Thanks for the bump on this one. I am another one of these statistic geeks that find this discussion fascinating. Wondering if anyone has any thoughts on how going virtual is going to help or hinder these WRCs this year?

I think that it will definitely help them during during open house & philanthropy rounds. They can put together some great videos and give the PNMs a good look at the fact that every chapter has the same type of events and offers sisterhood, friendship and a group of friends to be their home on campus.

BUT - I think that there may be a much larger number of girls dropping out of recruitment altogether once they get their invitations back and can’t understand why they were dropped from 50% of the chapters based on an intro video they turned in and haven’t actually met any of those “mid-tier” or WRCs in person.

That's a good point.

Lots of PNMs don't understand that especially at big schools, cuts are often made ahead of time. They have to be. You can't discuss 1000 girls in one night. Also, some schools don't make it clear that the sororities are really in charge of cutting until maybe prefs. The websites say things about when the girls make their selections and don't really talk about how heavy the first cuts are, due to RFM.

THIS! And how many times do we hear girls say "I kept ranking Houses A and B last so why did I get invitations back from them? I don't want them". As if the low ranking meant those houses would drop off their list. I've known less than a handful who 'wrote their own ticket' - like a fantastic girl from Jackson, MS who rushed at Ole Miss where every top and mid tier sorority wanted her. Her final two houses (considered tops per campus reputation) were in a dog fight for her. I think the language used when I rushed (late 70's) made it clear we weren't choosing, the sororities were (except maybe at pref) because I never once thought I got to pick. I knew I'd be fortunate to have a house invite me back and ultimately extend a bid.

I agree with Carnation that many girls don't understand how cuts (as we called them) work after the first round and they can be severe from the larger, most popular houses. That said, I think many girls may drop for the reasons you point out. I also think virtual rush could help the girls who are overwhelmed by the noise, tent talk and crowds - they could shine in the virtual setting so we could see more of that personality making it through than in previous times.

My wife and I were talking about this and she mentioned this point: In some ways it may be much easier for girls to drop out after the first (or any virtual) round.

It may well be because they were released from the mythical “top” houses, but they’ll say: “I just don’t come across well on a screen. They didn’t get a chance to meet the “real” me. I always do better in person, etc. etc.” Then they’ll use any of these to drop out.
This may not happen at all...just another thought.

Bumping for the 2022-23 recruitment season!

Oh but it does. I have seen that happen many, many times. . Either from daughter, mother, or both. Never mind that every PNM is participating virtually. Never mind that it was plainly stated that the first round would be virtual when they enrolled in recruitment. Never mind that there are a plethora of accessible videos that share great advice on how best to present yourself in an online recruitment session. Never mind that they had more than ample time to practice before the big day. The fact of the matter is, in sorority recruitment as in life, the more prepared you are the better the outcome. And being willing to re-evaluate yourself and your options might be the difference between a fun 4 years of college, and wondering what might have been.