Sophomore freaking out

[AOII Angel]

To the OP, you won't get anything without trying. Your GPA will be a hinderance, but it may not preclude you from joining a sorority. Go in with an open mind. If you have a problem with rejection and will be crushed if every sorority cuts you, then don't do it. If you can be a grown-up and take the criticism with the hope that someone can see your potential, than give it a chance. You never know...there may be a chapter at Mizzou for you.

[roses1992]

I have one last question, I've seen several post saying I wouldn't qualify for a NPHC organization but the GPA requirements for several are in the 2.5+ range, I was just wondering if someone could explain what reasons for a 2.9 not being acceptable are I would appreciate it I'm currently confused, is it my undergrad status as a sophomore?

Just wondering,

Thanks!

[HannahXO]

Originally Posted by roses1992

I have one last question, I've seen several post saying I wouldn't qualify for a NPHC organization but the GPA requirements for several are in the 2.5+ range, I was just wondering if someone could explain what reasons for a 2.9 not being acceptable are I would appreciate it I'm currently confused, is it my undergrad status as a sophomore?

Just wondering,

Thanks!

On paper, they are looking for a 2.5...that is to say, they won't even begin to look at you if you don't have that GPA in most cases. But they are generally looking for something higher, something that shows you are very dedicated to your academics and will be able to handle splitting your time between class and a GLO. This is the case for NPC orgs at least, and I think the reasoning is similar for NPHC, but I defer to the NPHCers for clarification on this one.

As others have said, you will never know what happens until you try. A 2.9 coming from an engineer at my school wouldn't bat an eyelash (like others have said, it's not about engineering being a "hard" major, A's are just not typically given in that college) but if your school is known for grade inflation or you're against other women with 4.0's, you could be worse off. Good luck!

[VandalSquirrel]

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

Okay, I know that it may make it tough for a woman going through recruitment, but why do we keep pretending around here that a B average is a terrible GPA? As I posted above, a 3.0 would be Dean's List in a lot of places.

I realize, too, that chapters want a high chapter GPA, and probably have to meet a minimum standard, but unless you are comparing the chapter GPA to the all-women's average, it really doesn't mean a thing on its own.

Originally Posted by DrPhil

Indeed. Not because she absolutely couldn't qualify with a 2.93 but because NPHC should never be a second choice.



Good luck to you. And keep in mind that these are the opinions of people on Greekchat. Only the sorority guidelines and the opinions of the sorority members who are making the decisions matter.



THANK YOU!

A 2.93 is not only eligible for Dean's List at many schools, it is higher than the average college student's cumulative gpa. I would wager that the average GCer's gpa wasn't too much higher than a 2.93 when they were first and second years in college.

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

Not to mention that GPA can be heavily correlated with privilege. Maybe the OP went to a crappy high school and didn't have any good math teachers. Maybe she had to work part-time. When sorting resumes, I'd take a 3.0 with a good story over a boring 4.0 any day.

I'm not saying that a 2.9 is the worst thing in the world, but for this individual poster they mentioned their laundry list of activities which reads to me as being more focused on the social than the academic. Also the +/- system makes things more complicated, but the fact I could find the academic assistance center for the two courses that allegedly are the root problem of the GPA issue, and the most failed, and I don't attend Mizzou makes me wonder if the OP is utilizing all her resources. I looked at their specific Greek grade report, most recent is fall 2010, and all of the NPC sororities were above a 3.0, with the average of sorority women at 3.25, and Mizzou women a 3.14.

I am well aware of privilege but blaming it on having a crappy math teacher in high school doesn't explain why this student wouldn't be placed in an appropriate math course to her abilities as Mizzou has every student take a placement exam as of fall 2010. Oh and working part time, not a great excuse. That goes back to the laundry list of activities I mentioned, lack of time management and focusing on academics. How will someone handle sorority life if they are using a job as an excuse (not that the OP did, you mentioned it as a viable reason).

