Release figures

[SoCalGirl]

Penguin, what's new about the new release figure system? The old system, at least the way I understood it, seemed excellent. Maybe schools were just awful at enforcement of the figures?

[AGDLynn]

University of West Georgia is using them for the 1st time this year so I'll let you know next week.

Last couple of years, I know we were told a range that we could invite invite back but this year will be more drastic, I'm assuming.

[KSUViolet06]

We're using it for the first time this fall. We'll see how it goes!

[PenguinTrax]

Originally Posted by SoCalGirl

Penguin, what's new about the new release figure system? The old system, at least the way I understood it, seemed excellent. Maybe schools were just awful at enforcement of the figures?

The new system, while more complicated, takes more into account and allows for more flexibility. For example, some chapters may only invte 1.5 times quota back to preference, others may invite 2x or 3x. The system also helps the PNMs stay realistic, I believe. On a a lot of campuses, chapters would invite everyone back until right before preference, then make a huge cut at that time. The new system asks for larger cuts earlier into the process. I think it gives PNMs and chapters a more realistic outlook of what to expect down the road. I think that everyone can agree that heavy cuts early in the week are much easier to handle than later in the week, after a PNM has built up significant hope at *a* particular house, only to be let go right before preference.

[SoCalGirl]

Originally Posted by PenguinTrax

The new system, while more complicated, takes more into account and allows for more flexibility. For example, some chapters may only invte 1.5 times quota back to preference, others may invite 2x or 3x. The system also helps the PNMs stay realistic, I believe. On a a lot of campuses, chapters would invite everyone back until right before preference, then make a huge cut at that time. The new system asks for larger cuts earlier into the process. I think it gives PNMs and chapters a more realistic outlook of what to expect down the road. I think that everyone can agree that heavy cuts early in the week are much easier to handle than later in the week, after a PNM has built up significant hope at *a* particular house, only to be let go right before preference.

That sounds like the "old" system that I'm familiar with. So either we were using the old system for quite a while or I'm not understanding. Either way, I'm glad it seems to work.

[carnation]

The system is certainly better than what happened back in the day: first, the bigger chapters would invite back girls they knew they'd never pledge just to have full parties and seem desirable. Also, quota was often set the first day of rush so if 400 girls came through recruitment and there were 10 sororities, they'd set quota as 40. Then maybe 320 girls would stay in rush so let's say that 6 of the groups would get quota (240 girls) and the other 80 girls would be divided between 4 sororities. Definitely a way to keep the big groups big.

[owlie33]

Originally Posted by SoCalGirl

That sounds like the "old" system that I'm familiar with. So either we were using the old system for quite a while or I'm not understanding. Either way, I'm glad it seems to work.

The old system had a set formula and assumes all chapters are equal:

Quota x number of events / by %return = number to invite

The new system uses algorithms, prior performance, number of women listing you #1 on preference card, etc. This forces higher cuts for more "popular" chapters during recruitment earlier in the process, thus allowing those women, who never really had a chance of making the cut for the "popular" chapter to explore their options a lot earlier in the process. Essentially the number of women receiving their #1 choice remains the same, but more women are matched and fewer drop out due to unmet expectations.

The new system is not mandatory yet, but it is going in that direction, so your campus may have already implemented it.

[SoCalGirl]

Thanks for the explanations! I guess I didn't really understand the new system afterall. The old system took into account the three year prior retention average so I guess it just seemed similar to me.

[SoCalGirl]

I'm debating it. I think I might make cookies for them.

[KSUViolet06]

Originally Posted by hannahgirl

I'm hoping that this system will be easier but not hurt the bigger chapters on campus. Like Jocelyn said....Kent will be using the new RFM this year. As a recruitment adviser I still feel very out of the loop as to how this works and such, but I'm hoping for the best. Glad to see this thread so I can get a sense of it before having to deal with it this weekend!

It's not supposed to hurt the larger chapters, it's just meant to help ensure that everyone meets quota (or gets close).

[OtterXO]

Originally Posted by SoCalGirl

Penguin, what's new about the new release figure system? The old system, at least the way I understood it, seemed excellent. Maybe schools were just awful at enforcement of the figures?

They changed the release figures a couple years ago, if I recall correctly. I know it freaked out some chapters (including my own, where I still help with recruitment) to have to release SO many girls early in the process. But overall it's better because it's based on the chapters' prior performance.

As I recall it's pretty complicated, but basically the theory behind it is that (as Penguintrax said) chapters are told the percentage of PNMs that they must release each night. Chapters who "perform" better during rush release a higher percentage and the chapters who may struggle with numbers during rush release a lower percentage. In some ways it reminds me of the tax brackets for our Federal taxation system....LOL.