You are not getting into any sorority with bad or mediocre grades.

KSUViolet06 · #1 09-28-2017, 07:45 PM

Y'all.

We get a lot of GPA questions here. A lot of my older alumnae friends see a lot of recruitment GPA questions in those Whatever University Class of 2021 type groups that their kids are in.

"Suzy had a rough senior year after she tore her ACL and had to quit basketball. She only has a 3.0. Is that going to affect recruitment?"

"I had a rough freshman year so I only have a 2.75. Will I still get a bid."

I really hate to break it to you guys, but it matters. And you probably won't get one.

Remember when you were little and you had to be X inches tall to ride the ride? That's what your grades are. You are not even going to get on the Sorority Coaster if your grades are mediocre to bad.

But I have a 3.35, is that bad?

I know some of you have grades that you think are okay. Like, a 3.2. Meh. Not amazing. Not awful. Depending on where you go to school, that's fine.

There are plenty of schools out there where a 3.2 from high school is going to be fine. But really, there are some chapters who are not even really batting an eyelash at anyone with less than an honor roll GPA.

This is especially true for high school grades. There are chapters with out-of-HS GPA requirements higher than that. Ex: There are chapters with GPAs for freshmen set at like, 3.6. You are dead in the water if you have a 3.2 and everyone on campus has a GPA requirement at 3.5. Yes, it was high school but it matters. Sorry.

For the upperclassmen:

The average chapter or Panhellenic is going to advertise something like "XYZ's GPA requirement is a 2.5." or "XYZ requires a 2.75 to join." Ok. But that is bare minimum.

I really hope you do not think that your 2.5 puts you on a chapter's radar. It does not. Depending on where you go to school, you are not making it past the first day with grades that JUST MEET the standard.

Honestly, when you are in a pool with high schoolers with 4.0s, your 3.1 looks a lot less impressive. Are they comparing HS to college? Yes. Fair? Maybe not but if it comes time to make some decisions, the upperclassmen with the mediocre GPAs are likely the first to go.

Further, if you have been in school for more than one year and your GPA is still that low, like 2.75, this is my unpopular opinion, but you need to have a seat.

Recruitment need not be your focus. Graduation needs to be your focus. I have been out of college for a little bit and I honestly do not know if you can even GRADUATE these days with a 2.5 or 2.75.

Even if you can graduate, if you pull up to someone's grad school with a 2.75, they are going to laugh. Hard.

Can they make exceptions?

I don't know. We are all different with different bylaws. I can only speak for 1 of 26. It's your best bet to assume they can't. Depending on your school they have no reason to. Look at Bama. Bama's recruitment has over 2,000 PNMs. No chapter on that campus is losing sleep over a junior with a 2.9. Even at smaller schools, they are not doing that. I have worked with chapters with 40 people in them. They are too small to waste a spot on someone who is going to drag down their chapter GPA.

But I'll do BETTER in school if I join!

No. No you will not. Statistically you will probably do worse. If you are struggling with school as a freshman with NO activities and have a 2.78, if you pile on (example) Kappa Kappa Gamma as a sophomore and 15 credits and 30 hours per week of meetings, homecoming stuff, etc. you are likely not going to do better. I'd love for someone to make me a liar but Murphy's Law states that the girls with the lowest GPAs actually end up: dropping out of school, transferring, or quitting, or being that girl who is on grade probation who quits because she can literally do nothing but go to chapter and go home.

So please. Back away from the Panhellenic Instagram. Put school first.

NYCMS · #2 09-28-2017, 08:06 PM

@KSUViolet06 - best PSA about grades I've seen.

Wish this board had a "like" button!

Kevin · #3 09-28-2017, 08:31 PM

I don't want to step on the Greek Life mods' toes, but I'd sticky this one.

KSUViolet06 · #4 09-28-2017, 09:13 PM

There is really no nice way to say it.

We try to be kind over here and I get it. Like "well get recs and study hard!"

No.

If you do not have grades to the standard of the campus where you are participating in recruitment all that other stuff really does not matter.

You could be BFFs with the entire Executive Board of the chapter and still no.

Titchou · #5 09-28-2017, 09:13 PM

Absolutely dead on target!

aephi alum · #6 09-28-2017, 09:24 PM

*** applause ***

Very well put.

DubaiSis · #7 09-28-2017, 10:40 PM

... but my super special snowflake got a hangnail in her freshman year and her GPA is now 2.8. That's almost good enough, right? I heard that the football team's recommendation for her will override the grade requirement. She's very popular with the football team...

