Sororities!

Colleges and Universities A-Z The University of Texas at Austin
1

<p>Ill be a freshman in the fall and was wondering how hard it was to rush/get in to a sorority!
Ive heard rumors about it being super crazy and hard to get in unless you have connections. Which ones are also at the top and what do they look for in the "perfect" sorority girl? Also, how do you stay a member/ what are the fees, etc?</p>

2

<p>You will need letters of recommendations for each chapter. Don’t get caught up in which are at the top. Keep an open mind and be yourself.</p>

3

<p>Check out the UT Panhellenic’s website at texaspanhellenic.org for most rush info. You also might want to check out the Alumnae Panhellenic site for your neighborhood. You really need to start getting your rec letters now or you’re going to get cut from most of the houses on the first day.</p>

4

<p>There’s no real top per-se it’s really a mutual selection process, you’ll find a house that fits you, it just depends on how receptive you are to them. But you should really work on getting the rec letters in as soon as possible or else you’ll be cut early from most houses.</p>

5

<p>I do not know what you need to do to get in but I know two things that you should not do: 1) Don’t drink too much at fraternity parties during orientation; people will be watching you, and 2) Don’t rule out houses; be open minded.</p>

<p>I know a smart, friendly/outgoing, and absolutely gorgeous freshman woman who was disappointed not to get a bid at the end of sorority rush last fall. She could not figure out why. It is hard for me to understand why women put themselves through this but I recognize that for some, Greek life is a big part of the college experience. It has been suggested that incoming freshmen might find helpful information on UT sorority and fraternity recruiting on GreekChat.com If you go to that site, be very careful not to post anything that could identify you. Good luck.</p>

6

<p>MY d rushed this past year. She was offered only one bid. Fortunately, it was the one bid she wanted from the start. It was the only recommendation she got. She knew from Roundup that was what she wanted.
She knew little about the process, and was from oos. She communicated with members of the sorority, and worked all the angles. She was given a bid.</p>

<p>She had a great frosh year. Neither my wife nor I could relate to the greek experience. In hindsight, it was a great decision for our d. She made friends even before classes started. She had an instant social life and friends. It made a large school small. She is an advocate of the system.
In summation, if you are interested, go for it with gusto. Greek life may not be for everyone. For those who embrace it, it can provide lifelong friends and memories.</p>

7

<p>@OP, also, the way to remain a member is gonna be to stay throughout the pledge process and become initiated. and the dues for each sorority depends on different variables, they should have a break down on the panhellenic site, but that’s not a question you should ask during rush itself unless an active at the sorority is the one bringing it up.</p>

8

<p>so youre saying i should just wait a year, make some connections, then rush? cause i missed the deadline to pay for rush for the fall.
and i really have no connections because my family is from connecticut. no where near UT</p>

9

<p>you wouldn’t have to wait a year, some sororities hold a spring/winter rush in january and give out bids to girls they know and like, so if you can establish a friendship with a girl in a sorority, you may not have to wait until next fall.</p>

10

<p>longhornshbr15, since you are from out of state, the sorority rush process at UT will be more of a challenge for you. If you are not rushing the week before school starts this fall, once school starts, you might want to try out for one of the spirit groups. Those have a sorority feel to them and the women in them seem to have a lot of fun with them - and you don’t need letters of recommendation. Here are two previous threads on these -

11

<p>None of the respected houses hold winter/spring rush. I don’t know about outside panhellenic though…</p>

12

<p>The deadline for sorority recuitment is hardly over. It runs through August 17th:
[Office</a> of the Dean of Students - Greek Life and Intercultural Education - Joining an Organization - UPC Recruiting](<a href=“http://deanofstudents.utexas.edu/glie/join_upc_recruit.php]Office”>http://deanofstudents.utexas.edu/glie/join_upc_recruit.php)</p>

13

<p>Socaldad, every girl that goes through formal rush will only receive one bid (if she receives a bid). She ranks her top three preferences and is given a bid to the house that she ranks highest that had her within their list for quota (there is a big complicated formula that the National Panhellenic sets that UT has to follow). Unless she does informal rush or picks up a snap bid, she can only get one bid.</p>

<p>The deadline for registering with UT and the deadline for an Alumnae Panhellenic are two vastly different things. There is boatloads of paperwork to be filled out by both the potential new member and the alumnae recommending her. Then, each house has to have adaquate time to look over your paperwork before rush.</p>

<p>If you wait til the deadline, you will be allowed to go through rush, but you will almost certainly get cut at just about every house the first day. There are a lot of girls to go through and not enough time to get to know them all, so it’s just easiest for them to cut the girls whose paperwork is not in order.</p>

<p>I will say the vast majority of girls do fall rush their first semester in college. A few rush as sophomores, but it’s not that common. Quite a few houses have a house policy to cut sophomores automatically (again, because they have so many to go through) or to cut girls who have already gone through rush (because if they weren’t XYZ material the first time, they won’t be XYZ material this time). Most sophomore girls who rush already know which house they’ll end up in because their friends in that house encouraged them to rush and basically guaranteed them a bid unofficially.</p>

<p>Spring rush is only offered by a few houses (I’d guess maybe 5 of the 13), and the girls who go through this tend to be girls that didn’t know anything about the rush process to begin with, and therefore really couldn’t rush, rather than girls that intentionally wait until spring.</p>

<p>If your daughter is even considering rushing, she should get her paperwork in order and at least go to the open houses the first days of rush. If at that point she still isn’t certain, she can drop and either look at a spirit group or meet girls and find if there’s a house she wants to pledge as a sophomore or spring pledge.</p>

14

<p>I don’t think you’ve missed the deadline for the fall. check the UT panhellenic website. $70 to register - goes up in July.</p>

15

<p>I was just at parent orientation yesterday and attended the Greek meeting. The panhellenic representative said that she spoke to all of the chapters and they will take rec letters up until the first week in August…however…she did state that the earlier the better and that if a girl waits until late July/early August to get her paperwork in, she is not going to get as thorough a look as those that got thier paperwork in earlier. She did “highly” recommend at least 2-3 letters of support for each house but no more than 5.</p>

16

<p>no more than five for each house…
good heavens…</p>

17

<p>^^^That’s what I said…but apparently there are some girls that get 10 or more…she said that if you are one of those girls then shecan guarantee that you already have a nickname :)</p>

18

<p>ok thanks again! how much is it for the entire year to stay in the sorority? ive heard that it can get pricey.</p>

19

<p>There is a range…but for the most part, your first year will be close to 3000.00</p>

20

<p>alright. how much is it to be in the spirit groups?</p>