Rush Help. Rushing as a sophomore this fall.

[honeybadger]

Hello everyone,

I go to a big state school in the mid-west which has a great greek system. I'm currently an international student from London, England. Even though I was born in London, shortly after my family moved to a state in the midwest and I completed my schooling until middle school there. Then we all moved back to London where I finished high school. My family's gonna move to my school's state in 2 years because my mom got a job in that state. I'm gonna start my sophomore year this fall. After spending my freshman year trying to get settled in college, making friends, and getting to know the greek life I decided I would rush a fraternity this fall. I'm a really social person and I love meeting new people, consequently I made some friends who belong to different fraternities on campus. I just love the idea of being a brother at a fraternity because I feel it fits my lifestyle perfectly. ( Not just parties or interactions with sororities but also living in the house, making great connections, learning life skills and an overall experience )

This last spring semester, I made it a point to visit most if not all the fraternities on campus and just meet people and get to know the brothers a bit. I didn't 'rush' any that semester, just attended a couple rush events to get a feel of how rushing goes. One of the fraternities I went to during spring rush gave me a bid even though I didn't really attend all the rush events or take it seriously and I don't think I will accept the bid since its not as social as I'd like it to be. Now, I've shortlisted about 5 fraternities that I'd like to rush this fall. The first problem is, in 3 of them I don't know anybody in the house. Would that be bad in anyway? (Is that even a problem? I could just walk up to the house and introduce myself to an active and ask for the rush schedule) And then there are the other two that I've been to many times, know a lot of actives and get along with them.

Another thing I want to know, Being an international student and a sophomore would that hurt my chances of getting a bid?

Lastly, It would be great if you could give me some tips on how to rush a fraternity effectively so as to increase my chances of getting a bid.

Thanks,
Paul

PS : I know its a long post and it could be annoying to spend time reading it but it would be fantastic if you could share some knowledge and help me out here.

PPS : I forgot to add this, but I want to know if belonging to a minority (race) does matter when one is rushing?