BlueCarnation · #8 09-29-2017, 10:26 AM

Totally agree, but...what do we tell PNMs who are accepted to certain schools with mediocre GPAs but want to go through recruitment there? At my alma mater, for example, grades are not an issue because you have to have great grades to get in. But I get rec requests for a few schools with very competitive recruitments and the PNMs got accepted to these schools with less than stellar GPAs--one gal had a 2.95 and no good "excuse" for it. Sure, you got in, but you're going to be very limited because your GPA is not good. Some of these PNMs are getting SCHOLARSHIPS to these schools with these less than stellar GPAs, but they're already going to be ruled out by certain chapters because of the same GPAs. It's very hard to reconcile that.

ComradesTrue · #9 09-29-2017, 10:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KSUViolet06

You are not even going to get on the Sorority Coaster if your grades are mediocre to bad.

Oh my word where is the rolling crying emoji when you need it?

And preach it. All truth.

As for schools with higher admit GPAs: there are some chapters who then focus on PNMs with scholarships or who are in the Honors College. GPAs follow you everywhere.

33girl · #10 09-29-2017, 11:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BlueCarnation

Totally agree, but...what do we tell PNMs who are accepted to certain schools with mediocre GPAs but want to go through recruitment there? At my alma mater, for example, grades are not an issue because you have to have great grades to get in. But I get rec requests for a few schools with very competitive recruitments and the PNMs got accepted to these schools with less than stellar GPAs--one gal had a 2.95 and no good "excuse" for it. Sure, you got in, but you're going to be very limited because your GPA is not good. Some of these PNMs are getting SCHOLARSHIPS to these schools with these less than stellar GPAs, but they're already going to be ruled out by certain chapters because of the same GPAs. It's very hard to reconcile that.

This is when you remind them that sororities have a much stronger academic focus than comes across in popular culture and are not just about living in a pretty house and partying. It would be nice if that was conveyed in more of the recruitment videos that are all over YouTube.

ASTalumna06 · #11 09-29-2017, 12:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 33girl

This is when you remind them that sororities have a much stronger academic focus than comes across in popular culture and are not just about living in a pretty house and partying. It would be nice if that was conveyed in more of the recruitment videos that are all over YouTube.

Oh my goodness, yes.

Recruitment videos on YouTube make me laugh. The ones where fraternities mock sorority recruitment videos make me laugh harder.

A Taylor Swift song plays over a video of women blowing glitter around and frolicking on the beach, and then we wonder why PNMs think they can skirt by with a less-than-steller GPA.

NYCMS · #12 09-29-2017, 12:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ASTalumna06

Oh my goodness, yes.

Recruitment videos on YouTube make me laugh. The ones where fraternities mock sorority recruitment videos make me laugh harder.

A Taylor Swift song plays over a video of women blowing glitter around and frolicking on the beach, and then we wonder why PNMs think they can skirt by with a less-than-steller GPA.

Could.not agree more. If you only saw these videos, you'd think sorority women did nothing but play and party, looking fabulous all the while.

Did you see the mock video done by the Vanderbilt football team? One of the best I've seen!

BlueCarnation · #13 09-29-2017, 01:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 33girl

This is when you remind them that sororities have a much stronger academic focus than comes across in popular culture and are not just about living in a pretty house and partying. It would be nice if that was conveyed in more of the recruitment videos that are all over YouTube.

I try...but as we all know, some 18 year olds are a little more drawn to cute boys than books.

I just need to get over the fact that a 3.0 at a mediocre high school will get you a scholarship to a flagship university. But there's probably some website somewhere else to discuss that...

ASTalumna06 · #14 09-29-2017, 04:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BlueCarnation

I try...but as we all know, some 18 year olds are a little more drawn to cute boys than books.

I just need to get over the fact that a 3.0 at a mediocre high school will get you a scholarship to a flagship university. But there's probably some website somewhere else to discuss that...

There's this...

http://www.greekchat.com/gcforums/sh...d.php?t=134651

Everybody is the best!

DTD Alum · #15 09-29-2017, 04:47 PM

Those recruitment videos may look ridiculous for graduates of almost every age and gender, but we're not who they're targeting. For 17 and 18 year old women, videos that show fun, put together and well dressed girls doing cool things (yachts! music festivals! pools! running on the football field!) is wayyyyyy more of a draw than studying in the library or conducting chapter meetings. Keep in mind they're coming from high school, and only the absolute richest girls have had access to these types of events with their friends before (and they're going to want to keep at least the status quo anyway). They're wildly exciting to that age group and that's why chapters are spending so much money on them. You're kidding yourself if you think otherwise.