Should we change the way PNMs think of Recruitment?

[28StGreek]

Originally Posted by carnation

Now wait. There is no way in H__ that a chapter can be forced to take girls they don't want.

Exactly my point this is the crux that shows ultimately its the chapter that has the power to choose which PNMs they want, and if a PNM matches then its mutual selection.

Chapters are the only ones who can give out a bid. Therefore they're the ones who have a much greater factor in the selection process.

I know there are the ends of the bell curve where a everybody's rush crush with more invites than parties available has all the power to choose. I know of one girl who had two older sisters who were chapter alumna, including one who was the President, yet she preffed at a different house because she just connected with those girls better.

And then on the GLO side, at the lower end of the spectrum to put it bluntly they list as many girls as they hope to get to try and meet quota. I know that isn't how it happens everywhere, but it is a harsh truth at some chapters.

[ggforever]

Maybe it would be beneficial for NPC to create a video to be used at recruitment orientations around the country, explaining a little bit better what to expect during the process, and how the mutual selection process works. It'd ensure some consistency in what's being told PNMs year to year and from campus to campus.

What a wonderful idea LABlondeGPhi__________________

[MaryPoppins]

Originally Posted by ggforever

Maybe it would be beneficial for NPC to create a video to be used at recruitment orientations around the country, explaining a little bit better what to expect during the process, and how the mutual selection process works. It'd ensure some consistency in what's being told PNMs year to year and from campus to campus.

What a wonderful idea LABlondeGPhi

. . . Then if a PNM chooses to misunderstand the video, she only has herself to blame.

[DeltaBetaBaby]

Originally Posted by MaryPoppins

. . . Then if a PNM chooses to misunderstand the video, she only has herself to blame.

Sadly, I think that would be 95% of PNM's. It's an intriguing idea, though...at the recruitment orientation, there are always women who speak about how great their sorority experience has been. How would things change if at least one of them spoke about having a tough recruitment? Would anyone even be willing to do that?

[LAblondeGPhi]

Originally Posted by ggforever

Maybe it would be beneficial for NPC to create a video to be used at recruitment orientations around the country, explaining a little bit better what to expect during the process, and how the mutual selection process works. It'd ensure some consistency in what's being told PNMs year to year and from campus to campus.

What a wonderful idea LABlondeGPhi__________________

Aw shucks. Thank you!

[KSUViolet06]

I'd say that the Bid Matching process is pretty mutual, but I still think that for the majority of recruitment, the balance of selection tips more in the chapter's favor than the PNMs.

And I think even with matching, you are ranking what you have, which depending on how recruitment worked out for you, may or may not be what you'd CHOOSE for yourself. For example: you could (at one time) choose to rank chapters you didn't attend for preference. You were allowed to do that if those were the chapters you'd accept a bid from, but it definitely didn't mean you were going to get a bid from any of them.

[28StGreek]

Originally Posted by KSUViolet06

I'd say that the Bid Matching process is pretty mutual, but I still think that for the majority of recruitment, the balance of selection tips more in the chapter's favor than the PNMs.

Yes. Regardless of everything else, ultimately the chapters are the ones who want to put a PNM on their bid list. While not strictly true to the definition, the chapters would be see as an oligopoly, since they're the only ones which can provide the product (i.e. a bid), and as such they definitely hold the power in the relationship between a chapter and a PNM.

It becomes mutual when a chapter's bidlist and PNM preference list match up. And I suppose in a way more and more mutual towards the end of recruitment.

But in the early days of the process the chapters definitely are choosing.

[LAblondeGPhi]

Originally Posted by 28StGreek

Yes. Regardless of everything else, ultimately the chapters are the ones who want to put a PNM on their bid list. While not strictly true to the definition, the chapters would be see as an oligopoly, since they're the only ones which can provide the product (i.e. a bid), and as such they definitely hold the power in the relationship between a chapter and a PNM.

It becomes mutual when a chapter's bidlist and PNM preference list match up. And I suppose in a way more and more mutual towards the end of recruitment.

But in the early days of the process the chapters definitely are choosing.

I disagree. This only holds true for the strongest chapters - but it also holds true for the strongest PNMs. I think DubaiSis mentioned it before, that if you're a weaker PNM or a weaker chapter (comparatively), then you won't have quite the pick of your favorites, but you definitely have some choice. If you are the weakest chapter or weakest PNM, you'll have the least amount of choice.

Again, I'm betting that the vast majority of PNMs are able to regret at least ONE chapter in the first round, if not more. And I'd bet that almost every PNM is able to regret at least one chapter by the end of the recruitment, if not more.

