2008-09 SEC Recruitment Thread

[exlurker]

Originally Posted by irishpipes

I have never heard that Arkansas has guaranteed placement, and it is very, very competitive to boot. But at any campus if a PNM "hangs in there" they are extremely likely to get a bid. It just might not be to the chapter they want.

Hi irishpipes (and others):

Looks like IF a woman "hangs in there," AND is invited to at least one preference party, AND doesn't intentional single preference, she is indeed "highly likely" (at the very least) to get a bid. However, I certainly don't make or interpret their rules, so please see the following paragraph, which is a quote from Arkansas Panhellenic's rules and procedures (it's in PDF or something similar, I believe, and accessible from Ark Panhellenic's web site:

"Preference cards will be filled out within one half hour after the last preference party. A PNM may decided to “Intentional Single Preference” (putting only one sorority name on a preference card), but it is strongly discouraged. If a PNM attends a single house on Preference Night, she is guaranteed a bid. If, however, she attends two houses and commits Intentional Single Preference, she is not guaranteed a bid."

The page from which the "2008 Recruitment Rules" can be accessed:

http://uagreeks.uark.edu/1437.htm

[uk2011]

Hi! I don't know if I belong here or not, but I just wanted to say that I just finished my second full day of recruitment at UK, and it's been so much fun! I love my Gamma Chi group girls so much, and I haven't found a sorority yet that I didn't really like. We made our first cuts today and it was so hard! I wouldn't mind going back to any of them at all. There were only a few that I was slightly less comfortable in, but it's kind of hard to tell during these open house days! I find out tomorrow morning if/where I got invited back! Bid Day is Friday.

[AlphaXi_Husky]

Best of luck to you, uk2011! It sounds like you have a great attitude - keep it up! And definitely let us know how the week goes for you.

[barnard1897]

Originally Posted by NUBlue&Blue

So, the moral of the story is......heartbreak happens. What you do with it after that is up to you.

So true, and so well put! These are great words of advice for life in general and certainly for PNMs. If we all let the social hierarchy of a campus sorority system dictate the people we become, what a sad world that would be!

The questions each PNM must ask herself, especially if going through an extremely competitive FR at an SEC school, are: Do I want to be a part of a sorority at this big Greek campus, and work hard to make it a home for myself, even if it may not be the place I thought I wanted to be? Did I only want this in order to attach a name to myself, or can I make a good name for myself anywhere from which I am lucky enough to receive a bid ?

4 years goes by in a flash (ok, 5 for those on an extended plan....). While it may matter to an handful of folks whether you were an xyz or abc, or where, for most of your life, you'll be seen solely as a member of the greater organization, and regarded for how you contribute.

[baci]

ITA with your comments, but someone who is 17 or 18 may have a difficult time clearly seeing, understanding, and processing this point.^^

Also, back in my days, depending what area you may have been from before entering college/university makes a huge difference on what you know about Greek Life. I was a very openminded person, but I was made aware of only 2 or 3 sororities on whole. It was like the remainder was all a blank.

I was told numerous reasons why I should pledge one of the three I knew about. A young person may get that in their head and without alot of time to truly learn all about Greek Life it is not so simple. I was also never taught Greek Life is "for life" before I entered college.

Remember, alot is going on in their young lives at that very moment. If you are not raised in a Greek house or know many Greeks or even have a good Alum Group in your area to educate you it becomes a completely different story. Even after being involved in Greek Life there were some sororities that were not on my campus and I knew very little to nothing about.

It is like everything in life and you must be educated about it. Recruitment week does not educate you enough and bring all the points home to be processed. Maybe it has changed now, but not from what I recall.

[lawgal]

Does anyone know recruitment is going at UF? Havent heard a thing, but that they suspended dorm check in because of TS Fay. The pnms would probably all have checked in and be involved in open hourses.

[CrackerBarrel]

^
Not sure, I think it was supposed to start either yesterday or Sunday. Not sure how the storm affected that plan. In my very unscientific poll none of the girls I know that go to UF are on facebook right now, so maybe they are doing rush today, lol.

[irishpipes]

Originally Posted by exlurker

Hi irishpipes (and others):

Looks like IF a woman "hangs in there," AND is invited to at least one preference party, AND doesn't intentional single preference, she is indeed "highly likely" (at the very least) to get a bid. However, I certainly don't make or interpret their rules, so please see the following paragraph, which is a quote from Arkansas Panhellenic's rules and procedures (it's in PDF or something similar, I believe, and accessible from Ark Panhellenic's web site:

"Preference cards will be filled out within one half hour after the last preference party. A PNM may decided to “Intentional Single Preference” (putting only one sorority name on a preference card), but it is strongly discouraged. If a PNM attends a single house on Preference Night, she is guaranteed a bid. If, however, she attends two houses and commits Intentional Single Preference, she is not guaranteed a bid."

