Quote Originally Posted by Pokemon Trainer Sarah View Post
I never really got the whole "greek life" thing going on at colleges in the US. All I've seen from it on movies and documentaries make it seem like it's only about partying and doing crazy/dangerous stuff, which doesn't look fun to me. xD How do they decide if they want you to join or not? I don't get it at all haha. But if it's what you want, then I hope it works out for you Noble! :D
Okay so, in the movies, generally they only show the sororities that are non-panhellenic endorsed. They're "official sororities" but they don't follow any of the rules that legitimate sororities follow. Actual sororities, like the ones I'm rushing for, do service work, host fundraisers, and while they do have parties they're generally much tamer than what you see in the movies. Fraternities are exactly like what you see in the movies, but sororities? Maybe in other parts of the country, but not here.

So it's a bit different depending on where you live but in the south they take about four days (two weekends) and you and everyone else that is rushing are put through a series of interviews that last about 2 minutes for the first two days. That's round one. Once you pass round one, you do the same thing again but this time you talk about their philanthropy, aka what they do for service work, and then if you get past that (which I didn't and I'll come back to that in a minute), you go to rounds three and four which are like actual interviews. The sorority members vote on you based on recommendations either from alumni and current members as well as what they've seen of you during and outside of rush. It's very much a who you know rather than what you know system. So going back to the rounds thing, it's considered a HIGH HIGH HIGH shame to be released, especially prior to third round. It's like wearing a Scarlet Letter. Backing out is one thing, but being released (which is what happened to me) gives the implication that there's something wrong with you. So I've pretty much been marked as a "no bid" because of how early I was released.

In addition, a sorority has a certain number of girls it can take per rushing season, and if they don't take enough girls they can do what's called a Continuous Open Bid, or COB for short. This is where they meet you in a much more relaxed setting and get to know you more on a personal level. I was invited to one of these after being released initially back in August, and was just attending another session this past week. To put it simply, getting released prior to round three is bad, but not as bad as being refused a bid for COB. It's pretty much them saying they'd rather not make quota (and therefore not get as much money to spend on events in the future) than have you in their sorority. It looks awful.

And then the third and rarest type of recruitment is colonization, which I also went through this past September/October. In this, you go through a series of interviews, first a one on one and then a group interview and then some third round before they decide if they want you or not. Generally you are interviewed by alumni of that sorority from other colleges because colonization means that sorority doesn't exist on campus yet so there's not any existing members from that campus to interview you like in actual rush. I got booted after second round here as well, and while it's not particularly awful to get kicked here because generally it's much higher stakes and usually they take upperclassmen, to have been rejected through four different rounds of recruitment looks absolutely awful. And they keep records of this stuff so all the sororities can look up your past rushing information and see everything you've gone through, and that also factors into their decision. It's why I can't lie about anything if they ask me, because they can simply look it up.

Quote Originally Posted by Chakramaster View Post
The whole "vow of silence" thing is pretty terrible. Especially if they don't want you ladies to feel so bad. It would only help you understand things better if it's something you can fix and improve upon. Well hoping the best for you, Noble. It's never fun wanting something only to constantly be denied. I remember that feeling all too well. If it gets you down too much you can talk to us about it =0 I'm always up to talking with friends to help cheer them up. So if you need to talk wth someone hit me with a PM or VM. =D

Seems like the work field in general is about to have some adjustments. Both improvements and a big turn. My dad had that happen to him a few years back even though he was one of those that did and put forth more work that most of the others. Hope it doesn't take that route though. Then the job search would be even tougher on him.
I appreciate that. I'm still a bit disappointed but I'm mostly over it. It is what it is.

Oh that's right your father works for Bowing right? That's one of my dad's competitors! My dad has issues a few years ago too, possibly for the same reasons. He didn't get laid off but we were worried because he had worked there so long and they fired someone who worked almost as long as he did. Though, even if my dad doesn't get fired, his coworkers in Mexico could get laid off which is even worse. X.X