Fall Rush at UGA

rnread · #1 06-09-2008, 11:11 PM

I just transferred to UGA this past January, and i didn't partcipate in Spring Rush. I just thought it would be better to go through with Formal Rush in August. But i have been talking to some friends and they say it's harder to rush when you're not a Freshman?

I know Rush is primarily for Freshman coming into the school, but at my other school you could be a Senior and Rush for a Fraternity if you wanted to. I was just wondering if anyone knows for sure if not being a Freshman is a disadvantage for rushing at UGA? I just want to know all this before i register to Rush, because that doesn't seem fair to only favor towards Freshman. A new member is a new member no matter what year someone is.

But if someone could fill me in, i'd appreciate it.

ugain08 · #2 06-10-2008, 01:13 AM

I am in your same boat. Most of the fraternities at UGA that are likely to decline someone based off of not being a freshman are likely to not give you a chance anyways unless you are well connected (just from what I have been told). Though being a senior and rushing may be a different story regardless of situation...

Anyhow, I would suggest doing what I am doing now and going to as many Summer rush events as possible if possible. That is likely to get rid of most of the possible negatives you get stuck with for not being a freshman.

rnread · #3 06-10-2008, 02:00 AM

Yeah, well i'm not a Senior. I'm a sophomore, but i was just saying that at the school i went to before UGA you could be a senior and Rush, and there wasn't any problems. But i'll have to look to see what summer events are happening....

EE-BO · #4 06-10-2008, 10:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ugain08

I am in your same boat. Most of the fraternities at UGA that are likely to decline someone based off of not being a freshman are likely to not give you a chance anyways unless you are well connected (just from what I have been told). Though being a senior and rushing may be a different story regardless of situation...

Solid advice.

Rnead- while naturally it varies from chapter to chapter, it also varies from campus to campus whether non-freshmen generally have a good shot at rushing a fraternity.

At a school with a very competitive Greek system, like Georgia, top and mid tier houses will have lots of rushees competing for a small number of pledge class spots. And a great many of those rushees will come to Georgia as freshman already knowing they want to go Greek and already having many friends from their pre-college days who are at Georgia and in fraternities.

If a chapter can fill its pledge class with freshman who are legacies and/or are already know to the chapter as solid potential members- then it does not make sense to not take a person like that so that a sophomore new to Greek life can take that spot. And the top tier houses will fall into this category. Does not mean it is impossible for a sophomore, but the odds are against you unless you know several people in that chapter who really want you to join.

This has nothing to do with you personally- it is just a matter of choosing between a freshman who is already known to the chapter and who will be there to pay dues for 4 years versus a sophomore who is an unknown entity and who will only be there to pay dues for 3 years.

One good thing about Georgia compared to many other top southern Greek systems is that there is a very broad range of solid mid-tier houses with good sized chapters that have good social schedules with sororities. And many of those houses regularly rush and recruit sophomores. So you should have some good choices- more than you might at other campuses.

As for juniors and seniors, that really is just about impossible at a school like Georgia. It happens, but it is rare. By the time I was a junior in college, I was still living in the house but I was getting a little past my time to really be living it up and going to every party etc. And that same thing applied to most of my other friends. Junior and senior year are still times to have fun, but they are also times to be thinking about getting through upper division courses, grad school or getting a job- certainly not pledging a fraternity.

Do you have friends in fraternities at Georgia? That is who I would suggest you talk to next. Also any ladies you are friends with who are in sororities. If you can come into fall rush with members of the Greek community to vouch for you and support you, that will go a long way to putting you in a position to have good choices. Going into formal rush without having done that will be very risky indeed.

EE-BO · #5 06-10-2008, 10:49 AM

PS- You are right, it is better to go through Fall Rush. Bigger pledge classes, football season etc.

rnread · #6 06-10-2008, 08:36 PM

Do you know the tier system for the fraternities at UGA?

EE-BO · #7 06-10-2008, 10:41 PM

Well, I have my own opinion of what they are- but it would not be appropriate for me to get into that in a forum like this in my role as a moderator. There are threads here and on other sites which list them (and which are all pretty much in agreement)- so if you go digging you can find the info you want there.

I will say this- just find a good house you like and go with it. As long as they have a decent house, a good sized chapter, good mixers and are guys you get along with- that is what really matters.

Any top or mid tier house is going to be selective. If you find one you like and they want you there- then you have a good situation going for you.

I will say this- at Georgia I think the majority of chapters with houses are top or mid tier. At other southern schools I know about (which is not all of them) the top and mid tier are seldom more than half the chapters.

PhiGam · #8 06-10-2008, 11:31 PM

You ask and I shall deliver

Quote:

Originally Posted by oldrow.net

Something like this:
1st: KA, SAE, ChiPhi, Fiji, LXA, SX
2nd: Beta, PhiDelt, PiKapp, KS, AGR
3rd: SigEp, DTD, Pike
Hard to say: ATO(got kicked off, back now), SN(similar to ATO), AEPi(By far superior to TEP)
Bottom: TEP, ChiPsi, SigmaPi, PhiTau, PhiPsi, AKL, PhiKappaTheta, DeltaSig(remember admin revealed?)
I can't believe there's that many.

