RFM question now that bid day is here - Page 2

carnation · #16 08-29-2015, 09:40 PM

Some people think that cross-cutting is a myth. It existed in a big way pre-RFM. This happened when a girl would rank sorority A as #1 and B as #2 but she would be on B's first list and A's second one. Girls would end up bidless some of the time.

aggieAXO · #17 08-29-2015, 09:57 PM

Yes, cross cutting happened at Texas A&M back in the early 90's!

Loyally Kappa · #18 08-29-2015, 10:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

Continuing the analogy, if you are on #2's bid list (first 87 when quota is 87), you are in the box, and can only be moved out of the box if you match to #1. It's not as though #2 can fill its box without you while you are waiting around to see what happens at #1. If you are high enough on #2's bid list to receive a bid, the ONLY WAY you don't get a bid from #2 is if you match to #1. This is the myth of "cross-cutting."

All of which is to say that, when it comes to final preference rankings, you should list them in true preference order, there is no reason to be strategic about what would give you the best chances to get a bid.

Being a math nerd, I think I am going to attempt to make a video of how bid matching works so that folks can "see" it. I always say, "If you cannot make the math visible, you don't understand it."

als463 · #19 08-30-2015, 08:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Loyally Kappa

Being a math nerd, I think I am going to attempt to make a video of how bid matching works so that folks can "see" it. I always say, "If you cannot make the math visible, you don't understand it."

Seriously though, I think this would be an awesome idea. I sure hope you do it.

KSUViolet06 · #20 08-30-2015, 09:40 AM

Tri Sigma actually has a neat training video about RFM and bid matching that we use to train MRDs (Recruitment Directors) on RFM before recruitment. I wish it was something I could share!

Loyally Kappa · #21 08-30-2015, 10:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by als463

Seriously though, I think this would be an awesome idea. I sure hope you do it.

I will! Give me a little time, some colored Post-It Notes, a blank wall and then watch me! The thing about a preferential bidding system is that it is like an invisible sieve "in motion" at all times until matches are exhausted, so unless you can "see" the sieve and the movement, it is a bit mysterious.

I need to decide upon an adequate number of sororities and PNMs to do the trick. It doesn't have to be a lot, but it needs to be enough!

DeltaBetaBaby · #22 08-30-2015, 11:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by carnation

Some people think that cross-cutting is a myth. It existed in a big way pre-RFM. This happened when a girl would rank sorority A as #1 and B as #2 but she would be on B's first list and A's second one. Girls would end up bidless some of the time.

I don't doubt that there were schools that didn't follow standard bid matching procedure pre-RFM, but if they did, what you described could not happen. Going bidless meant she wasn't high enough on either list. If she had ranked B as #1 and A as #2, she still would have been bidless.

Titchou · #23 08-30-2015, 12:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Loyally Kappa

I will! Give me a little time, some colored Post-It Notes, a blank wall and then watch me! The thing about a preferential bidding system is that it is like an invisible sieve "in motion" at all times until matches are exhausted, so unless you can "see" the sieve and the movement, it is a bit mysterious.

I need to decide upon an adequate number of sororities and PNMs to do the trick. It doesn't have to be a lot, but it needs to be enough!

If you've ever done hand bid matching simulating that should be rather easy. Just a lot of those big poster sized post it notes.

carnation · #24 08-30-2015, 12:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

I don't doubt that there were schools that didn't follow standard bid matching procedure pre-RFM, but if they did, what you described could not happen. Going bidless meant she wasn't high enough on either list. If she had ranked B as #1 and A as #2, she still would have been bidless.

I watched it happen several times during very closely monitored hand matching. Had the girl put A as her number 1 and B as her number 2, she would have matched. As it was, both filled up before she matched. Quota was set before prefs back in the day so many girls went to the maximum number of prefs, listed all their parties, and still didn't get bids.

Also, there were no QAs. Come to think of it, a lot of women today would go bidless without QAs.

Munchkin03 · #25 08-30-2015, 12:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Loyally Kappa

I will! Give me a little time, some colored Post-It Notes, a blank wall and then watch me! The thing about a preferential bidding system is that it is like an invisible sieve "in motion" at all times until matches are exhausted, so unless you can "see" the sieve and the movement, it is a bit mysterious.

I need to decide upon an adequate number of sororities and PNMs to do the trick. It doesn't have to be a lot, but it needs to be enough!

Yay! It would really behoove NPC to do something like this...not only for PNMs and their parents, but also alumnae who might not understand the process.

aggieAXO · #26 08-30-2015, 01:52 PM

If I remember correctly, quota was set the day before pref- I will have to ask my friend who was in Panhellenic. We had no quota additions and each chapter could take up to 3 "free" juniors.

sigmagirl2000 · #27 08-30-2015, 01:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by aggieAXO

If I remember correctly, quota was set the day before pref- I will have to ask my friend who was in Panhellenic. We had no quota additions and each chapter could take up to 3 "free" juniors.

That must have been pre-RFM. The situation as you've described simply isn't how RFM works. Quota isn't set under RFM until bid matching is complete.

carnation · #28 08-30-2015, 03:37 PM

You know what? I'm thinking that back in the day, quota was often set after the first round of parties. As you can imagine, that kept big sororities bigger and ensured the demise of many smaller ones since a lot of girls dropped out between first parties and Bid Day.

And of course, rushees could cut sororities at any time so many sororities never saw a fair number of rushees after the first set of parties.

KSUViolet06 · #29 08-30-2015, 03:46 PM

I was active for about 2 years prior to RFM. I think the standard was setting it right before pref, but you could CHOOSE as a Panhellenic to set it earlier. Many did.

ladybug12 · #30 08-30-2015, 04:13 PM

When I was Rush Chair (as it was known back then) in 1977, quota was set the round before preference by dividing the number of women coming back to those parties by the number of sororities. Thus, it was set artificially high because women released or who dropped out after getting their preference invites were counted towards quota.

This was still the NPC rule when I was an adviser in the 1990's. In the 2000's release figures changed a bit, but RFM has definitely leveled the playing field...thank goodness!!!