[IrishLake]

/offtopic
Damn, where are these schools where 2.9 or above is Deans List? Shit, I would have been on it all the time! 3.5 is the lowest I've ever heard of, and I made it once, my very last quarter of school! Jealous!
/backontopic

[DeltaBetaBaby]

Originally Posted by IrishLake

/offtopic
Damn, where are these schools where 2.9 or above is Deans List? Shit, I would have been on it all the time! 3.5 is the lowest I've ever heard of, and I made it once, my very last quarter of school! Jealous!
/backontopic

I posted the requirements for Mizzou earlier in the thread. 3.0 is Deans List for 3 or 4 of their colleges.

[DrPhil]

Originally Posted by IrishLake

/offtopic
Damn, where are these schools where 2.9 or above is Deans List? Shit, I would have been on it all the time! 3.5 is the lowest I've ever heard of, and I made it once, my very last quarter of school! Jealous!
/backontopic

The difference between term gpa, major gpa, and overall gpa.

Some schools require minimum 3.0 term gpa and some require minimum 3.5 term gpa.

[VandalSquirrel]

Originally Posted by IrishLake

/offtopic
Damn, where are these schools where 2.9 or above is Deans List? Shit, I would have been on it all the time! 3.5 is the lowest I've ever heard of, and I made it once, my very last quarter of school! Jealous!
/backontopic

Idaho has a flat across the board Dean's List requirement of a 3.5 semester GPA of 12 graded credits for all undergraduate and graduate students, except Law, where it is a 3.0 for 10 graded credits. Honors at graduation depends on the individual college and is an average of GPAs over the past five years. Top 3% is summa cum laude, under 3% but above 6% is magna cum laude, and above 6% but in the top 10% is cum laude. The range is pretty narrow here, even Engineering is high at 3.96, 3.91, and 3.81 and Science is 4.0, 3.95, 3.89. This is only for undergraduates, and Law has their own honors. Funny enough Business has the lowest honors graduation GPA requirement, which most people would assume would belong to Engineering, Science, Natural Resources, or Agriculture & Life Sciences.

[roses1992]

Originally Posted by VandalSquirrel

I'm not saying that a 2.9 is the worst thing in the world, but for this individual poster they mentioned their laundry list of activities which reads to me as being more focused on the social than the academic. Also the +/- system makes things more complicated, but the fact I could find the academic assistance center for the two courses that allegedly are the root problem of the GPA issue, and the most failed, and I don't attend Mizzou makes me wonder if the OP is utilizing all her resources. I looked at their specific Greek grade report, most recent is fall 2010, and all of the NPC sororities were above a 3.0, with the average of sorority women at 3.25, and Mizzou women a 3.14.

I am well aware of privilege but blaming it on having a crappy math teacher in high school doesn't explain why this student wouldn't be placed in an appropriate math course to her abilities as Mizzou has every student take a placement exam as of fall 2010. Oh and working part time, not a great excuse. That goes back to the laundry list of activities I mentioned, lack of time management and focusing on academics. How will someone handle sorority life if they are using a job as an excuse (not that the OP did, you mentioned it as a viable reason).

When I said I had a "laundry list" I just meant that I was rather involved freshman year. Balancing school and clubs wasn't too difficult...so I incorrectly assumed I could do the same second semester.but didn't account for a new job and new campus position, I definitely focused on my academics but I gave harder classes the same amount of time as I did my classes during my first semester which was a huge mistake. I would never use my job or my clubs as an excuse, its my own fault for stretching myself too thin when I thought second semester would be the same as the first.

And as far as high school is concerned, none of my teachers were crappy lol. I was in honors programs in all areas except science and did fairly well. It was really just a lesson in time management differences from one semester to the other. I got it together at the end of the semester which is better than correcting it during my upperclassmen years, in my opinion.

Thanks again for all the input, I will probably go ahead and rush for the experience if nothing else.

[DTD Alum]

* To the OP: I'm not a member of a Panhellenic sorority nor did I attend your university, so please disregard anything I'm about to write as advice...it is more a question to other posters on this site.

