What does it take to get cut?

[SECsports]

During rush i regrettably made the mistake of rushing one fraternity. I got along with quite a few guys but i was wondering, how many votes does it take to get cut? Is it selective the same way sororities are?

[violetpretty]

Every chapter has their own membership selection procedures, so you won't get the answer you're looking for.

[Elephant Walk]

Originally Posted by SECsports

During rush i regrettably made the mistake of rushing one fraternity. I got along with quite a few guys but i was wondering, how many votes does it take to get cut? Is it selective the same way sororities are?

Some have a singular blackball system in place, some have a "more than one black ball" vote and some have a "majority system" in place.

[TSteven]

Just to add to violetpretty's and Elephant Walk's posts, for some chapters, it may take only one (1) no vote to get cut.

Also, most/many fraternities require a "second" vote as to whether you will be allowed to initiate. And the number needed here can vary as well.

[CrackerBarrel]

We use a singular blackball system at my chapter, but it varies widely between chapters as has been said. Others have a bid committee which works with differing rules in place too.

[EE-BO]

Originally Posted by SECsports

During rush i regrettably made the mistake of rushing one fraternity. I got along with quite a few guys but i was wondering, how many votes does it take to get cut? Is it selective the same way sororities are?

Sorority selection is a complex process. The wishes of the chapters are certainly a driver in the process, but a separate entity actually does the matching and assignment of PNMs to chapters. So you have "third party" involvement.

With fraternities, it is entirely up to the chapter who they take and why.

Neither process offers anyone any kind of way to know who gets cut and why, or even a list of things that will "get you cut."

And just as fraternity chapters make their own decisions on who to pledge, each chapter also will have its own internal policy on voting- which makes giving you a concrete answer impossible.

In my day, it worked something like this;

Noone got a bid until they had attended, by invitation, 3 events.

Events 1 and 2- the rush captains receive feedback during and after the event from actives about the rushees. They use this info to decide whether to invite someone back. If 1 or 2 guys had a specific serious concern- for example being rude to a female guest- that would be enough for someone to not get invited back unless a few actives really liked the guy and convinced the rush captains to give him a second chance.

Event 3 or beyond- the point where a bid is possible. And same rules as above, except that if there is a serious battle over someone- a formal meeting might convene to resolve the matter.

The most dangerous thing to do is to screw up early on since at that point a handful of people decide whether to invite you back or not. It is important to make a good friend or two early on in rush so those guys can vouch for you down the road if someone else does not get along with you for some reason (which is inevitable- in a house of 100 guys nobody gets along with everyone.)

Quick question for you- when you say regrettably you only rushed one house- do you regret not looking at the full range of options, or are you in a position where you do not think this one chapter is going to work out or be the right place for you?

Spring rush and/or sophomore rush is harder and not every chapter does spring rush or bids sophomores, but it is much easier to rush later than it would be in sororities.

Depending on your school, if you are feeling like you missed out this fall- waiting for a future rush cycle might be a good move. I do not often advise that, but in this case it is worth considering just based on the information you have presented.

[WhyGoGreek]

EE-BO,

Good Post!

You may also want to mention that in larger houses, the decision to extend a bid is often made before everyone in the house has a chance to even meet the PNM.

In these cases, it is beneficial to be among the more "visible" people at early rush events, so that members wont vote against simply because they have no idea who you are.

In smaller houses (such as where I pledged) the decision can actually be more critical, and often revolves around almost excessive scrutiny of a PNMs qualities and faults.

My response to the original question is simple:

If you clash with the brothers, you're out.

As always, hope I can help,

[EE-BO]

Originally Posted by WhyGoGreek

You may also want to mention that in larger houses, the decision to extend a bid is often made before everyone in the house has a chance to even meet the PNM.

In these cases, it is beneficial to be among the more "visible" people at early rush events, so that members wont vote against simply because they have no idea who you are.

Very good point- and especially important at some of the bigger state schools where many houses actually have rush captains for individual cities and the summer rushees will very often have their introduction, plus much of their total exposure before a decision is made- to a small group of actives who are in that city for the summer and handling rush.

It definitely pays to have a few of those guys be very enthusiastic about you since the rest of the chapter will be taking their word in many cases.

[ORC2008]

just be black

[Elephant Walk]

Originally Posted by ORC2008

just be black

Wah wah wah

[ORC2008]

Originally Posted by Elephant Walk

Wah wah wah

sarcasm, my friend, sarcasm

[PhiGam]

Yeah, Alpha Phi Alpha cut me during rush

[ORC2008]

I was only kidding dont turn this into a race thing

[Elephant Walk]

Originally Posted by ORC2008

I was only kidding dont turn this into a race thing

Didn't you turn it into a race thing?

[FSUfiji]

Originally Posted by ORC2008

just be black

WOW