FALL 08 RUSH (any & all advice needed)

tallylassie · #1 10-09-2007, 12:42 AM

Currently, I'm at a community college, & I will be transferring to a university in fall 08. I know FOR SURE without a doubt that I will be rushing next fall. It's something I've thought long & hard about for a while, & I know it's what I want to do.

I also know that going into rush as a Junior at a university with a very competitive rush is a disadvantage. Yeah, got all that. I still know it's what I want to do.

I have a good friend in a sorority (for purposes, we'll call it House A), & one of my best friends is currently pledging another (House B). Neither was a house that I thought I would ever want to do, but the more I get to know all of the girls, the more & more I fall in love with both sororities & the sisters.

Both take a good number of transfer/older (jr & sr) girls every year, so that's not something I'm worried about. I click well with everyone that I've met from both houses. The more time I spend with my friends and at House A, the more & more I LOVE it. I'm open to most houses on campus, but these are my 2 absolute favorites. (my picks: House A=#1, House B=#2)

Knowing the back story, here's my question. Is it a good idea for me to try to get in with the girls in both houses (esp House A) before I rush next fall? Since I do have good friends in both houses, what would be the best things for me to do to get to know more girls? What is the best way for me to make a good, LASTING impression before fall rush?

I know fall rush is forever away, but this is something that I know I want to experience in college. I want to make the best impression as possible & increase my chances as much as I can. Any help I can get would be a huge benefit to me! THANK YOU in advance!!!

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violetpretty · #2 10-09-2007, 01:00 AM

I wouldn't try to be too pushy by inviting yourself to hang out at either house. If you are good friends with girls in these chapters, you are going to hang out with them anyway, right? When you are hanging out with a friend (be it getting some lunch, dinner, ice cream, bar, movie, shopping) ask her to invite a couple of sisters along too. They'll get to know you in the most authentic way possible, by seeing you be you in situations that you'd be in anyway. Once you've met a few extra sisters from A and B, if they invite you for dinner or TV or whatnot, it'll seem more natural than "Hi I am a PNM".

ETA: Sounds like you'll need recs too.

FSUZeta · #3 10-09-2007, 07:51 AM

one of the best ways to get to know a lot of girls in a particular house is to attend lunch or dinner at the house. i'm talking occasional meals, not weekly.

while you can't directly assist them in the fundraising/philanthrophy efforts, you can support their cause by purchasing a ticket, buying a brownie or running in their race.

be on your best behavior-don't do something to ruin your chances of receiving a bid.

KSUViolet06 · #4 10-09-2007, 12:27 PM

I'd try to be natural. Don't be that annoying girl whom they know is only trying to hang with them because she's rushing. If they invite you to hang out, by all means go. But don't force it by inviting yourself to hang out all the time. Also understand that having good friends in a sorority doesn't guarantee you a bid there. You could hang out with them all year long until fall recruitment, and get droppd by them after day one. So don't think that just because you hang out with them all the time, that you'll automatically get a bid there next fall.

If rush is competitive, be sure that you have recommendations to as many of the sororities as possible. Also, since you are a jr at a competitive rush, I'd make sure to go into recruitment with an open mind. Be open to considering all the sororities, and don't focus too much on just House A or B. Think about it, those are 2 out of an entire sorority community and you don't want to be so focused on those 2 that you don't give the others a shot.

AlwaysSAI · #5 10-09-2007, 12:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KSUViolet06

Also understand that having good friends in a sorority doesn't guarantee you a bid there.

I was hoping someone would say that.

tallylassie · #6 10-11-2007, 11:49 PM

Thank you for the advice so far! Right now I have at least 2 bids lined up for House A & at least 1 for House B. I was actually invited to both houses for lunch or dinner, but I wasn't sure if I would come across as trying too hard to get a foot in the door.

So lunch, dinner at the house is an okay thing? Also, when I'm there, if I get asked if I'll be rushing next year (I always get asked by Greeks that I meet when I find out that I'm transfering) what do I say?

