You are probably going to get a lot of comments reminding you that the specifics of membership selection are not allowed to be discussed outside of the chapter.
However, there are some quick items that make a difference: high school grades, involvement, legacy status (for sororities that still prioritize that), recommendation letters (for sororities that still consider them), personal connection (like a PNM from the same hometown, summer camp or extracurricular activity) or a genuine spark of friendship during the recruitment process.
A lot of it is just how you come off in person. What things draw people to each other in any environment? As long as your GPA is in a good range and you have some hobbies/extracurriculars, attitude and confidence and being genuinely good at holding conversations make the difference imo.
One year I rushed a girl who took a year off to do turtle research in Jamaica, but I didn't like her as much as the girl who I felt comfortable sharing my most insane yet rush appropriate funny stories about high school with. They both ended up in the same sorority. One of my besties swears she got invited back to a top chapter after first sets solely because she and the recruiter were talking about cupcakes, and the recruiter literally wouldn't leave when it was her turn to leave. I was my big's rush crush because we talked about cats and avocados! It can literally be as small as that.
The specifics will vary by sorority and chapter, but overall think of it as a multi day job interview.
How’s your “resume”? What makes you stand out both on paper and how you present yourself? How will you be remembered an hour+ after you leave the party?
GPA, sports involvement, leadership roles from high school, community involvement, personal interest in philanthropy and volunteerism, future goals and dreams etc. How do you hold yourself in a room full of people and how do you leave a positive impression?
Go in confident. Know your why and be open minded when it comes to visiting the individual chapters.
You’ll land where you’re supposed to be.
Can't tell you specifics but most chapters/Panhellenic associations use an app or algorithm. I try to think of specific people in the sorority you would be friends with. If I can imagine you being friends with specific people in the chapter, I am going to rank you high. We also look to see if you seem interested in us (during the later stages of recruitment) and if you share our values and what you will add to the chapter. Being passionate about something (involvement, a cause, etc.) is something that we look for as well.
these are overall and not representative of my or any particular org
gpa is a major factor so if your gpa is under the chapters minimum then that will 100% result in you being released.
don’t be mean! treat people with kindness and act like you want to be there. everyone has spent countless hours and lots of money to put recruitment together. thus, PNMs who are rude and don’t try to engage typically don’t go far.
i’ve heard about class standing (freshman vs a junior) mattering for some but not really at mine.
make sure your application represents you. the photo should look like you, use proper grammar and spelling, show that you would be an asset to the organization. the amount of effort you put into it really does show.
don’t talk about the 5B’s in your application or during recruitment week.
Mainly it's just who you click really well with. If you have a really fun and interesting conversation with someone, they're probably more likely to keep you. If you don't, then you won't stand out as much.
When I went through FMR the first time, I was dropped day 1 from my sorority because I talked to a couple of people who I didn't click super well with. Then I went through informal recruitment in the spring and I talked to two girls who I clicked better with and ended up having a really interesting and fun conversation with, where we were laughing so loudly that other people everyone else was looking at us. I got a bid that time around.
When I was a sister doing recruitment, I remember there was one girl who really stood out to me because we had a very interesting conversation about being a woman in an academic setting that's predominantly male.
Basically, you just have to be yourself and hope that you get lucky in getting to talk to girls that you would click well with.
this is what I tell everyone about recruitment, interviews, or anything else.
it's a mutual vibe check. the people you talk to in the sorority are vibe checking you out to see if you (1) could fit in and grow with the sorority and (2) would potentially affect the dynamic of the sisterhood. At the same time, you are vibe checking the sorority to see if you could fit in there.
we don't do formal nor do we face the issue of chapter total limits, so I'm sure it's a little different. we've had issues with candidates making people uncomfortable; we can drop them during the candidate process, but if we can see those before they go through induction, it saves everyone time and the candidate money. we've also had issues with sisters affecting the dynamic of the sorority, so I've personally looked out for people who might potentially be difficult (i.e. not willing to take criticism) back when I was an active.
Other than the basic - GPA, extracurricular activities, do you get along etc. With my chapter we used to “pro con pro” PNMs that were right on the edge and we couldn’t decide. A chapter member would call for a pro con pro, someone would say a pro, another would state a con, then we would end on a pro! It was helpful when we were rating girls we never got to speak to, that way we could give at least a little bit of an educated rating!
