UCLA Recruitment

Helllllllo,

So I was contemplating whether or not to write my story during or after rush. Bid day is tonight so I figured now was as good as any to tell my story.

I am a junior transfer from Orange County. I went to CSU Chico out of High School for a semester and after realizing it wasn't for me I came home and eventually was accepted to UCLA. To be completely honest I never would have thought I'd rush in college. All I ever heard about were the negative aspects of Greek life. (Yes I know you should always find things out for yourself instead of listening to others) After finding out I got into UCLA I knew I wanted to make the most of the two years I had. I had friends who had joined Greek life after High School who encouraged me to at least give it a shot. I started looking into it more and saw sororities were so much more than what people made them out to be. Sororities actually seemed like a great thing to be a part of. Since then I knew I wanted to rush.

UCLA has 12 Pan-Hellenic chapters on campus:

Alpha Chi Omega (who just returned to UCLA this fall; they only participated in Round 1 and had a separate recruitment which starts Monday)
Alpha Delta Pi
Alpha Epsilon Phi
Alpha Phi
Chi Omega
Delta Delta Delta
Delta Gamma
Gamma Phi Beta
Kappa Alpha Theta
Kappa Delta
Kappa Kappa Gamma
Pi Beta Phi

Rush started on Wednesday and round 1 was split into 2 days.

Wednesday I visited Alpha Chi Omega, Alpha Epsilon Phi, Delta Delta Delta, Gamma Phi Beta, Kappa Delta and Pi Beta Phi. I enjoyed all of the houses but of course some stood out more than others. The girls in Gamma Phi and Pi Phi were very nice and I seemed to have a good conversation with them. I just didn't see myself in the other houses.

On Thursday I went to A D Pi, Alpha Phi, Chi-O, DG, Kappa Alpha Theta and Kappa Kappa Gamma. All of these houses were great as well. I felt a great connection with Theta and Alpha Phi. I loved the girls I talked to in DG they seemed very down to earth and I could see myself in the house. I enjoyed talking to the girls in Kappa as well. I didn't see myself so much in A D Pi.

Overall, rush started out great. It was a little overwhelming at first not knowing what to expect but after a couple houses I felt better about the whole process.

After our Thursday parties we were sent up to a room on campus and ranked the houses we had went to the past 2 days. We ranked 8 number 1's and a 2, 3 and 4.

Friday was the Philanthropy and House tours round. I got called back to my top 8. A D pi, Alpha Phi, Chi-O, DG, Kappa, Theta, Gamma Phi and Pi Phi.


Out of these houses I felt the most connected with Alpha Phi, Chi-O, DG, Kappa and Theta. Each house was different from the last but I loved every one of them.

Alpha Phi- the girls were all really nice. One girl I talked to was telling me about how clumsy she was which I am also so we laughed over that. All the girls I talked to were very helpful in answering my questions.

Chi-O- these girls were all really fun loving and just looked like they enjoyed being around each other. I got a great feeling going into the house and felt that I really connected with the girls I talked to.

DG- again these girls were great. My conversations just came easy with them and I felt very comfortable walking into the house.

Kappa- all the girls in the house seemed really fun to be around. I talked to a senior on the dance team which was one of the few upperclassmen I had talked to since rush so she helped put me at ease about rushing as a transfer.

Theta- loved theta. The VP of recruitment came up to talk to me while I was talking to one of the girls. They all seemed really great and I liked that when you left the girl you had talked to that day tapped you on the shoulder to say goodbye.

After Friday we went back into a ballroom on campus to rank our top 5 houses. I was nervous about the next day but also anxious to see what would happen the next day,

Saturday was our Entertainment round which included slideshows and skits each house put on. It was by far my favorite day. I had been so tired from the previous days it was nice to sit relax and watch the slide shows and skits. I never knew talking would be so tiring.

I got called back to Alpha Phi, DG, Kappa, Theta and Pi Phi. I was a little sad to not get called back to Chi-O but I still loved the houses I was given.

Watching all of the skits was so much fun. It really brought out the personalities of each house. After seeing the skit for Alpha Phi and DG I fell in love! I laughed almost the whole time during Kappa’s and Theta's and Pi Phi's was adorable as well. I knew I was going to have a hard decision coming up.

Saturday night after all of the parties we went back to pick our top two houses. I sat in the room for almost an hour trying to decide and remember all of the great things I liked about each house and all of the things that made one house stand out more than another. When it came down to choosing two number 1's a 2, 3 and a 4 I felt I had made the right decision.

