will increase Pi Beta Phi's and the Detla Upsilon's membership. Who knows, maybe this will mean other fraternities and sororities will emerge on our campus, and on others.


Pi Phi love and Mine,

Emily


Gamma Chi - Sharing Common Themes from Around the World

[chscrew144]

Originally posted by Lady Pi Phi
As a Pi Phi at the University of Guelph, I hope the double cohort increases the number of PNM's. At Guelph, greek life isn't very big, and sometimes we don't feel welcome on campus. We don't have club status, and at my school, that mkaes it very difficul to inform people about Greek life. We have one soroity and frat. Maybe the double cohort will increase Pi Beta Phi's and the Detla Upsilon's membership. Who knows, maybe this will mean other fraternities and sororities will emerge on our campus, and on others.


Pi Phi love and Mine,

Emily


Gamma Chi - Sharing Common Themes from Around the World

that was another thing i was wondering about: will new chapters be founded, say at places like McGill?

It certainly would be in the best interests of the schools to at least recognize these fraternities because they help the community but can also help out in terms of housing and such.. I wonder if it's an Ontario wide policy that universities must provide residence for incoming freshman.. i know this is the case at the premier schools- Queen's and UofT.. i think some of the other schools do it as well.

[Lady Pi Phi]

Well hopefully, the universities will see GLO's as a positive aspect of their campuses and university life. I know in Guelph, not only does the university not want to recognize us, but their is a city by-law aswell, preventing us from having a house. And if by chance, we could get a round that, we would not be allowed to place letters on the house, again preventing us from advertising. The Pi Phi's and DU's are fighting hard at Guelph to changin this, but it looks like it'll be a tough, lenthy battle.


PPL,

Emily

[AGDLynn]

As an uninformed American, what's a double cohort?

If a cohort is 1 person to each other, would a double cohort be 3 or 4 people?

[chscrew144]

Originally posted by AGDLynn
As an uninformed American, what's a double cohort?

ahhh the redundancy.... jk.... I was born in the back of a greyhound bus rollin down highway 41.....

[i]If a cohort is 1 person to each other, would a double cohort be 3 or 4 people? [/B]

well the usual cohort here is the OACers but OAC is going into its last year this upcoming year.... I wonder if CEGEP will be elimanated too?

Am I the only one that thinks it (elimanation of OAC) was just something to help solve some of the b!tching by the teachers about overcrowded schools etc?

[DeltaBetaBaby]

Originally posted by chscrew144


ahhh the redundancy.... jk.... I was born in the back of a greyhound bus rollin down highway 41.....



well the usual cohort here is the OACers but OAC is going into its last year this upcoming year.... I wonder if CEGEP will be elimanated too?

Am I the only one that thinks it (elimanation of OAC) was just something to help solve some of the b!tching by the teachers about overcrowded schools etc?

Um, that didn't clear anything up at all.

[chscrew144]

No more 5th year after this year thus the double cohort. Twice as many idiotic freshman as this year! how fun!

Originally posted by DeltaBetaBaby


Um, that didn't clear anything up at all.

[Lil_G]

Delta Baby: a few years back the Provincial gov't of Ontario made dramatic cuts to education (3 bil. at the time i believe) and healthcare. The logic was that Ontario, being the only province with 5 years of high school, should be able to eliminate a year of high school to save money and be on par with the rest of Canada.

Now, this 5th year of high school is referred to as O.A.C. (ontario academic credit) and is kind of a transition period between grade 12 and university. Only those planning on studying University need to take OAC courses - courses catered to what you plan on studying in the future (e.g. engineers would take OAC Calculous, A&G, Physics, etc.).

Because there is a full year being eliminated, for one year (not this fall the next one) there will be two graduating high school classes in Ontario (which represents almost 40% of Canada's total population). Therefore, there's been a lot of questions being raised whether the universities have enough placements in the classrooms and also in residence. Most agree that a lot of ppl will be rejected because of questions regarding the differences in admissions among the two classes, as well universities do not want to lower their admission grades to accomodate the extra numbers. Also, it should be noted that universities in Canada are too over-crowded, there needs to be more even if we don't take into account the double-cohort.