We hear much more about PNMs being upset about being released from a chapter because there are hundreds of PNM stories for every handful of sorority stories. Besides, sororities don't air their laundry about how upset they are that they lost Suzy Perfect Legacy after Round 2 - but it happens ALL THE TIME. I think the sororities are just better about not getting hung up on the lost PNMs, and instead focus on the PNMs they still have.

Again, someone mentioned flex lists on the part of the chapters. Those invitation lists aren't set in stone- additional PNMs can be released or added to the invitation list if a chapter does better or worse than expected.

[AOII Angel]

Mutual selection doesn't mean that the PNM gets to choose a chapter and join even if she doesn't fit. RFM has made the process more mutual than it was before when PNMs were strung along thinking they had a chance with that dream chapter and being cut before prefs when they have no choices left. True "mutual selection" can only occur when there are no quotas, but there are so complaining is futile. At the top end of the stratum, the chapters have more power, and at the lower end, the PNMs have more power. At all points, each party can say "No" which is their right. There really is no way around OT except to make PNMs take stock of their situation.

[Wynter]

I honestly think the main reason PNMs are not told the "full truth" about recruitment is to encourage them to actually go through with it and do it without fear. If they knew all the dirty details (the cuts, the drops, the percentages) more girls would probably back out from the beginning.

Then again, I think it depends so much on the school you go to. At my school recruitment was SUPER competitive and I definitely felt like the "mutual selection" thing was a little sugarcoated to encourage people to stick it out. A lot of really great girls in my rush group were cut right off the bat They would have been wonderful sisters!

I had very good friends in several houses and had AMAZING conversations but was still cut from those chapters. At the same time, I had mediocre conversations at several chapters that seemed uninterested in me but I kept getting invited back to them and was even preffed at a house I felt no connection with at all. So I agree, it's not 100% mutual, and I do think "mutual" is a misleading term. More or less (at least from my experience, I could be wrong though) the GLOs choose you and you either go along with it and enjoy or drop out.

Of course recruitment is so complicated and it's basically impossible to give everyone A) a bid and B) what they want, especially at large schools with competitive rushes.

[Old_Row]

Originally Posted by Wynter

At my school recruitment was SUPER competitive

Your school isn't SUPER competitive, but this illustrates one of the perception problems the NPC is dealing with here. 100% mutual selection is a myth. At every school, even at the most laid back, there are certain chapters and PNMs who are always in a position to get what they want and things will be competitive when it comes to getting those chapters and PNMs. It's just like real life, but we're afraid to officially admit it.

[DubaiSis]

Originally Posted by Wynter

More or less ... the GLOs choose you and you either go along with it and enjoy or drop out.

This. It really isn't mutual selection because you have to be on the sorority's list to start with. Only if she's on every list does the rushee have a say. And to the extent that she's off more lists, she has less say. Even the least performing chapters STILL get to choose who they invite back and if they're only inviting back girls who don't want them there are going to be girls who weren't given the opportunity to mutually select them.

There are schools where there is a struggling chapter, but it's still a very competitive campus where girls get cut out of the process completely after round 1 or 2. That means that struggling chapter still had the upper hand in deciding they didn't want a girl who probably would have accepted them, even though it would be her last choice. That is not mutual.

... and then I went off on a tangent about selection and crazy ways of doing it and decided to self-edit. You're welcome.

[DeltaBetaBaby]

Originally Posted by DubaiSis

There are schools where there is a struggling chapter, but it's still a very competitive campus where girls get cut out of the process completely after round 1 or 2.

This is very rare. Save IU, there are very few schools where any significant number of women get dropped completely.

[KSUViolet06]

^^Right.

Depending on the RFM numbers, a chapter might have to invite back a larger percentage of the PNM pool. But not specifically be forced to BID women.

[28StGreek]

I know what you are saying. But on that all important first day(s) of IWT the Chapters have all the power. The situation does get more mutual towards pref.

The three mid performing chapters than PNM Polly goes back to was because she had already been cut by the 'top' chapters.

I know tiers is a topic that is taboo on GC, but lets face it at some schools PNM Polly is only hoping for 3-4 chapters when recruitment begins. And I am well aware that "every school has tiers", but every school has football teams too, and some are just in a different league.

I think in some situations its can be a disservice to PNM Polly to make the process sounds egalitarian. Otherwise we'd never get all those: "Why didn't I get a bid' stories. The majority of them didn't get a bid because they didn't stay the course and go back to the parties they had, and they dropped out of recruitment because they were cut by the chapters they wanted, thus shows the power structure between the Chapter and PNM on Day 1.

I don't mean to sound condescending its just I know my verbosity has a habit of making myself poorly understood. I totally apologize for that happening!

NB: Probably the most common comment i get back from professors: "Please rewrite this paragraph, I don't understand what you are trying to say"