A rush mini-rant

[33girl]

I just have to say that the more I am reading on here about this "if you're cut once we have to cut you again" bull, the madder I get. I mean, is this in NPC's or anyone's bylaws? I never heard of such a thing until someone brought it up on here.

It just sounds to me like an excuse. I know you are not supposed to disclose why someone was cut, but then just say that, don't make up some bogus rule.

[Corbin Dallas]

I know many fraternities, at least on my campus have the mentality that if they voted no on you getting a bid once, that's it. There are sometimes exceptions, but to get voted on again, someone who voted against you has to bring you up. I think all or most of the houses also have an unspoken rule that if you pledged another house and quit, their house won't take you. That's the vibe I get anyway. I'm sure there are exceptions to that too.

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Steve Corbin
Lambda Chi Alpha
Theta Kappa Chapter
Rose-Hulman Inst. of Tech.

It's not an NPC rule but we have it in my chapter's by-laws which are approved by our HQ. Having it written down takes the guess work out of things because there is a protocal to follow.

The rule is that if a girl rushes and is cut then she cannot be invited to any more rush events for the remaining school year. She is welcome to rush the next school year and could get invited to the first invitational round. That is if the reason she was cut in the first place had to do with being a grade risk. If she got her grades up and kept them there then that looks really good for her. If it was for something else, she won't get invited back.

Why waste time with an unqualified girl? The girl may really, really want to be an XYZ, but if XYZ can't take her, XYZ shouldn't offer a false sense of hope by inviting her to rush events. It can be frustrating for all involved.

Originally posted by 33girl:
I just have to say that the more I am reading on here about this "if you're cut once we have to cut you again" bull, the madder I get. I mean, is this in NPC's or anyone's bylaws? I never heard of such a thing until someone brought it up on here.

[BFulton]

Couldn't it be that someone got cut because of exceptionally high rush/recruitment numbers, or that she was just on the edge of getting cut when another year, she may have made it in with exactly the same qualifications/background/etc.?

[33girl]

BFulton, thank you thank you thank you, that is exactly what I was talking about.

As far as grades were concerned – the rushees know when they come in that they need a 2.5 or whatever, so they shouldn’t be surprised if they get cut. I wasn’t really talking about grades, I was talking about the “intangible” things.

As we all know chapter dynamics change all the time. If a lot of seniors graduate and a lot of new members come in it can be a totally different sorority in a year. Why penalize a sophomore or junior with what the graduated seniors thought, if the CURRENT members of the sorority like the girl and want her?

When I was an active, there was a difference between being giving someone a low score and voting AGAINST them (which was only reserved for extreme situations), but I don’t know that we can vote against someone anymore.

[juniorgrrl]

33girl, I am proof of this rule. Because of it, I was cut from 9 of the 10 chapters after Round I of formal rush this year. The only one who didn't cut me was the one that did not cut me the last time I rushed.

Even the chapter that did not attain quota (a rarity at LSU) and that had to undergo COB had to cut me when I went to a COB event for them. Which, honestly, is pretty stupid. After formal rush, and one series of COB, they still had room to take about 30 more girls. So, even though I got along well with the sisters, had an excellent GPA (3.6) and was involved in other campus organizations, I was inelegible to join. I know I could have/would have been a good member of XYZ. But because of their own hangups and silly rules, they missed out. I still don't think they ever did attain quota for last year.

[This message has been edited by juniorgrrl (edited August 19, 2000).]

[Siobhan]

We don't have the cut rule at UBC. In fact in the past 4 years that I have been there only 2 people have not made it into sororities. One of the came through rush a 2nd and was cut again; there was a reason, however why these girls were cut.

