informal recruitment

[DubaiSis]

UW is kind of a special snowflake in that the pledges move into the chapter house immediately.

But seriously, try to understand that you are meeting a very small fraction of the entire chapter, and the girls you're meeting may or may not be really good at rush conversation. This does NOT mean that she isn't a perfectly lovely conversationalist, friend and sister in real life. I know "trust the process" sounds awfully cliche when it's your life we're talking about. But think back to the last time you had a potential friend 1-put on a skit for you 2-sit on the floor in front of you while you sit in a chair to have a chat and 3-get to know you like lifelong friends in 3 or 4 minute increments. Never? Don't expect so much of these girls. Trust the system and join the sorority that you're offered at the end. You'll be happy if you allow yourself to be.

[TurtleloveUCLA]

Once you connect with a few, it blossoms and then you become part of the sisterhood

[WCsweet<3]

Please let us know how things turn out!

[uwgreeeek]

I wasn't given a bid which I am pretty bummed about ): But I don't want to dwell on that too long and I don't know whether it is worth it to even do informal or whether to just dorm. I have always pictured myself in a sorority so I really don't want to just give up on the entire process. However, at the same time if there isn't a lot of people that even get in through COB then I don't see why I would when I was already dropped from formal so many times ):

[AZTheta]

i am sorry things didn't work out. there are several threads on GC that speak to your situation. try searching, & maybe someone will post some links here.

[WestcoastWonder]

Sorry, OP. But I'm a little familiar with the UW greek system since I live in Washington and know many girls there. Luckily, UW keeps an updated list of chapters participating in COB

http://www.uwpanhellenic.com/join/cob.php

12 chapters are doing it according to the list and you can register for COB. Also, before COB begins, you should reflect on recruitment week and think about how things went.


-How were my grades?
-Did I have recs?
-Were my conversations good?
-Did I seem interested?
-Did I have any connections with girls I knew in houses?
-Did I show actual interest?
-Was I quiet/shy?
-Was I too loud?

Those are all things to think about/work on until you do informal. Best of luck!

[Dnpgopenguins]

Since recruitment just ended today I am not sure that list would be accurate. I would keep the link is something the op should keep in mind to see what I new. Idk just my thought.

[AZTheta]

that is an old list according to my UW peeps.

op, register for cob, but remember that you may be looking at chapters that have already released you or that you weren't happy with during formal....

[uwgreeeek]

Okay, thank you guys so so much! And I didn't bother with recs because every one at UW told me that they barely barely counted during rush. Also during COB should I be completely relaxed or should I still be as mindful about what I say as in formal? Thank you guys so much! :/

[DubaiSis]

You should be careful about what you say, but if you think rush didn't work great for you because you weren't yourself or were too nervous about what you were saying, then by all means, try to be your authentic self. These are conversations. Not everything you say is going to be pristine, but it should be REAL.

But between now and when COB starts, spend some real time thinking about what went wrong. When you are released completely from rush, something went wrong. It wasn't just an accident. Too good for certain chapters? Too nervous/loud/not funny in your conversation? Dressed inappropriately? Memorable in the wrong way? Now is the time to really have a heart to hear with yourself. When rushing informal so quickly after formal you don't have much time to make substantive changes (grades, extracurriculars, making friends with sorority women, etc.) but you CAN present yourself better.

[uwgreeeek]

I think when I did formal I was just too nervous and starting rambling a lot and asking a lot of questions versus just trying to let everybody get to know me.

[WestcoastWonder]

Originally Posted by uwgreeeek

I think when I did formal I was just too nervous and starting rambling a lot and asking a lot of questions versus just trying to let everybody get to know me.

Bingo! So know that you know how recruitment is, between now and informal, work on this. Try practicing conversations with people and let them go both ways. When they ask you a question, listen and then give a concise, but still somewhat detailed answer so they get to know you and then ask them a questions when they're done.

[WestcoastWonder]

UPDATE

UW has updated their COB page and as of now, there are 5 chapters participating in COB:


Alpha Gamma Delta
Alpha Epsilon Phi
Alpha Phi
Alpha Xi Delta
Delta Delta Delta

And it says the list is continuously updated. So OP, I would PM you, but my phone is being weird. I hope you've signed up for informal and good luck!

[MTSUGURL]

I hope that COB works out for you! I hope that you are able to relax and be more yourself in an informal recruitment setting. Good luck!