My University of Alabama 2012 Rush Story :)
 

I am an out of state girl really excited about the whole rush process! I will update everyday of how it went :)


2012 Alabama Rush

Day 1: Ice Water Teas
Weather was very decent today, a little humid (which means my hair got a little frizzy :( ). I think I had a great first day, and I got to meet many amazing young women from every sorority I visited. Today, I visited 8 sororities out of 16. I will visit the other 8 tomorrow. To keep the name of the sorority secret, I will name a country in place of the sorority name. For example, I would use Genovia (The made up country used in Princess Diaries) for Delta Nu (which is the made up sorority Elle Woods is a member of in Legally blonde :) )
Germany- This was my first house. I really enjoyed talking to the girls. They seemed very well rounded and I enjoyed the short twenty minutes I was in this house. I would certainly want to come back. The only bad thing was the room where we spoke to the girls was very small, so it was very hard to hear and understand what was being said sometimes.
Canada- I loved this house. The girl who picked me up at the door stayed with me almost the entire time, and then was replaced by a sister who was from a city not far from me. They seemed very interested in what I had to say, and I felt very comfortable there. I want to learn more about this house!
France- I really enjoyed how all the girls had the same color dress, but different style. That showed me that they are all united as one house, but have their own style and personality. I loved how the girl who picked me up had a conversation about her sorority, rather than the questions that I was asked a million times a day such as “Where are you from?” and “Why did you choose Alabama?” I would certainly want to come back
England- I really enjoyed their door song! I thought it was cute. One of the girls who spoke to me said she remembered me from Preview Day, even though I didn’t exactly remember her. I got a very calm and “chill” vibe from this house, in which I really enjoyed. Unfortunately, something didn’t exactly click. I felt more like a guest in the house. I don’t think I would come back to this house
Spain- This was by far my favorite house of the day. Their door song was so cool, and I felt so welcomed the moment I walked in. The girl who picked me up kept the conversation well, and she seemed like she was focused on me and not what else was going on the room. At one point, I had this girl along with two other sisters talking to me at the same time. I felt like I could easily belong in this house. I have their goodbye door song stuck in my head at the moment. I would certainly want to come back to this house!
China- This house was my least favorite. I enjoyed the energy of the welcome when the Judicial Board member said “GO!” to start the twenty minute time frame. The girl who picked me up bounced me to another sister, then to another, and then to the third sister, in which I finally had a good conversation with. They ended the conversation awkwardly, and then the next sister would ask the same question the previous one asked you. It was a little annoying. I don’t think I would like to return to this house.
Australia- I was presently surprised by this house. When they opened the door, I thought this house would be too preppy for me. I was proved wrong quickly! I LOVED how they took us through a mini tour of the house. Seeing where they actually sleep and hang out gave me a good picture, and allowed me to see myself being in this house. The girl who I picked me up at the door was very nice, we had a lot of common interests. It wasn’t too loud. I loved this house and I would want to come back again!
Mexico- This was my last house of the day. I was a little tired, but I kept my smile on my face and I kept going. I got a good vibe from this house, but it didn’t really stand out. I had a nice conversation with a few of the sisters, but it wasn’t anything super special. I would give this house a second chance.

After seeing 8 houses my ranking in the first 8 is:
Spain
Canada
Australia
France
Mexico
England
China

More on the other 8 Ice Water Teas tomorrow!

What happened to Germany on your list?

She probably just forgot to list it.

Ice Water Teas Day 2!
 

Sorry everyone, the order yesterday should have been this:

Spain
Canada
Australia
Germany
France
Mexico
England
China

Day 2 was nice, I enjoyed almost every sorority I visited, and the weather was a little hot, but not as bad as the day before.

The Netherlands- This was the first house I visited. I absolutely loved this house! The girls all wore the same color dress, but in different styles, in which I loved! I had two great conversations with the girls I spoke two, and I felt very comfortable at this house. It was also great to see a variety of girls in this house too. I certainly want to come back to this house!

Portugal- I was very intimidated when the doors open to begin the door songs because ALL of the girls were SO gorgeous! The girl who picked me up at the door was wonderful. She was very easy to talk to, and we talked a lot about the cute British divers in the olympics. :D I loved the decor of the house, and I want to see more of this sorority!

