The University’s Inter-Sorority Council, the governing body of all on-Grounds social sororities, hosted the final leg of spring recruitment — bid day — in Newcomb Hall Ballroom Sunday. A total of around 777 new sorority members convened to open their bid cards from one of the fourteen chapters that participated in formal recruitment at the University.
Beginning Jan. 10, prospective members participated in four rounds of formal recruitment — a two-day introductory round Jan. 10 and Jan. 11, a philanthropy round Jan. 12, a house tour round Jan. 17 and a final preference round Jan. 18. Each round, potential new members visited fewer houses as sororities invited fewer potential new members back to the house. After receiving bids Sunday, new members attended celebrations at the sorority houses where their new sorority sisters welcomed them to the chapter.
During the introductory round, prospective members visited all fourteen sorority houses to briefly meet existing members. Philanthropy round included learning about each chapter’s national philanthropy efforts and house tours allowed PNMs to explore each of the sorority houses as guided by sorority members.
Finally, preference round gave prospective members the chance to visit a final two houses to talk with more chapter women, ask questions about the sorority and determine their final rankings. After the final preference round, prospective members rank a number one sorority and a number two sorority.
Many sororities did not see significant change in the size of their pledge classes this year compared to last year, as indicated by pledge class numbers provided upon request by members of each sorority.
For example, Delta Zeta had 62 in their pledge class in spring 2024, before continuous open bidding — informal recruitment which allows new members to join sororities without going through the formal recruitment process — resulted in a total of 67 recruits. This year, Delta Zeta has 58 in their pledge class, according to a source within Delta Zeta.
Zeta Tau Alpha had 72 in their pledge class last year after COB, and their pledge class this year is 63, according to a source within Zeta Tau Alpha.
Because of the rainy weather conditions and possibility of snow, the beginning of bid day was hosted indoors this year instead of the usual location of Madison Bowl field. After opening their bid cards, new members were dismissed from the ballroom alphabetically by chapter name, where they then “ran home” to the sororities’ houses, guided by older chapter members.
Potential new members had mixed opinions about the change in location for the annual event, as Newcomb Hall is farther from the sorority houses than Mad Bowl. First-year College student Greta Hay rushed this year and expressed gratitude that the beginning of the event was inside instead of in the rain. Whereas, first-year College student Madeline Davison who also rushed this year said she did not like the new location for bid day, stating that the in-door location made it difficult to hear others.
“I did not like [this location] at all. It was too loud, too much going on, and it was just like everyone was screaming at the same time,” Davison said. “I just feel like it was way too chaotic. You couldn't hear [when] they were dismissing people.”
Despite the untraditional beginning to bid day, both Hay and Davison said they enjoyed the remainder of the day which was spent celebrating their new pledge classes in sororities Pi Beta Phi and Sigma Kappa respectively.
“[Bid day] was really good, it was a lot of fun,” Davison said. “I'm looking forward to all the friendships I'm going to make, really just getting to know people and making connections.”
Hay also said she enjoyed her bid day experience and is excited to build relationships and connections with others in her sorority over the next few years. Particularly, Hay expressed excitement to meet upperclassmen in her sorority with the hopes of receiving advice and learning from their experiences at the University.
“I’m looking forward to all the sisterhood events that we do,” Hay said. “I'm just looking forward to having a stacked social calendar and doing a bunch of fun stuff with the girls [in Pi Beta Phi].”
Following formal recruitment at the beginning of the spring semester, some sororities may choose to participate in informal recruitment in both the spring and fall semesters, also known as Continuous Open Bidding. COB is a chance for sororities to invite more women to join their chapter after formal recruitment concludes.
COB allows women who either did not formally rush or dropped from formal rush to get to know sorority members and ultimately join a chapter. While informal recruitment processes vary depending on the sorority, they are less structured and more casual than the formal recruitment process.
This spring semester, new sorority members will go through the initiation process wherein new members pledge to uphold the standards and traditions of their sorority in order to become full members of their chapters.
For Grace Williams, active Alpha Delta Pi member and second-year Education student, this year was her first ever official bid day as she participated in informal recruitment last year. Williams said she especially enjoyed the feeling of community that bid day created.
“I think what's special [about bid day] is just the energy and the bond and togetherness,” Williams said. “Just the goal of celebrating that you've gone through this path [of recruitment] and have kind of found your people.”
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