Elephant Walk · #9 06-11-2008, 12:24 AM

The Chi Phi and LXA in the top tier has always surprised me to some degree.

EE-BO · #10 06-11-2008, 12:36 AM

Well, as long as we are going there I would demote LXA and Chi Phi to second tier, and elevate Pike to second tier as well. Top tier could be argued, but as at Texas- SAE, FIJI and KA are THE undisputed top tier chapters.

And I must say AGR has incredible country band parties. Those were some of my favorite events when I was at Georgia.

What about Theta Chi? They had a pretty solid chapter at Georgia when I was there and also some great parties. The house was massive and in just the right spot on Milledge Avenue with a ballroom for parties that could hold 100s of people.

PhiGam · #11 06-11-2008, 12:50 AM

Quote:

Well, as long as we are going there I would demote LXA and Chi Phi to second tier, and elevate Pike to second tier as well. Top tier could be argued, but as at Texas- SAE, FIJI and KA are THE undisputed top tier chapters.

And I must say AGR has incredible country band parties. Those were some of my favorite events when I was at Georgia.

What about Theta Chi? They had a pretty solid chapter at Georgia when I was there and also some great parties. The house was massive and in just the right spot on Milledge Avenue with a ballroom for parties that could hold 100s of people.

Not a coincidence about the top tiers being the same.

The later posts in the thread say Theta Chi is 2nd tier.

RU OX Alum · #12 06-11-2008, 01:30 PM

I'm confused

Why would there only be so many spots in a pledge class?

If chapter x wants to give bids to 30 guys, then so what? Why would 29 be the magic number?

EE-BO · #13 06-12-2008, 12:55 AM

You are right RU OX Alum to an extent. Fraternities are not bound by the quota requirements imposed on sororities. But there are definitely internally defined boundaries about head count.

It is the approach that is different. A given fraternity might plan on accepting 40 pledges for their fall class. There is no external entity to make that a firm number as is the case with sorority quotas. But it is an internally determined number based on a variety of factors specific to the chapter and to any alumni who work with that chapter.

A top tier fraternity does not have any trouble getting good candidates, plus their financial budget is all they need to operate at a level they want. So the question is how to figure out the number of pledges needed to maintain that status- and then only take top candidates.

If a chapter sets their needs at 40 and gets there, and then at the last minute guy #41 who is a perfect fit comes along- they can easily make the class 41 pledges if they so desire. But they will only do that if the 41st person is an all-star candidate. Since they already have all the money and pledges they need, it makes no sense to take a chance on that 41st person by pledging someone they cannot be 100% comfortable with. If a chapter is king on campus and has all they need- it makes no sense to take even a small risk on somone whose history is not known to be suitable to the chapter.

RU OX Alum · #14 06-12-2008, 09:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EE-BO

You are right RU OX Alum to an extent. Fraternities are not bound by the quota requirements imposed on sororities. But there are definitely internally defined boundaries about head count.

It is the approach that is different. A given fraternity might plan on accepting 40 pledges for their fall class. There is no external entity to make that a firm number as is the case with sorority quotas. But it is an internally determined number based on a variety of factors specific to the chapter and to any alumni who work with that chapter.

A top tier fraternity does not have any trouble getting good candidates, plus their financial budget is all they need to operate at a level they want. So the question is how to figure out the number of pledges needed to maintain that status- and then only take top candidates.

If a chapter sets their needs at 40 and gets there, and then at the last minute guy #41 who is a perfect fit comes along- they can easily make the class 41 pledges if they so desire. But they will only do that if the 41st person is an all-star candidate. Since they already have all the money and pledges they need, it makes no sense to take a chance on that 41st person by pledging someone they cannot be 100% comfortable with. If a chapter is king on campus and has all they need- it makes no sense to take even a small risk on somone whose history is not known to be suitable to the chapter.

I agree with the not risking your chapter's status, but I'm still kind of confused. Say you could do that with 40 guys. But some of them are twins (just for the hypothetical) and so it's 46 guys total, or whatever. And then they meet other guys that they really want. Now, I know you all have those houses down there, so if they coulndn't all live there, I'd get it. But what if 55 people showed up for rush that you actually wanted to pledge, out of the 100 or however many that rush. Would you still not the 15 people?

EE-BO · #15 06-12-2008, 01:44 PM

Sure- and it does happen. When I was an active we had a particularly good rush one summer and ended up taking almost 40 pledges instead of the usual 25 or so we would normally take in the fall.

Worked out pretty good, but it had its drawbacks. Those guys ended up being a huge voting block in the chapter and that created some friction- especially when they were upperclassmen and held almost all the major offices in the chapter.

Sometimes it can work for the better to have a mega-sized pledge class come along, but usually only if you are in growth mode or if fundamental change is needed in the chapter. If things are running along on course however, it can be problematic.