There's several implications for this:

1. Apart from the ripple affect of increased kids into university for the next few years, these kids will also be graduating around the same time, therefore meaning increased competition for jobs when they all graduate together.

2. For the first time in years, the majority of first year students will not be able to legally drink in Ontario when classes start in the fall. The social aspect of fraternities will be greatly enhanced from now on.

wonder if it's an Ontario wide policy that universities must provide residence for incoming freshman..

Are you bonkers?!? Here at Ottawa the housing situation is ridiculous - for all students. Since coming into university at Ottawa 4 years ago i had no problem getting into rez even with average grades. Since then, each year has witnessed dramatic reductions in housing vacancies than the previous year. At the middle of august there were a waiting list for residence among first year students equal to the total amount of places available (the waiting list was over 2,000). Even with the construction of a brand-new residence, the number of students unable to find a place to live is staggering...kids are taking years off school because they couldn't find a place to stay. I feel like hacking into the OttawaU website with a heading: "Don't come to OttawaU or Carleton, there is no where to live!".

p.s. i'm surprised you canadians use the term frat so frequently...

[chscrew144]

Last year i was offered space at Western, Mac, UofT and ottawa.. but then i coasted uin hs and got grades most canadians would love.. 83 overall avg while lettering in two sports. UofT was the only one not to offer scholarship money. I didn;t know the housing market was so tight in ol ottawa.. i used to live in the glebe.. now a real ritzy area of town.

[Lady Pi Phi]

At Guelph, all first years are guarenteed rez spaces if they get their application in on time. They even built new residences, but get this, only second years and up can live in it. If housing is such a problem why build housing that frosh can't live in. Most people at Guelph move off campus anyway in their second year.
I can see the double cohort as being a big problem, but maybe we're making it out to be much more of an issue than it really is. My brother is in the double cohort year. He's the last class to do OAC. However, he's not planning on going to school after he graduates. He's planning on taking at least a year off to work, and to travel and decide what he wants to do. Most likely he'll go to college, because that's what's going to get him a job. After I graduate I'm planning on going to college. Cause really, what am I going to do with a BA?
Because Greek life isn't a huge part of university life in Canada, especially on my campus, using frat or sorority housing, might be a problem. Guelph isn't allowed to have houses for GLO's.
Kids are graduating earlier, but maybe they think twice about going to school right after they graduate because of the increased number of students. I guess we'll just have to wait and see what happens.


PPL,

Emily

P.S Lil_G what's wrong with using the term frat? Why are you surprised?

[chscrew144]

Well, are you going to college or university, what about the brother?

And he fits into the class I described as taking a year off thus also causing a spike in the next year's graduating class. I myself may take a year off and travel or work or do whatever.. Personally I wouldn't mind taking a year off and writing an oral biography of my old hs. Great way to build contacts and also learn a hell of a lot at the same time.

Lot more kids of course will be applying to grad school at the same time so maybe kids'll join them or still be active members. I think it would be wise for UofT to include some stuff on greek systems or at least the greeeks to advertise themselves because this is a mammoth institution where one can easily get losr and is a largely commuter school. I'm not saying allow them to contact prospective frosh right away but let them know that there is a small and yet not small community (the chapter and then fraternity or chapter and then greek system) that they can be a part of which will make it seem like a smaller school despite the U's massive size and this being the biggest city in the country. Let them put stuff in admissions pacakges.

Put a few things in the acceptance package. Encourage students to come to the university who are community minded because not only will the fraternity be able to foster that, the University will probably take advantage of it every way it can just like it does with its sports teams which receive (in my experience) almost ero support. We ashould be broadening our minds during this crucial phase of life not limiting it because a university does not like the fact the organizations only admit single sexes. Hart house just went co-ed which means i paid more in my tuition and fees than did females so that I could be a member. Is that not the same thing? Is that not also admitting people who are the same sex into an organization?