This morning was our Pref. I was so nervous to get back my schedule but I knew I would be happy in any of my top 4 houses. It was still a little nerve-racking especially since I had a terrible dream the night before about not getting any house I had seen that day and was given houses I had never been to. Thankfully that wasn't the case.

This morning I got my schedule and was relieved to see DG and Alpha Phi on the list. I wasn't sure what to expect for the day’s activities but kept hearing about how amazing each house would be and that some people would have very hard decisions to make at the end.

I was prefed by an amazing girl I had met during the House tours round at DG which was my first party of the day. We got along really well and she made me feel extremely comfortable about everything I was concerned with. Mostly being a Jr. Transfer and my chances of getting a bid from a house I liked a lot. The ceremony that followed was a lot more emotional then I could have prepared myself for. I'm not sure if I'm supposed to talk about the ceremony that took place so I won’t go much into detail. I heard stories from seniors about their time in DG and it brought tears to my eyes. I left the house trying to hold back from crying and felt amazing about the house.

In Alpha Phi I was prefed by a girl I had met during the Entertainment round. She was really sweet and also helped me out with some questions I had about the house. She wasn't one of the girls I had felt a connection with most but it was still nice talking to her. Their ceremony was similar in fashion and also brought tears to my eyes. I knew it wasn't going to be an easy decision to make.

It is almost time for me to get ready for Bid Day and I cannot wait to see what happens. I know that either house I end up in I will be so excited to be a part of. Can’t wait to meet all my new sisters!! All the girls I met during rush in every house were amazing and so nice and I hope to become friends with most if not all the girls I met. I'll be back to post what happened tonight and which house I become a part of!!

[bostongreek]

I'm glad recruitment is going so well for you!

Just so you know, though, the NPC governing body is Panhellenic; Pan-Hellenic is for NPHC.

[thetygerlily]

Sounds like things went really well for you and being a transfer student didn't hold you back. I hope you're enjoying the night with new sisters in Delta Gamma or Alpha Phi!

[tangelo212]

Great story! You know who I'm rooting for...

My little little's biological sister is a UCLA Alpha Phi alumna! They are awesome! Woo!

[myopicsunflower]

I hope you are having a terrific night!

[Smile_Awhile]

I'm curious as to what happened during the info round for Alpha Chi- if you'd care to share, I'd love to hear! I've been so excited for the recolonization at our Alpha Psi chapter!

[WVU alpha phi]

Keeping my fingers crossed for an Alpha Phi ending!

I also preffed Alpha Phi and DG.. on the opposite coast though.

[ASUADPi]

I love, love, love your story! The main reason, because you didn't give codes!!!!!! You are honest but not critical of chapters. I love it!!!!!

I don't know, but something tells me that you put DG first and Alpha Phi second . Either way I hope you are happy (and I have a feeling you will be).

[AnchorAlum]

Keeping my fingers crossed for you!

Hi everyone,

Thank you bostongreek for clarifying that for me

thetygerlily- being a jr transfer made me a little nervous but all the girls i talked to made me feel better and eased my nerves telling me it wouldn't hurt my chances of getting a bid.

Smile Awhile- they had girls come from local chapters to talk about their involvement with a chi o. there was a video talking about what a chi o was and the different things they did as far as philanthropy goes. they also had poster boards with pictures from different social events around. if i was a freshman i probably would have thought more about joining it would be a great leadership opportunity

all of you alpha phi girls- thank you for your word of encouragement and everything. the chapter at ucla is amazing and all of the girls seemed to really love being an alpha phi however i have to say..

i am now a DELTA GAMMMA!

it was a very very tough decision and if i ended up in alpha phi i would be just as happy as i am now.

i am sooo happy to be a dg now! recruitment was a long tough but wonderful experience that i am happy i don't have to go through again (at least on this side of things)

again, thank you all who posted messages!

xoxo

[sceniczip]

Yay! DG ending!

[Jill1228]

I was pulling for an APhi ending too. But it's all good! Congrats to you and DG! That's awesome. One of the girls in the chapter I help advise transferred from Chico and did COB here. She was only at Chico for one semester and GTFO!

[33girl]

Congrats on DG!!!

Rush story writers, this is the way to do it.

[Jill1228]

Originally Posted by 33girl

Congrats on DG!!!

Rush story writers, this is the way to do it.

Yeah, what she said!
Again, congrats to you and DG

Thank you everyone!!

I am so excited to see what this quarter will bring