Out of state pnms

[SWTXBelle]

I thought I heard somewhere that Alabama was making a concentrated effort to attract more out-of-state students - if true, that would also explain some of the stats.

As far as what the statistics mean, remember the three kinds of lies - lies, damn lies, and statistics. I think they are very interesting, but I would hesitate to write anything in stone about them without including some subjective analysis.

[irishpipes]

Also, some states have been making concerted efforts to retain their own good students (Georgia, Florida, and Texas come to mind.) By doing this, more students aren't being accepted and have to look out of state. A lot of Florida kids that would have had no problem getting into UF 10 years ago get a rejection letter now. Texas (UT) generally takes only top 10% students. There are a ton of very good students from these states that have a better shot (education-wise) by crossing the border.

[Srmom1]

I was about to post that Irishpipes - many kids at our highschool are now heading out of state because they can't get in either UT or A&M and don't wish to attend one of the other schools in Texas. These are good students with high test scores and good extra curriculars who just don't make that 10% cut (not to say that you absolutely cannot get into UT or A&M out of the top 10%, but it is getting harder and harder).

These other schools -Alabama, Auburn, LSU, UF, UGA, Oklahoma, etc. offer a fantastic educational opportunity at a reasonable cost, and have the type of "college" atmosphere that they are looking for, unlike some of the commuter schools (UT Arlington, U of Houston etc.), uber expensive privates (TCU or SMU), or way far away (Texas Tech).

[breathesgelatin]

Originally Posted by Srmom1

I was about to post that Irishpipes - many kids at our highschool are now heading out of state because they can't get in either UT or A&M and don't wish to attend one of the other schools in Texas. These are good students with high test scores and good extra curriculars who just don't make that 10% cut (not to say that you absolutely cannot get into UT or A&M out of the top 10%, but it is getting harder and harder).

These other schools -Alabama, Auburn, LSU, UF, UGA, Oklahoma, etc. offer a fantastic educational opportunity at a reasonable cost, and have the type of "college" atmosphere that they are looking for, unlike some of the commuter schools (UT Arlington, U of Houston etc.), uber expensive privates (TCU or SMU), or way far away (Texas Tech).

Then again, a lot of Dallas and Houston kids go to Tech precisely to get away from their parents. LOL

(My boyfriend is from Lubbock)

[Katmandu]

Originally Posted by Srmom1

I was about to post that Irishpipes - many kids at our highschool are now heading out of state because they can't get in either UT or A&M and don't wish to attend one of the other schools in Texas.

...These other schools -Alabama, Auburn, LSU, UF, UGA, Oklahoma, etc. offer a fantastic educational opportunity at a reasonable cost, and have the type of "college" atmosphere that they are looking for, unlike some of the commuter schools (UT Arlington, U of Houston etc.), uber expensive privates (TCU or SMU), or way far away (Texas Tech).

When I was an undergrad, out of state students were almost unheard of at Ok State.... except in certain majors such as vet med, forestry, fire safety, etc. However, now I see many Texas girls listed in the sorority bid list...... Who doesn't love Texas girls?! I am very glad to see them. They add spice and diversity to the mostly in-state chapter rosters.

Besides, what public university doesn't love to get the talented men and women who are in the top 15-20% of a neighboring state?

[formerlurker]

Tennessee is another state that is working to retain the top in state students and direct them to UT Knoxville. We have had the Hope scholarship program for 5 years now and UT admissions have become progressively more competitive each year. We do not have the 10% rule yet like Texas but the UT cutoff seems to be at about the top 15% of the graduating class. We had watched this happen at Florida and Georgia, and did not realize how quickly it would happen here as well. Since there is not another state school in TN that offers an SEC experience (except Vanderbilt, which is in a category of its own) a lot of kids from TN who can not get in to UT but want the sec scene go to Alabama or Ole Miss.

[brownie2]

I have been reading the greek chat all summer & finally have something to say...my daughter is out of state (TX) and just received a bid from Phi Mu! She is so so happy and I am glad for her. She knew no one, but is very outgoing and positive. After reading many posts I was worried that she would not get a bid, but there is hope for out of staters at Bama! Roll Tide!

[tinydancer]

Now keep in mind that this was back in the dark ages. When I was at Texas, out of state pnms were practically a shoo-in for a bid to an extremely "top tier" (for lack of a better term) sorority. Also interesting is that ALL rush week rounds were by invitation only. There were no open houses where you at least got a look at all the houses.

It's interesting to see how things have changed.

[Lamplighter]

Originally Posted by lawgal

With recruitment starting for some schools in the next few weeks, I was wondering if some of you out-of-state pnms would give us some feedback after you go through recruitment about whether (and how much) being from out of state seemed to impact your results, if you can tell. Also what you did to help yourself stand out (in a good way) as the people on this thread have suggested. How many recs did you have for each house?Could you tell if the number of recs had an impact? [Treading a fine line here - don't want to overkill or look desperate]

Thought I would ask on this thread, although it may fall into the recruitment stories category. Thanks for any feedback.