Besides, being reocgnized (tho not neccessarily supporteed) by the UofT means that it would be that much more of an impetus for members to have a positive impact on the community and the city thus raising reputation, visibility and membership.

The only times I saw them were during frosh week and a few times during the year when I'd see a guy in a fraternity.. other than that i never really saw them at all.

Sometimes being in a single sex environment is very helpful to a person;s growth and development. i myself went to an all male school (wasn't it only in the 1880's or even later like 1930's that UofT went co-ed? ND went coed in 68 i think as well as places like yale and princeton) and i must say i ahd the best time of my life and that includes my stay in rome. i didn't neccesarily like all the guys or all the teachers or some of my experiences but it brought me onto the water and onto the wrestling amt two things for which i am eternally grateful. i liked the fact it was single sex. The atmosphere was more laid back and i felt more comfortable because i wasnt nervous around some chick i liked etc. I would say that to deny GLO's recognition of existence based primarily on whether they are all male or all female seems a little misguided. St Mike's has totally segregated dorms with 2 female buldings and a large amount of all guy rez buildings. Why not make SMC go coed or Trin? It seems ludicrous to me and hurts both the GLOs and the University

UofT and other schools dont neccessarily have to support these organizations but just recognize that they exist and that both the glos and university can peacefully coexist, one working off the strength of the other for the benefit of both parties involved. like it says in my signature the worth of the state in the long run is the worth of the individuals composing it.

[Lady Pi Phi]

I'm not in the double cohort, actually I just finished my third year at the University of Guelph. My brother is taking a year off to decide what he wants to do. And actually I would recommend that to most people. One of the biggest mistakes I made was going to University after I graduated ffrom HS.
While it's true that the institution does not have to support GLO's, it is nice that they are recognized, and that they seen over campus. UofT is good in that way, and the same with UWO. Guelph, on the other hand, does neither. it does not support us, and it certainly doesn't recognize us. We have difficulty making it known that we even exist on campus. On my campus that's what needs to be changed. The city of Guelph doesn't even want to recognize us. Fraternity houses are banned in the city of Guelph. There is one, from the Vet college, that was there before the city instituted this by-law.
For other schools, it would be nice if the institution would recognize GLO's, in my case, we first have to get the city to recognize us.

[chscrew144]

Originally posted by Lady Pi Phi
I'm not in the double cohort, actually I just finished my third year at the University of Guelph. My brother is taking a year off to decide what he wants to do. And actually I would recommend that to most people. One of the biggest mistakes I made was going to University after I graduated ffrom HS.
While it's true that the institution does not have to support GLO's, it is nice that they are recognized, and that they seen over campus. UofT is good in that way, and the same with UWO. Guelph, on the other hand, does neither. it does not support us, and it certainly doesn't recognize us. We have difficulty making it known that we even exist on campus. On my campus that's what needs to be changed. The city of Guelph doesn't even want to recognize us. Fraternity houses are banned in the city of Guelph. There is one, from the Vet college, that was there before the city instituted this by-law.
For other schools, it would be nice if the institution would recognize GLO's, in my case, we first have to get the city to recognize us.

the same is true at Queen's... they banned fraternities back in 1933!

[SigPiTO]

I'm just wondering what school chscrew144 goes to. Obviously it's in Ontario, or you wouldn't be talking about this because not a great amount of Ontario students go out of Province (McGill, Dal and UBC may be the main exceptions). Personally here at U of T I don't think it will affect fraternity life as much as we hope it might. We're non-existant in the minds of many students and the university will never recognize us (Student council has, but that's because most of it is Greek now; the SAC prez is a Deke). I have a feeling that the double cohort of OAC and grade 12 students will help GLOs at schools like Carleton, UWO, Ottawa U, Waterloo, Laurier and possibly even Guelph since the age of freshman is going to be 17-18 and they may find that fraternity life will be their way of have a social life. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

Kris
Sig Pi
University of Toronto

PS. Sorry to all you Yanks that don't know what the hell us hosers are talkin about.