Sorority Strongholds?

[Always AlphaGam]

Originally Posted by lake

I would love to read a thread about this. It just intrigues me that people would actually do this. Does anyone know if there are any existing threads about this? Or is anyone willing to share anecdotal information if they've witnessed it?

Probably not what you're looking for, but I know of at least two GCers who have transferred schools because of unsuccessful rushes. One got a bid at, I think was her 3rd school. The other failed miserably at her 2nd school because of numerous "no-recs" received.

[MaryPoppins]

Originally Posted by lake

I would love to read a thread about this. It just intrigues me that people would actually do this. Does anyone know if there are any existing threads about this? Or is anyone willing to share anecdotal information if they've witnessed it?

This is why Ole Miss has recruitment in the middle of Fall Semester. It improved Freshman retention and reduced the amount of money Ole Miss had to refund because of people jumping ship.

[lake]

Originally Posted by MaryPoppins

This is why Ole Miss has recruitment in the middle of Fall Semester. It improved Freshman retention and reduced the amount of money Ole Miss had to refund because of people jumping ship.

Crazy. Absolutely crazy - but in an intriguing, fun way. I think this reinforces some of what's been said in this thread.

[MaryPoppins]

Originally Posted by lake

Crazy. Absolutely crazy - but in an intriguing, fun way. I think this reinforces some of what's been said in this thread.

“To understand the world, you must first understand a place like Mississippi,” once said William Faulkner.

http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/201...16-OXFORD.html

[HQWest]

Originally Posted by lake

I would love to read a thread about this. It just intrigues me that people would actually do this. Does anyone know if there are any existing threads about this? Or is anyone willing to share anecdotal information if they've witnessed it?

Doesnt happen often, and I Wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it. Sometimes it might be a side effect if going to transfer anyway.

[ComradesTrue]

Originally Posted by lake

I would love to read a thread about this. It just intrigues me that people would actually do this. Does anyone know if there are any existing threads about this? Or is anyone willing to share anecdotal information if they've witnessed it?

I've posted on here several times about a student at my university, but for those who have missed it, here it is again. It is about someone who lived a few doors down from me freshman year.

Susie PNM shows up on campus for Fall Recruitment with her mind on ONE chapter only, XYZ. Nevermind the fact that there were 10 excellent organizations. She decided that she was only suited for one of them, and it happened to be one that was a very strong recruiting chapter. For numerous reasons, this was not the best fit for her. While the rest of us could see that, she could not.

By day 2 she had been cut from this chapter, so she completely dropped out of rush.

Next fall she registers to rush again, and tells everyone that will listen that she plans to be an XYZ. In her eyes they were the best chapter on campus and the only one good enough for her.

She was cut after Round 1.

Our rush was the week before school started, so Susie packed up her stuff and moved back home. She then enrolled in the hometown commuter school, went through their smallish recruitment, and yes got a bid.

So, guess who shows up back on our campus Junior year with the exact letters that she desperately wanted for 2 straight recruitments? Yep, and she even tried to affiliate. Surprise, surprise, the chapter voted to not affiliate her.

For those of you counting, yes that is 3x the chapter denied her membership.

For the next 2 years she continued to wear her precious letters that she had longed to receive. However, those letters came with zero sisterhood. To this day I wonder if it was worth it to her. I also wonder her involvement level as an alumna.

She could have been happy in any number of chapters on our campus had she given them a chance. She was a very nice person, but rather insecure and this came off in conversations, her behavior and her personality. I also wonder if finding a group that was similar to who she was, instead of who she longed to be, would have helped her confidence.

We will never know.

[33girl]

Originally Posted by Blondie93

For the next 2 years she continued to wear her precious letters that she had longed to receive. However, those letters came with zero sisterhood. To this day I wonder if it was worth it to her. I also wonder her involvement level as an alumna.

She could have been happy in any number of chapters on our campus had she given them a chance. She was a very nice person, but rather insecure and this came off in conversations, her behavior and her personality. I also wonder if finding a group that was similar to who she was, instead of who she longed to be, would have helped her confidence.

We will never know.

Not to mention, she probably really hurt the sisters at the chapter that she pledged at when they realized the degree to which she was using them.

Twat.

[psusue]

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

Right, but nobody cares before rush or after graduation, so it's not so much a stronghold, even if they have a lot of chapters there.

Illinois, one of the biggest Greek systems in the country, has very little tent talk, because nobody shows up in Champaign knowing a damn thing about any of the sororities. Sure, the internet has made things worse, but it's not like it meant anything when I went home over break and told my high school friends where I'd pledged.

