Competitive? Or a Different Term?

[carnation]

This one has a bunch of other chapters. I've really never heard of a campus like this. See, at most competitive campuses I know of, there are some chapters that are often considered "more desirable" than others but in this day and age, you don't get mass dropouts from hugehuge numbers because so many girls consider themselves lucky to get a bid anywhere. At this school, no. If they don't get one of those 3 groups, bye.

[LAblondeGPhi]

Originally Posted by carnation

This one has a bunch of other chapters. I've really never heard of a campus like this. See, at most competitive campuses I know of, there are some chapters that are often considered "more desirable" than others but in this day and age, you don't get mass dropouts from hugehuge numbers because so many girls consider themselves lucky to get a bid anywhere. At this school, no. If they don't get one of those 3 groups, bye.

Even before you posted this passage, I was going to make a point along the lines of the way the tier structure descends. Based on only my GC-related understanding of SEC Greek systems, it seems like a lot of the most competitive SEC schools have many chapters that are considered very strong, with only one or two chapters considered weak (if that).

This is pure speculation here, but I'm betting that if there's more parity RRS-wise, then the cuts to PNMs become a little more random. And when you see a friend get released by a chapter she loves, but that you don't really like, you're better able to appreciate that chapter as desirable and worthy of a second chance.

When I was an undergrad, there was a perceived "top 6" and "bottom 5" with almost no middle ground. I don't know if there was actually a big natural break in recruitment strength at that spot (although, I suspect there was), but the perceptions create a feedback loop that affects retention for the chapters.

As for the notion of what's "competitive", my own definition is when a PNM who has put in a considerable amount of time and energy into prepping for recruitment, and who has very good paper stats, is likely to face severe cuts anyway.

For example, I wouldn't consider UCLA a competitive campus because there are so many women who sign up for recruitment at the last minute (around 1/3 of total PNMs). A chunk of women just aren't particularly socially adept, either. If you're presentable and can carry a conversation, you're probably going to do pretty well.

[HQWest]

I think I know what you are talking about, and I guess the way to say it is as above - highly tiered. Where one tier is considered SO much more desirable that the other chapters aren't worth consideration. I have heard it before and I guess it strikes me like "if I don't get in to Harvard - I'm not going to college?"

If they really wanted to find a sisterhood - shouldn't they be able to find a home with other girls with similar ideals and interests? where they have more in common? In a big greek system - they should be able to find a connection somewhere?

The example here I guess is the chapter that has a extraordinarily large percentage of legacies in every pledge class. Wouldn't it be weird to be the 1 girl who isn't a legacy? To not have your mom or sister come to initiation? Why would you want to squeeze into something that you can't quite fit?

[33girl]

How many groups are there total?

If there are 6 or 7, I would call the campus "a living illustration of the demise of the middle class." It reminds me of something I read in a Rolling Stone article ages ago: you're either a superstar or a slave. If Greek life doesn't provide anything other than slightly increased social interaction (i.e. your living options are not appreciably nicer, Greek life in general is not viewed positively by the administration or the school, it doesn't really get you anywhere in other extracurriculars, you can have a successful social life without being Greek) and the majority of the women rushing are working-class, it may be as simple as they don't see the point of spending the money.

If there are 13 or so sororities, though, I would not put too fine a point on it and would just call it "Stupid Bitch Heaven."

[KSUViolet06]

Originally Posted by HQWest

If they really wanted to find a sisterhood - shouldn't they be able to find a home with other girls with similar ideals and interests? where they have more in common? In a big greek system - they should be able to find a connection somewhere?

I've argued for awhile that at schools where chapters are above say 75 women, that we could probably randomly assign women to chapters and it would all work out fine. Once the chapters get to a certain size, I think "fit" is kind of a myth. Chapters are more alike than different at that point. Ex: I bet that any PNM at say UA or Ole Miss could join and be happy at any chapter. It's impossible to "not fit in" with close to 300 people.