Please pardon my lane swerve, I'm just trying to understand something here. While I'm well aware of the fact that academics is a focal point for most (if not all) Panhellenic GLOs, and that there may be things in membership selection (for example, adding/subtracting points based on a GPA) that may be unchangeable, I'm just wondering if you have really seen the majority of sisters in the chapters you advise actively focus on grades over personality.

I'm just wondering out loud if the advice often given here (grades, leadership and activities are the most important, 4.0s are viewed exponentially higher than 3.0s, etc) may more closely reflect a stance held by the national organization(s), and that may not always be viewed with the same degree of respect/importance by active collegians who are really focused on a fun pledge class that will attract good mixers, good rushers for next year, etc. When I was in college (which was only 2-3 years ago), the sorority members would always gush over personality and, frankly, looks. "We want Jane Smith sooo bad, she is so funny and the cutest thing," etc. At most, it seemed to be the type of thing like, “Well, she has to meet [x] GPA and have a rec sent in, but after that it’s about who we like the most.”

Of course, I have no idea of the Mizzou campus culture. Especially since she is a sophomore, there very well be huge hoops she has to overcome even without the GPA issue. And please note that this conjecture/tangent is more about girls who are "just OK" in terms of stats but excellent in terms of personality, not about girls that are actual grade risks (ie, below minimum GPAs) or about comparing two equally “awesome personality” girls who have widely different GPAs. I just can't see a group of 20 year old girls voluntarily releasing a gorgeous and fun PNM with a 3.0 over a quieter, reserved PNM with a 4.0, which is why I'm puzzled when the advice seems to be "you're going to have an uphill battle" if they have anything less than a perfect GPA. At my school (which was admittedly in California but still fairly competitive), I knew a girl with a full ride merit based scholarship that was dropped from all but one chapter, and plenty of girls with "meh" GPAs that waltzed right through rush without getting cut once.

Flame away and correct me if I'm totally off base (and I very likely am), like I said this is just what I've gleaned from what I've been told about sorority rush, not off of any experience obviously.

[AGDee]

^^^ Yes, you are a bit off base.

To not tread into Membership Selection, I'm going to use an analogy. When I was an undergrad, to get into the Occupational Therapy program, we had to fill out an application, have at least a 2.5 GPA (with at least Bs in specific courses like Biology, Chemistry, Psychology and Child Development), have a certain number of volunteer hours, write an essay and have an interview. There were about 250 people competing for 50 spots each year. Each of those items were scored and weighted in some manner and the top 50 scored/weighted scores were offered a slot. A few would be on a waiting list in case everybody offered a slot didn't accept it. In reality, the competition was so tight that after scoring, nobody with less than a 3.5 GPA got in even though the minimum GPA to be admitted was technically a 2.5.

Make more sense that way?

[DeltaBetaBaby]

It has been my experience that GPA is more important when ranking women for the final bid list than it is in issuing yes/no invites (assuming the woman meets the minimum).

[AOII Angel]

Every group has a different method for factoring in GPA. DTD alum, collegiate members may not have much choice in whether they can admit the cute girl with the low GPA into their chapter. There are often rules that dictate this policy that can't be over-ruled (or only if appealed to much higher levels in the organization.)

[33girl]

Originally Posted by DTD Alum

I just can't see a group of 20 year old girls voluntarily releasing a gorgeous and fun PNM with a 3.0 over a quieter, reserved PNM with a 4.0, which is why I'm puzzled when the advice seems to be "you're going to have an uphill battle" if they have anything less than a perfect GPA.

It's Mizzou. They have a shitload of gorgeous and fun PNMs WITH 4.0s, so they really don't need to screw with the g & f PNM with the 3.0.

Personality is more likely to win out over grades at smaller chapters with smaller rushes and a smaller amount of women to choose from. It doesn't matter quite as much in that sort of setting if you have a great GPA - you need girls who will be social and get your name out there. It's easier to bid the social girls and THEN get their grades up.

[IrishLake]

^ Ditto the wise women above me. And even coming from a smaller campus environment, I HAVE seen (10+ ago and recent formal recruitment) the "cutest, funniest girl who everyone loves!!!" get released from chapters (not specifically mine) because of her 2.3 GPA.