EDIT: Yeah, I wrote this super late at night. Definately did not mean bid, sorry about the confusion!! What I meant to type way that I currently have at least 2 recs for House A & at least 1 rec for House B. I've got my terms down, just wasn't thinking that late at night =]

KSUViolet06 · #7 10-11-2007, 11:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tallylassie

Thank you for the advice so far! Right now I have at least 2 bids lined up for House A & at least 1 for House B. I was actually invited to both houses for lunch or dinner, but I wasn't sure if I would come across as trying too hard to get a foot in the door.

So lunch, dinner at the house is an okay thing? Also, when I'm there, if I get asked if I'll be rushing next year (I always get asked by Greeks that I meet when I find out that I'm transfering) what do I say?

Just so you know, since you seem a little confused about some terminology:

A BID is an invitation to JOIN THE SORORITY. It's a piece of paper saying "We want you to be our sister." You do not have a bid, you've just been invited to dinner. Going to lunch or dinner at a sorority does not guarantee that you will get a bid (invitation to be a sister) from them next year during rush.

If asked whether you're rushing, just be honest. Saying that you're rushing doesn't imply that you want to join a specific sorority, just that you're going through rush.

FSUZeta · #8 10-12-2007, 09:02 AM

if asked whether you will be rushing tell them the truth. something like"yes, i am planning on rushing. i am looking forward to it."

and to carry ksuviolets06 thoughts a little further, no one(not even the president of a sorority chapter) can guarantee a girl will get a bid. if some of your friends in the 2 sororities you have your eyes on have told you that you are in for sure, just tell them how thrilled you are, and then know that this is not true. the sorority members probably know that every one seems to like you and it appears that you would be a good fit for their chapter, but when it comes around to membership selection time, crazy things happen all the time.

girls have dropped out of rush because a sorority member told them that while they could not offer them a bid during formal recruitment(too many legacies, need more beauty queens, etc) if the pnm would drop out and go thru cob, they could give them a bid then. guess what happens? pnm drops out, waiting to be invited to sorority's cob parties and receiving bid;meanwhile sorority has great rush, pledges quota and is over total, so hold no cob parties. pnm is out in the cold. so, short story long, until you have the bid in your hand, don't trust a bid promise!

FSUZeta · #9 10-12-2007, 09:07 AM

some advice on recommendations: visit the tallahassee alumnae panhellenic website-they may hold an information meeting in the spring for girls wanting to go thru rush in the fall. they may have a recommendation committee who help girls secure recs.

adpiucf · #10 10-12-2007, 07:45 PM

Don't worry about recruitment for now. Just enjoy spending time with your new friends in the sororities.

At recruitment next fall, your grades and activities, as well as your social reputation, will speak volumes for you. Keep your GPA up and get involved with a community or campus activity or two this year. Also, don't embarrass yourself socially at parties or at night spots off campus. This goes double for the way you behave around members of the opposite sex. Your reputation precedes you when you are an upperclassman.

When you go through recruitment, go in with an open mind to all of the chapters at your school. Just because Susie joined House A and Jenny joined House B doesn't mean you will receive a bid to either one. No matter what anyone tells you. And/Or, once you get to recruitment, you may find you really like House C, a chapter you knew nothing about before.

Enjoy your time with your new friends, and take it as that-- friendship. If you're always talking about recruitment with them or announcing your daydreams of being their sorority sister, they're going to see you as having an ulterior motive. By hanging out with them, you're not a "pseudo-sister" or an "almost sister"-- you're just friends with a group of girls who happen to belong to a club on campus. Be normal, be natural, don't be a weirdo stalker. If anyone brings up, "Are you rushing?" "Wouldn't it be so great if you joined ABC?" it is certainly ok to let them know you are going through recruitment next year and you love the ABC's. Just don't linger over it needlessly.

Good luck and have fun this year!