A Very FRIENDS Recruitment

[ASTalumna06]

Originally Posted by groovypq

LOVE a Friends theme! Hoping the right chapter "gets off the plane" for you! :-)

Then she'll have found her sorority lobster!

[groovypq]

Originally Posted by ASTalumna06

Then she'll have found her sorority lobster!

Even better! lol

If she gets Janice, will she yell "OH... MY... GAWD!" as she runs to her new sisters on Bid Day?

[PersistentDST]

Originally Posted by groovypq

Even better! lol

If she gets Janice, will she yell "OH... MY... GAWD!" as she runs to her new sisters on Bid Day?

That is a GREAT question! I can hear her laugh in my head as I type this!

I'm rooting for Chandler! (I'm the Chandler in my group of friends, so he's always been my favorite!)

[BlueOwl]

Fun story! Can't wait to read more. My daughter was in a sorority at UCLA and graduated in 2012. I was wondering if ChioLu had any of the numbers for this year? How many girls registered? How many ended up accepting a bid? What was quota?

Regarding the question about dressing in costumes, it may have been asked in a vague way, but playing dress up is a really big deal in UCLA sororities. Many of the exchanges with fraternities are themed and you dress up for them. For example: "Rep your home town" means you might wear a sports jersey from a hometown pro team, "Favorite Disney movie" you would dress up as Tinkerbelle or Peter Pan, "When I Grow Up I Want To Be A..." you might dress as a doctor or a banker or a nun, etc... you get the idea. So the reference to dressing in costumes was related to that.

Also....WHAT THE #*@& regarding seeing RATS in front of a sorority house?? I've been on that row many times and inside a few of the houses. The front yards are very clean and maintained as are the sorority houses! Never heard that one before! EEEWWWWW!

[ChioLu]

I have numbers. They are good.
I'll post after bruinlove13 -- & another thread that is UCLA -- finish their stories, so I don't steal their thunder.

But let's just say ...

81%!

[KDCat]

Originally Posted by BlueOwl

Fun story! Can't wait to read more. My daughter was in a sorority at UCLA and graduated in 2012. I was wondering if ChioLu had any of the numbers for this year? How many girls registered? How many ended up accepting a bid? What was quota?

Regarding the question about dressing in costumes, it may have been asked in a vague way, but playing dress up is a really big deal in UCLA sororities. Many of the exchanges with fraternities are themed and you dress up for them. For example: "Rep your home town" means you might wear a sports jersey from a hometown pro team, "Favorite Disney movie" you would dress up as Tinkerbelle or Peter Pan, "When I Grow Up I Want To Be A..." you might dress as a doctor or a banker or a nun, etc... you get the idea. So the reference to dressing in costumes was related to that.

So very, very Hollywood.

[bruinlove13]

Hey everyone! Sorry for posting so late. I've been having so much fun with my sisters.

Here goes!

Entertainment round!!!! I could not wait for this round just because I really feel like we would finally see what each sorority was really about. I was hoping for a great schedule, since I really wanted to find a good fit for me. I hurried over to my Rho Gamma and when I opened my schedule, I saw…

Phoebe
Rachel
Chandler
Janice
Ben

It was the perfect schedule!!! I was so happy and I could not wait to get to my parties.

First I went to Phoebe. A girl I had previously talked to came up to me again and we had a nice conversation. But I could not for the life of me think of anything to say to her for some reason and I feel like I ended up repeating myself a lot. The next girl I talked to was really pretty but once again, I felt like the conversation was lacking. It seemed like they had a pretty strong sisterhood because they all were laughing and cheering on their sisters during the skit. Their skit had its funny moments and it really was cute. I left feeling pretty good about my day, and hoping for some clear indications of which houses I would love to be in.

Chandler was next. I was so happy to be here. I LOVED them. I saw a girl I had met before and we hit it off instantly like I had been there the whole time. I talked to another girl but not for very long before the third girl came to take me inside to watch their presentation. Their skit was so funny, and I was laughing so hard the whole time. They also showed us a big slideshow full of sisterhood stuff they do and why they all love being in Chandler so much. I fell in love with this house even more and I just wanted to be in it right then and there. I didn’t want to set my heart on one house too much, but it was just too easy to fall in love with these girls.

I went to Janice next and I was actually feeling pretty good about this house. I loved their skit because they were quoting so many of my favorite movie quotes and I thought it was pretty funny. They honestly seem to have one of the best sisterhoods on the row because their slideshow showcasing the different aspects of their sorority was just so touching and genuine and I loved that about them. I really felt like I have had genuine conversations in this house consistently throughout the whole process. I left this house feeling a little torn just because these girls were so sweet and I knew that they would make me feel at home no matter what.

Next was Rachel. I could not wait to come back here again because I liked these girls more and more every time I visited. What I discovered is that the girls here are so real and down to earth, and they aren’t afraid to be casual. I realized that they didn’t try to pretend to put up a front and be something that they’re not, and I felt so relieved that I knew exactly what I was getting myself into if I end up joining here. Their skit was super funny and I was laughing a lot the whole time. However, the last part of the skit turned a little serious. They chose to sing a song that was on the radio but make it all about Rachel, and it was just two girls singing about why they called this house their home. It actually made me tear up a little, and I know most of the sorority women were crying too. I left this house feeling so good, and I couldn’t help but want to get to know these people some more.

