Rush 101 Question from a Mom

[carbonbeach81]

My daughter and her friends are very interested in joining a sorority when they go off to college in Fall 2009. They were invited to visit one sorority during a group college visit last year because one of the girls' Moms knew a girl in a house there; this girl was kind enough to give them a tour of the house and tell them some basics about her sorority, etc.!

Back in the late '70s, I went to a college that had a great Greek and academic system. I started rush week, went through my first set, and then heard the tragic news that my father had passed away. I had all I could do to return to college and never pursued sorority life after that. My reason for telling you this? I only have limited info about sorority life at the college I attended, and I don't want to confuse my daughter if the basic rush process is quite different on various campuses.

Are girls invited back after each set by invitation only? Is it conceivable they might receive 3+ prefs or even NO prefs by the end of rush week? Where I really get confused is how the process ends--how it's narrowed down to the point where each girl matches up with a chosen sorority by the time bids go out. Do they receive more than one invitation to join by bid night and then choose their favorite....or is it conceivable they receive 1 or no bids at the end and don't join at all? It would seem to me you would get a feel for what's going on during rush week and have some idea, but I would appreciate any info or tips you can provide.

My daughter has great grades, is very kind, genuine, great personality, and is very pretty. So far, one cousin has offered to write her a rec letter to her sorority, but other than that there are no sorority alumnae we know. (I told my daughter to keep her eyes/ears open when socializing, babysitting Moms, friends' Moms, etc.).

Although one of her dream colleges has a website for sororities and rush week, the info is rather basic. Is this website her best source for info or did you read a book or visit other websites to learn the basics before rushing?

Thanks!