OK..I'm not a PNM, but my daughter just went through rush at an out of state SEC school. Actually 3 girls (that I know of) from our area went through, and I know one of them really well. First off, neither of them knew anyone in any sorority, so that was kind of scary, but the positive side was there were absolutely no pre conceived notions about any chapters. At the beginning of the summer we started gathering up recs. The goal was 2 per sorority from someone who actually knew her in case they got a phone call. We got several alum recs from that university through meeting them at alumni recruitment functions. I think both girls hit that except for one sorority...actually different ones. We got a pretty detailed rush resume together (which is something I haven't read much about on here, but may have just missed it), and attached a flattering picture. We made up packets for each person that was writing a rec, and it contained the rush resume, a transcript, a pre addressed, postage paid envelope to the recruitment chair and of course a thank you note.

Then the shopping began. And more shopping. And more shopping. To get just the perfect rush wardrobe. And trust me, you can find some great things on sale if you wait until after the 4th of July.

Rush began. All 3 girls seemed to like most everyone, although they all had their favorites. No cuts at all first round. Very Few cuts 2nd round. No cuts 3rd round. Everyone pref'd their favorites. They all pledged the same sorority, which by the way was their first choice.

So, I'm not sure if this sorority just loves girls from our state, but judging by where they all pref'd which was that sorority and 3 other different ones, I can only say that the best advice I can give anyone, in state or out is BE PREPARED. Get recs, do a fantasic rush resume, have a great picture, have an appropriate wardrobe. Those are the material things. The other thing is sit your daughter down and prepare her. Mine was lucky, I am very familiar with how recruitment works. So, I was very honest. I told her the good, the bad and the ugly. And I won't go into any other boring details, but I made sure she knew that she should treat every girl at every house with respect, and even if she wasn't that impressed, to find one positive thing about that day and focus on that if the conversation lulled.

Oh, and one other thing. You'd be surprised at how many girls from our state colleges knew girls that went to my daughter's college. I have since found out that texts and phone calls were flying trying to get info on our girls. So, that is another resource.

Sorry this is so long, and it probably should be under recruitment stories, but I thought it might be helpful and pertinent to this thread. It just goes to show, out of state girls can make it even in a competitive rush, but basically I would have done the same things if she had stayed in state.

[Bamamom13]

My daughter also rushed at a very competitive SEC school, as you can see from my screen name, as an out of state student. She rushed her freshman year and had recs for all but one house, a great HS GPA, and a good resume but she did not know anyone in the houses and was pretty shy so she did not have a good rush getting dropped by all but one house and she did not feel at all comfortable there. She rushed again her sophomore year, and that year she went to the Panhellenic Weekend in the spring and knew lots of girls in the houses and had two recs per house. She pledged her first choice. The difference was knowing girls, and going through Panhellenic Weekend in the spring. She also kept up her grades and got involved on campus.

As an out of state student, recs are even more important because chances are you don't know anyone in the houses and this is the only information the chapters have besides your registration form. Try your best to get recs from people who really know you because they can give a better picture of who you are then someone who only knows you on paper. Also, any time there are things like Panhellenic Weekend you should try to go.

As Lamplighter said, out of state students do get bids, even sophomore, but if you don't do the legwork before, you really lessen your chances.

[Lamplighter]

Oh..I forgot one thing. Did the number of recs help? Although I would like to say yes, I am going to say no. There were 2 recs to every sorority except one. I actually found out that she had 3 to 2 of them. The one she only had one for was one she went back to until almost the end, they never cut her. She had in state and out of state recs to the ones that dropped her. I really think it's a function of recruitment, how each party feels about the other. She could have had 20 recs to each sorority, but if they just didn't click, they didn't click.

[lawgal]

So do we know how the out of staters did at UF, UCF and FSU?

[momof4girls]

Originally Posted by irishpipes

Arkansas has some program that students from adjoining states get in-state tuition if they score a 25 (I think that's right) or more on their ACT.

Any Texas student that applies to a public state school in Oklahoma, Louisiana, or Arkansas can get their out-of-state tuition waved if they score at least 25 ACT or 1090 SAT. They must make their score prior to their freshman year starting. Once they start classes the out-of-state tuition rule becomes null and void.

[lawgal]

I think that it is great that they get such versatility but I am baffled as to the rationale. I always thought that the reason in state students got a tuition break was because their family's tax dollars supported the institution already.

[phimusam]

It is to almost any school's advantage to raise the quality of their student body. And I'm betting that the second 10% from many Texas high schools would raise the quality of any university's student body - including Texas and Texas A&M's student bodies. However, after filling up with the top 10% of any old high school in Texas, Texas and Texas A&M have no room for that second 10% from the Texas top high schools.