The page from which the "2008 Recruitment Rules" can be accessed:

http://uagreeks.uark.edu/1437.htm

I was on campus yesterday working on the building and I stopped by rush practice at the house. I asked the Chapter Adviser this very question (does Ark have guaranteed placement), and her answer was, "What's that?"

So, if Panhellenic is doing that, even the chapters might not be aware of it. That's actually entirely possible, since they just prepare their lists and they're informed later of who they got. I don't think they would know how the NM's name got on the list. (Meaning by a real bid match or a forced match.)

[AOII Angel]

Originally Posted by irishpipes

I was on campus yesterday working on the building and I stopped by rush practice at the house. I asked the Chapter Adviser this very question (does Ark have guaranteed placement), and her answer was, "What's that?"

So, if Panhellenic is doing that, even the chapters might not be aware of it. That's actually entirely possible, since they just prepare their lists and they're informed later of who they got. I don't think they would know how the NM's name got on the list. (Meaning by a real bid match or a forced match.)

These would not be forced matches anyway. If, for example, AOII got a girl from their second bid list after filling all of their quota slots, that girl would be a quota addition. IF you got to pref, then the chapters (according to NPC agreements) are willing and happy to accept any of those women into their chapter. Guaranteed bids for people who pref'd at least one chapter just places women who may not have been first list but ARE somewhere on the bid list.

[irishpipes]

I guess I consider a QA a forced match (just my own term.) Quota has already been reached, and the PNM is placed because Panhellenic makes a decision after the normal bid-matching process has played out.

[UGAalum94]

Originally Posted by NUBlue&Blue

This is what happened to one of my daughter's close friends last year (that's how we learned about it together, UGAalum94, remember?!) She was heartbroken, to say the least. She was just too far down the bid list and the chapter was at total even though it was smaller than some of the other chapters at UGA, they couldn't take her.

However, a couple of weeks later she accepted a bid to another chapter through COB and was named their outstanding new member last year. Her picture even appeared in this year's Pointer on that chapter's page.

Four chapters did COB in the spring, and the chapter that she had preffed during formal rush ended up participating, but she is very happy where she pledged and is already serving in a leadership position.

So, the moral of the story is......heartbreak happens. What you do with it after that is up to you.

Yep, that's exactly how I learned it. I thought the policy at UGA was like Arkansas's so it was a little sad to me that it didn't work that way. I'm glad it worked out for your daughter's friend.

[UGAalum94]

Originally Posted by irishpipes

I guess I consider a QA a forced match (just my own term.) Quota has already been reached, and the PNM is placed because Panhellenic makes a decision after the normal bid-matching process has played out.

I see what you are saying, but it seems much more like a bonus member than a "forced match" to me.

Sure the chapter might have had people higher on their bid list than the QA, but the girl was on the bid list and the chapter ought to be pleased to have her.

I may see only the benefits to my own old chapter of release figures and quota additions too much. I think you have to be a super selective chapter or be a recruitment adviser before you even really have a sense that panhellenic is matching people from the bottom of the list as QAs rather than just expanding quota.

[irishpipes]

I didn't mean to imply that the chapter wouldn't be happy to have the QA girl. If they invited her to prefs, they better like her!

[ladybug12]

The chapter I help advise always looks at quota additions as "bonus" women because they are happy about all of the women that they invite to pref. Sometimes a great woman slips down a bit on the bid list due to grades. So, getting her as a quota addition is icing on the cake.
Our campus also added an upperclass quota this year...again these women are "bonus" pledges because they do not count against the freshman quota. I think it worked out great for all of the sororities...and the upperclass women (sophs and juniors) had much better recruitments and dropped out of recruitment at a much lower rate than in previous years. Keep in mind that our campus is one that has 15-20% of PNMs that are upperclass women...because many students who had academic scholarships to community/junior colleges are transferring into the university.

[uk2011]

Originally Posted by AlphaXi_Husky

Best of luck to you, uk2011! It sounds like you have a great attitude - keep it up! And definitely let us know how the week goes for you.

Thank you! I had a completely full schedule today, but I was sort of surprised at some of the ones I got cut from and the ones I didn't. I just didn't see any sort of pattern in where I got invited back and where I didn't. Some of the sororities that I had the best conversations in cut me, and then other sororities where I had really awkward conversations and thought there was no way I would get invited back, DID invite me back. It was fine, just sort of hard to understand! I got asked back to one of the sororities I cut yesterday and ended up loving it a lot! I'm very nervous about tomorrow, though, so we will see.

We could go to up to 8 houses today, and we go to up to 6 tomorrow, and then tomorrow afternoon will be the hard part, when we go down to 3! I don't even have a top 3 right now-- I really loved 7 of the 8 I saw today. So hopefully tomorrow will clear things up!!