My last house of the day was Ben . Their skit was pretty funny too, and they weren’t afraid to show their dorky side, which I really liked. The girls seemed to really like me, and I got to see some girls from my previous days. But when I walked out of the house, I didn’t remember any of the conversations that I had, and I honestly didn’t know if I could totally relax and see myself here. Overall though I was still happy with what this house seemed like they could offer me.

That night, we ranked 2 houses as our number 1. Then we rank 3 houses as our number 2, 3, and 4.

My 2 number 1’s were:

Chandler
Rachel

And my 2, 3, and 4 respectively were:

Janice
Phoebe
Ben

[WCsweet<3]

I always liked Chandler! Can't wait to see where you ended up.

[amIblue?]

My vote is for Chanandler Bong.

[angels&angles]

That's MS. Chanandler Bong!

[bruinlove13]

Preference round is finally here!! I was so happy that I was so close to being part of a new family. I felt really good about the top two houses that I had ranked as my number 1, so I couldn’t wait to see them both today!

I walked as fast as I could to my counselor and when I opened up my schedule, it said:

Rachel

Janice

I couldn't believe it. Where was Chandler??? I was so devastated. Why did I not get invited back? We were just hysterically laughing yesterday and having the time of our lives. I thought they liked me. Why didn’t the girls want me back? Did I do something wrong? Was this some horrible mistake? I stood there in shock for a good 5 or 6 minutes with all these questions racing through my head. My Rho Gamma tried comforting me and told me that sometimes even though a house might really like a girl, it just doesn’t always work out for various reasons. I still couldn’t wrap my head around what had gone wrong. I was so mad at myself for setting my heart on one house and failing to keep a truly open mind. Now, I felt like I had to start all over again since Chandler wasn’t in the picture anymore.

I tried shaking off my nerves and I put on a big smile and went over to Janice, which was my first party of the day. I felt terrible when I got there because all the girls who I had talked to the previous days were all so excited to see me and were giving me hugs, and even though I tried to show them that I was excited to be back, I still felt like I wasn’t giving myself 100%. It wasn’t fair of me to do that, and I did feel bad about that after I had left. However, the plus side is that I enjoyed their preference ceremony a lot and I thought that it was amazing how every girl in the sorority knew the words to all the songs and some girls were hugging each other. Some of the seniors were crying because this was their last preference round. Some of the girls rushing were crying too because it really was beautiful. I left the house feeling better, but not completely okay yet. I was glad I was going to Rachel next because I actually really liked them these past few days.

When I got to Rachel, I immediately got paired with the girl who was from my home state and she took me to a room. She didn’t stay for very long, but I was so happy to see a familiar face that was so welcoming. The next girl that came in was someone I had really felt a connection with. She read me the creed of the sorority, and it really hit home. I told her about how I missed home so much sometimes and how this creed really meant so much to me because it really embodies all the values I’ve learned growing up, so this was such a nice reminder of home for me. I think I may have shed a tear or two, but she said that she thought it was really great of me to open up to her like that, which I appreciated. Their ceremony was amazing too. A couple of girls wrote a letter telling us about their unique experience with Rachel and how it had always been home to them even through trying times. I knew in that moment that this was what I had wanted all along.

After thinking about it, I realized that even though Chandler had made me super happy, I could never have imagined it being a true home to me. I loved the connections I’ve made there, but maybe I wasn’t the best fit for that house. Rachel was where I wanted to be, and I only just realized it then. Ranking was easy, and I hoped and prayed that I would get my first choice.

My number 1 was Rachel, and I put Janice as my number two.



Later that night, we all went down to receive our bids. I was so nervous I didn’t even want to go for fear that Rachel didn’t want me. I had already gotten rejected once, so I didn’t want to go through that again. I don’t know if I would have been able to handle it. All the Rho Gammas revealed which house they were in, and turns out that mine was a Monica!! I was super excited when I found that out. After the big reveal, we were able to go get our bid cards. Before I opened mine, I promised myself that I would be happy with whatever I ended up with, regardless if it was my number 1 or not. Then, with shaky hands and a pounding heart, I ripped open my bid envelope as fast as I could. I flipped my bid card over, only to see that I had received a bid from…





































































RACHEL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


















































Also known as…























































































CHI OMEGA!!!!!!!



I was screaming and jumping up and down, and I ran over to where my new sisters were holding our letters as fast as I could. I was so happy to finally go home and to meet my sisters. These past few days, we have been doing a lot of social activities and getting-to-know-you stuff, and I’ve been having the time of my life. I had so much fun at the house on bid night. All my new sisters were so welcoming and I have never felt so loved in my life. I can’t wait to get back to daily life, but I know that it’ll be better than before because now I have a second family to always have my back, girls who have made this journey unforgettable and with whom I hope to make so many great memories with!!!! (I know that was super cheesy, but I am beyond in love with them!)

I am so excited for this journey and I am SO VERY happy that Chi O “got off the plane” for me!!

[WCsweet<3]

Congratulations!

[ChioLu]

YAY! CHI OMEGA!

I figured out who Rachel was yesterday.

I totally teared up at the song. They are singing it when our National President comes next week.
Be at the brunch -- most chapters will never have the National President visit their campus during their time in school.

[AGDee]

Congratulations! Now that we know Rachel is Chi Omega- What is the song?

[MaryPoppins]

Congratulations on your new home!