I agree with all of this, but the bold part I emphatically agree with. When I say that I'm in a sorority to friends here, they ask which one, then immediately say that they don't understand the difference between them. No one knew whether Sigma was the 'hottest' sorority or 'weirdo' sorority, whether at Penn State or otherwise. To me that was a huge relief in a way, knowing that my decision would only be seen as going Greek versus not going Greek, not "I went Greek and joined the wrong organization". That, to me, would have prevented me from going Greek, most likely. I don't know if I could deal with that kind of pressure, even if I did love the women in the sorority.

Also I would love to know in what states different sororities have the most chapters. I know that AST and Sigma are PA, ZTA is FL, Alpha Phi is CA, would anyone else care to chime in?

[AnchorAlum]

Originally Posted by lake

I would love to read a thread about this. It just intrigues me that people would actually do this. Does anyone know if there are any existing threads about this? Or is anyone willing to share anecdotal information if they've witnessed it?

Oh, yes. Park Cities. Dallas. Texas.

Happened with girls who were legacies to a certain GLO who didn't stand a strong chance of making Mother and Grandmother's sorority at certain Texas schools, because there would often be nearly 200 legacies to that chapter and the numbers were brutal. They would go to an out of state school, usually in the southeast or even to one of the Arizona schools, and pledge over there.

After their freshman year, they'd transfer to Mother and Grandmother's alma mater back in Texas as an active and affiliate there.

I'd never heard of it either, til I worked as a sponsorship chairman of a Dallas suburb's Alumnae Panhellenic. Darndest thing I ever saw.

[DubaiSis]

I would always defer to keeping your sorority affiliation to yourself unless it's made clear otherwise. The responses are as likely to be anything from disinterested to ambivalent to repulsed. Yes, there's a chance someone will be impressed, but it's not worth risking being outed as a dork, snob or just oddity just to brag about something from your college days.

[HQWest]

Originally Posted by DubaiSis

I would always defer to keeping your sorority affiliation to yourself unless it's made clear otherwise. The responses are as likely to be anything from disinterested to ambivalent to repulsed. Yes, there's a chance someone will be impressed, but it's not worth risking being outed as a dork, snob or just oddity just to brag about something from your college days.

I would say you should put your sorority in your job application or grad school application in certain instances. For example, if you are applying for a PR job and you were in charge of your chapter's big philanthropy project that raised $50000 for their cause or if you were applying for a job with an event planner and you were Social Director for a huge SEC chapter, I would put it in there. If you won a scholarship through your sorority that should be in there too.

If you were either consistently dedicated to philanthropy efforts through the organization or were a real leader with the group, it is a distinction, and that could make a difference to someone staring down a stack of resumes.

I have only once seen someone go - "ew - she's a sorority chick" during a job interview, and there were Many, many other clues this was not going to be a good situation on that trip.

I haven't seen being in a sorority hurt anyone career-wise, and I have seen it help with making connections and networking.

[ASTalumna06]

Originally Posted by DubaiSis

I would always defer to keeping your sorority affiliation to yourself unless it's made clear otherwise. The responses are as likely to be anything from disinterested to ambivalent to repulsed.

Like when I told a date last week that I'm an AST, and he said, "Oh, I dated one of them in college. That b**** broke up with me for no good reason."

Needless to say, I didn't see him again.. For that reason and sooo many others. LOL

[FSUZeta]

When I was a provisional member of Junior League, the league president came to our first meeting and gave an address. This particular league had nearly 400 members, and this woman thought that it was important for us all to know that when she was in college, she was a cheerleader and a member of ABC sorority at Big Southern University. So I would have to agree with those who have said that in certain parts of the south, some people think that being a member of ABC sorority says a lot about them.

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by FSUZeta

When I was a provisional member of Junior League, the league president came to our first meeting and gave an address. This particular league had nearly 400 members, and this woman thought that it was important for us all to know that when she was in college, she was a cheerleader and a member of ABC sorority at Big Southern University. So I would have to agree with those who have said that in certain parts of the south, some people think that being a member of ABC sorority says a lot about them.

Not disagreeing with you, but the question I would have is whether those listening (or the 400 members of the league) thought it was as important as the league president did.

[DeltaBetaBaby]

Originally Posted by MysticCat

Not disagreeing with you, but the question I would have is whether those listening (or the 400 members of the league) thought it was as important as the league president did.

BINGO!