Brazil- I felt comfortable at this house. Both of the girls I talked to seemed very genuine and one of them had a connection to my hometown, which was really cool! This sorority didn't stand out as much as the others, but I would want to come back.

Norway- I also loved this house. The house was decorated in my favorite colors, and all the girls were dressed in one of my favorite designers. The girl who picked me up at the door was very nice and I had a good conversation with her. I want to go back to this sorority!

Sweden- This was my favorite house of the day! All of the girls had different personalities and different style, which I loved seeing. The girls I talked to seemed really easy going, which is a quality I love. I could see myself sitting in their living room as a member! No doubt I want to learn more about this group :)

Japan- I loved the actual house of this group, but I didn't feel a connection. The girl I spoke with was so nice, and we talked the entire time without any awkward pauses. Something just didn't quite click, and would rather not visit this house again.

Russia- This was my least favorite house of the day. The girl I had was a little awkward, and couldn't carry a conversation well. It was already loud enough when I was having my conversation, then all of the sudden they starting playing REALLY loud music. I didn't really feel a connection in this house.

South Korea- This was my last house of the day! I absolutely loved this house. The actual house and the girls. I loved seeing the variety of girls, and it was so nice to speak with girls from my area. Funny thing was we had a couple of friends in common! I can't wait to see more from this house!

We had to pick our top 12 and then cut 4.

My top 12 (in no order) was:

Germany
Canada
Spain
Australia
Mexico
The Netherlands
Portugal
Brazil
Norway
Sweden
Russia
South Korea

The 4 I cut:

France
England
China
Japan


Today I start the Philanthropy round, and I'm SO excited to see which houses invited me back!

Just to clarify- you aren't "cutting" chapters. You are clustering the chapters that you most want to return to, and then ranking the remaining chapters. In the event that not all of your clustered chapters offer you an invitation to second round, the computer will go to your ranked list to help you have a full schedule. It will first check to see if your first ranked group offered you an invite, and if so, you will be returning there. If not, it will check to see if the second ranked group, and so on.

Rooting for The Netherlands! Good luck during recruitment

I apologize for the incorrect wording, you said it better. I was wording it how my Sigma Rho Chi's worded it. Rush has been delayed today because of weather and technical difficulties! :(

I'll root for Germany!

And all of us alumnae are mentally throwing daggers at your Rho Chi for giving you not just wrong but damaging information. Girls get really upset when they keep getting invited back to the houses they "cut." If they understood the process better, I believe they wouldn't feel so bad. The other part that seems to be taken from this is that somehow they got invited back to the house they cut OVER a house they wanted. This is simply untrue. Your ranked (or cut) chapters only get used when your schedule is not yet full. How can we get these girls, as experts, to get their facts right?

Philanthropy Day 1!
 

After 8 hours of waiting through computer difficulties and bad weather, I finally got the card that would tell me what houses invited me back! It was a long wait, but totally worth it! When I looked at my card, I noticed that 7 houses invited me back. Going from 16 to 7 houses was a bit of a jump, but the 7 houses that invited me back I enjoyed. I didn't get invited back to a couple of my favorite houses from yesterday, but I then realized that they probably weren't the best fit for me. Here are the houses that invited me back:

Germany
England
Spain
The Netherlands
Brazil
Sweden
South Korea

Today, I went to Sweden, South Korea, and Germany.

Sweden- I really enjoyed the theme of this house. It was original and really cool! I loved their personality, and I certainly could see myself hanging out with those girls.

South Korea- This house was my favorite today. The girls were so sweet and genuine. It gave me goosebumps to hear about their philanthropy. Their passion for their philanthropy certainly showed, and it made me want to be apart of it! I really hope I get invited back to this house. :)

Germany- This was the last house I went to for the day. The girls were so relaxed and easy to talk to. Their philanthropy hit home because I have a family member who is effected by their philanthropy. I really liked this house, and I hope to see more from them.

tomorrow I will visit England, Spain, The Netherlands, and Brazil!

Sorry if I'm a Debbie Downer...
 

hazeleyes, I'm going to make a suggestion, because you're a good writer. I would put all of your thoughts in Word or whatever, and then post the rest AFTER the end of Recruitment. Too many sororities are wise to GreekChat, and just in case you slip and mention an identifying clue to a chapter, it's better for you to post your story when you (hopefully!) have your bid in hand.

Yay for Germany still in the running!

Update?

I second this!

Hoping she comes back for an update!