Once cut/Always Cut

[bamagurlie]

I went through a very competitive recruitment at a SEC school last year, but dropped out due to cuts which I believe were probably due to my high school grades. I realize no one ever really knows why they were dropped, but let's just assume for now that it's why my recruitment didn't go as planned.

I have great grades as a freshman, and plan to go through again in the fall as a sophomore. I've read all the posts about how I won't have as many options this time and all the reasons, etc. My question is about "Once Cut/Always Cut". I can understand this applying to PNMs that are cut for many reasons, but does it apply to people who were primarily released for grades? I understand now that my high school GPA wasn't high enough, but my college GPA is at/above most of the sororities on my campus. If this is grounds for another "automatic" cut, why bother to try again?

[1908Revelations]

Not that I can help (I'm not NPC), but I kinda LOLed when you said competitive SEC school then look at your name.

[33girl]

No sorority has a national policy stating "once cut, always cut."

http://www.greekchat.com/gcforums/sh...ad.php?t=90896

Originally Posted by 33girl

No sorority has a national policy stating "once cut, always cut."

http://www.greekchat.com/gcforums/sh...ad.php?t=90896

unfortunately...

[33girl]

Originally Posted by jessicaelaine

unfortunately...

Are you saying you think there should be such a policy nationally? That would be foolish, especially at schools where Greek life is smaller.

[OleMissGlitter]

I think it just depends on the school and the sorority. I have a good friend who was released from everyone at Ole Miss her freshman year but went through her sophomore year and had a much better experience, and she did end up pledging a sorority. I think if you have proved yourself in college your first year and you have been involved with organizations on campus you might have a good chance. But just remember that your school, like other SEC schools, is very competitive so don't assume you'll get your first pick. However, it doesn't hurt to try again.

[FSUZeta]

you have proven that you can cut it as a college student by establishing a good gpa. hopefully you have joined a campus club or organization, done a little volunteer work and are working on gathering recommendations to all the chapters on your campus.

you can let any friends in the campus sororities know that you will be going thru rush in the fall and let them know that you would appreciate them putting in a good word for you. don't worry about that silly "once cut, always cut" rumor, and come fall, just put on your game face and do your best, keeping an open mind and enjoying the whole process.

[Zillini]

If grades were the only reason behind a cut and that is no longer an issue, then IMO a chapter would be silly to hold that against a PNM. If anything she's proven she can pull grades at the college level now, which is often much harder than HS.

[violetpretty]

Originally Posted by jessicaelaine

unfortunately...

It would be ridiculous to have that policy without examining the reasons for why a PNM was cut. If a PNM was cut for a reason that would warrant being cut again, like she doesn't get along with a sister, bad reputation, etc., then she would be cut for the same reason, not because "once cut, always cut." PNMs can be cut for stupid, stupid reasons, especially at competitive chapters. A PNM may have had poor grades, but maybe her grades from her first year are awesome, or maybe there was nothing WRONG with a PNM, she just didn't make much of an impression on a chapter the first time, and now she has lots of friends in the chapter that would love to have her as a sister.

I've never heard of a chapter with which I am familiar having this policy. If any chapters claim to have this policy, it's more likely that they will absolutely refuse to take anyone other than a first semester freshman (meaning that a PNM would be cut the second time for being a sophomroe), rather than them having a "once cut, always cut" policy.

[Bamamom13]

It does happen at Bama, has happened at Bama and will happen again. When you have to release 800 some girls after Ice Water Teas there are always 'stupid' reasons to cut them.

[gee_ess]

Ditto on never hearing any type of "once cut, always cut" policy. Your negative this go around will be your soph status. But as you have probably read in other threads, this will not eliminate you from every house, so keep an open mind. HAve you made friends in sororities who can pull for you? Are any of them encouraging you to go through rush again? This can be a positive sign.

[shadden]

When I was an active, there very much was a policy that a pnm who had been cut had been cut for a reason, and could never receive a bid. I remember this clearly, because it came up on several girls. I always assumed it was a national policy, but perhaps not. If there were mixed reviews on a pnm, we would often allow her the option to cut our chapter so that if she did not pledge somewhere and we were to see her again during COB or a subsequent rush, we had the option to give her a bid. I was in a small chapter on a very competetive campus, so we would often take severe cuts in the early rounds while girls went back to top tier houses who would later cut them. At the time there were many girls who dropped out of rush or were cut out after second round when reality set in. I think the newer release policies have really helped this situation.

[violetpretty]

Any chapter that has a "once cut, always cut" policy is screwing themselves. I'm sure even the most prestigious chapters at Bama have taken a sophomore at one point or another, however rare they may be. The policy doesn't leave the door open for someone the chapter might actually want the second time around. An overlooked freshman may have been cut simply because of numbers reasons and not because there was anything wrong with her. If she were a much better candidate her sophomore year (like she knows sisters who want her in the chapter). Oh, too bad, "once cut, always cut." The chapter's loss.

[KSUViolet06]

This seems like one of those things that is part of the membership selection process of the sorority, and as such is probably private. So if a chapter did have such a policy, they wouldn't be able to discuss it with you.

As far as trying again, no one can really say for sure what your chances are of getting a bid, nor can we tell you if any Bama sorority has such a policy (because we don't know). Traditionally, upperclassmen have a harder time receiving bids, but you honestly have nothing to lose.

[SWTXBelle]

With the new release system, it is entirely possible for a chapter to have to release pnms they would otherwise be interested in inviting back. So, if back in the day a chapter had a once cut/always cut policy, they might well have reconsidered it.