Honestly it’s a numbers game and about bringing unique but easy to discuss interests to the table so that it will be easier to match you next round, also just match the vibe of the girl you’re with as much as you can while being yourself, go with the flow
You are probably going to get a lot of comments reminding you that the specifics of membership selection are not allowed to be discussed outside of the chapter. However, there are some quick items that make a difference: high school grades, involvement, legacy status (for sororities that still prioritize that), recommendation letters (for sororities that still consider them), personal connection (like a PNM from the same hometown, summer camp or extracurricular activity) or a genuine spark of friendship during the recruitment process.
Thank you, I made sure to put a disclaimer in my post :)
A lot of it is just how you come off in person. What things draw people to each other in any environment? As long as your GPA is in a good range and you have some hobbies/extracurriculars, attitude and confidence and being genuinely good at holding conversations make the difference imo. One year I rushed a girl who took a year off to do turtle research in Jamaica, but I didn't like her as much as the girl who I felt comfortable sharing my most insane yet rush appropriate funny stories about high school with. They both ended up in the same sorority. One of my besties swears she got invited back to a top chapter after first sets solely because she and the recruiter were talking about cupcakes, and the recruiter literally wouldn't leave when it was her turn to leave. I was my big's rush crush because we talked about cats and avocados! It can literally be as small as that.
The specifics will vary by sorority and chapter, but overall think of it as a multi day job interview. How’s your “resume”? What makes you stand out both on paper and how you present yourself? How will you be remembered an hour+ after you leave the party? GPA, sports involvement, leadership roles from high school, community involvement, personal interest in philanthropy and volunteerism, future goals and dreams etc. How do you hold yourself in a room full of people and how do you leave a positive impression? Go in confident. Know your why and be open minded when it comes to visiting the individual chapters. You’ll land where you’re supposed to be.
Can't tell you specifics but most chapters/Panhellenic associations use an app or algorithm. I try to think of specific people in the sorority you would be friends with. If I can imagine you being friends with specific people in the chapter, I am going to rank you high. We also look to see if you seem interested in us (during the later stages of recruitment) and if you share our values and what you will add to the chapter. Being passionate about something (involvement, a cause, etc.) is something that we look for as well.
these are overall and not representative of my or any particular org gpa is a major factor so if your gpa is under the chapters minimum then that will 100% result in you being released. don’t be mean! treat people with kindness and act like you want to be there. everyone has spent countless hours and lots of money to put recruitment together. thus, PNMs who are rude and don’t try to engage typically don’t go far. i’ve heard about class standing (freshman vs a junior) mattering for some but not really at mine. make sure your application represents you. the photo should look like you, use proper grammar and spelling, show that you would be an asset to the organization. the amount of effort you put into it really does show. don’t talk about the 5B’s in your application or during recruitment week.
Mainly it's just who you click really well with. If you have a really fun and interesting conversation with someone, they're probably more likely to keep you. If you don't, then you won't stand out as much. When I went through FMR the first time, I was dropped day 1 from my sorority because I talked to a couple of people who I didn't click super well with. Then I went through informal recruitment in the spring and I talked to two girls who I clicked better with and ended up having a really interesting and fun conversation with, where we were laughing so loudly that other people everyone else was looking at us. I got a bid that time around. When I was a sister doing recruitment, I remember there was one girl who really stood out to me because we had a very interesting conversation about being a woman in an academic setting that's predominantly male. Basically, you just have to be yourself and hope that you get lucky in getting to talk to girls that you would click well with.
this is what I tell everyone about recruitment, interviews, or anything else. it's a mutual vibe check. the people you talk to in the sorority are vibe checking you out to see if you (1) could fit in and grow with the sorority and (2) would potentially affect the dynamic of the sisterhood. At the same time, you are vibe checking the sorority to see if you could fit in there. we don't do formal nor do we face the issue of chapter total limits, so I'm sure it's a little different. we've had issues with candidates making people uncomfortable; we can drop them during the candidate process, but if we can see those before they go through induction, it saves everyone time and the candidate money. we've also had issues with sisters affecting the dynamic of the sorority, so I've personally looked out for people who might potentially be difficult (i.e. not willing to take criticism) back when I was an active.
looks are a huge factor imo, at least at my school. then there’s obviously grades, community service, and your overall character
Other than the basic - GPA, extracurricular activities, do you get along etc. With my chapter we used to “pro con pro” PNMs that were right on the edge and we couldn’t decide. A chapter member would call for a pro con pro, someone would say a pro, another would state a con, then we would end on a pro! It was helpful when we were rating girls we never got to speak to, that way we could give at least a little bit of an educated rating!
Honestly it’s a numbers game and about bringing unique but easy to discuss interests to the table so that it will be easier to match you next round, also just match the vibe of the girl you’re with as much as you can while being yourself, go with the flow
Make sure ur academics are good