[twinstars]

"We never know who we cut and who cuts us."


this is a really important point. when a rushee doesn't come back for the next round of parties, the sorority doesn't necessarily know whether the rushee cut them, or if they cut her. in my sorority, we don't vote as a group, but as individuals. we know how much we as individuals liked a particular girl, but really we have no idea how the rest of the sisters felt about her (whether or not she'll get a high enough average score to be invited back). a few hours before each night's parties, we get a list of all the rushees coming back (meaning they accepted our invitation and didn't cut us).

plus, i don't know of a sorority that makes a list of "cut" rushees. what mine does is make a list from "most wanted" to least, and we go down the list until we've met quota. it's not like we make a separate list of rushees who we think have no chance, ever, no matter how many times they rush.

like the others have said above, either there was a reason why you were cut the first time, or you were overlooked. so unless you have changed since the last time you rushed, the same reason probably still holds true. i don't know why some repeat rushees keep getting cut, but they should think about why they were cut the first time (since the "cut once cut again" rule, whether it exists or NOT, would not have been in effect the first time they rushed).

[juniorgrrl]

I do believe that at LSU the "cut once, cut always" rule does exist. I have had members of Panhellenic and several NPC chapters tell me it does, just in passing conversation, not in relation to my own personal situation. I was even told point blank by my friend who invited me to the COB event "we couldn't take you because you rushed before"

I am different than when I rushed last year. My attitude is better, my GPA is higher, I am more involved on campus, and I am more enthusiastic this year.

While I do not know how voting happens and how invitations are issued, I feel very certain that somewhere, there is a master list of who was and who was not invited back to a particular chapter. I don't think that the actives just know to vote against, or give a low score to a certain girl because she was cut from a house once. But I believe that even if a girl recieves a high score, but was on last year's release list, she will not be issued an invitation. After all, there has to be someone in the house who sees all the votes to tally them and issue the list of invitees for the next party. It would be very easy to compare the list of uperclassmen rushees (there are very few here) with a previous year's list.

While the majority of actives may never know who they cut and who cut them, someone in the chapter has to know. How else would they keep track of anything?

[cash78mere]

juniorgrrl-

I'm sorry that you didn't get into a sorority. I know how devastating it can be because it happened to many of my friends. But, like everyone has said, there probably was another reason. You might simply have been overlooked, which I know happens.

At my school, there is a quota for freshman and a quota for every other grade. Even if a sorority doesn't make quota for freshman but DOES make it for sophomores/juniors, they CANNOT accept more sophomores/juniors to fill the freshman positions. Those positions will just remain open unless the sorority snap bids or holds a COB. It just isn't allowed. That might have happened with the sororities on your campus. So, it wasn't that they didn't want you, but that they had already taken upperclassmen quota and unfortunately you weren't high enough on the list to get invited back or to receive a bid.

We never know who we cut and who cuts us. The "once cut" rule doesn't make sense because WE DON'T KNOW who we cut the previous year! (some sororities do, i'm just talking for mine). And with 500 girls going through rush, no one would be able to remember who they had cut the previous year. It just isn't feasible.

Again, I'm really sorry for your situation. But don't blame it on a rule that doesn't exist! There had to be other reasons (although I don't know what they are for yoru personal situation)

[kdgirlie]

preppy,
I really don't think you would have to worry. The only reason anyone would cut someone repeatedly is if it was basised on the reputation...
If it was for any other reason then most groups wouldn't even mention the cut.

[KayDeeCareBear]

I don't think the cut once, always cut rule applies. I wasn't cut from KD the second time I rushed, but that was at my school, so...

[preppie]

Thanks a bunch!

[AlphaChiGirl]

That makes me SOOO mad! It's really unfair. The only reason I can see a "permanent" cut is if the girl has DEFINITELY done something untoward (like, being known around campus as a druggie or a tramp, or has been on the brink of academic probation).

[Tom Earp]

This is what makes it so hard on Rushees! They go cut! They feel bad! It make be not because they were not good enuff! It may be because SORo. limits would not let them in! Most Fraternities do not have this! Normally the Schools do not want dominate SORO's to have a majority! This at some times can be3 very DUMB! But in the time I left Campus in 67, we had a local, ADP, And KD leave campus leaving 3 Soro's. I personelly think this is BS to have 3 on a 6500 campus! We have 6 Fraternitys on the same campus! I wanted a choice after I was Balled out of a Nsat. Fraternity on Campus and started my own. I am NOW and Always be a Proud LXA!

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Tom Earp LX Z#1
Pittsburg State U. (Kansas)