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Perspective from upperclassman

by:    

For any PNMs reading this — because I know I was when I was a high school senior — here’s what I didn’t know when I was in your position.

Top house doesn’t mean best house. Top usually means hard to get into. Each house gets a number of girls they can cut during recruitment. The bigger the cuts the harder it is to get in. They don’t have as many spots to fill, so it ends up being mostly girls they already know or girls that have some kind of connection. This makes the exclusive/hard to get into rep continue year after year.

I’m in what most consider a top house. I love my house, but I knew a lot of girls going in. What I’ve seen in my house and other top houses is girls that are not from Arkansas or don’t have lots of friends from camp or whatever going in have a harder time fitting in. Not saying it can’t be done, but it is just naturally harder.

I’m gonna give a high school analogy. If you move from OOS into a high school where you know no one your senior year and everyone else has been friends since elementary school, it’s gonna be harder to fit in. It can be done, but it’s harder.

Top doesn’t mean friendliest or happiest or best sisterhood. It just means hardest to get into. In fact like the high school example you’ll probably fit in better with other people who haven’t known each other and who have also recently moved.

The top houses in general don’t have as many OOS girls. The mid houses have more OOS. I predict things are going to change big in the four years you’re here because starting next year UArk is making it harder to get in if you’re OOS, so that means a higher % of Ark girls, which means us Ark girls are going to be spread through all 11 houses, even with connections.

Go where you feel comfortable. Harder to get into doesn’t = better. It’s math.

Posted By: Woo PS
Page 1 of 7
#1by:    
#1    

How are they making it harder to get in if you’re OOS?

By: Q
by: @Q   

Because if you’re in state you prob went to high school with a lot of girls in the top houses so they help get you in — connections.
If a top house can only take 50 girls and a lower house can take 100 then you have more of a chance of being 1 of 50 if you know a bunch of girls. If your OOS they’re not going to waste one of their 50 spots on someone no one knows. It would be easier to be 1 of 100 because there are more available spots.

By: @Q
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by: @Q   

Oops. I misread your question.
UArk is not taking as many OOS applicants next year and in the future. The classes are getting too big and UArk is a public state school funded by the state. People want their state money to go to state kids.

By: @Q
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by: Jen   

There are so many girls from oos in top houses that are happy. This is one persons perspective

By: Jen
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#2by:    
#2    

Great explanation!

By: wps
by: Jennie    

I wish uark did spring rush. It would change the rankings in a big way because you would be able to meet girls and see who you really click with versus just following your high school friends.

By: Jennie
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by: True   

True! If there was spring rush pi phi and zeta would be top two. They are just nicer and more inclusive than chi o and kappa. Spring rush would change up the mid ranks as well. KD would be hurt by spring recruitment and AXO would do better

By: True
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by: Cam   

Yes! Spring rush would be so much better! It would give the opportunity for girls to make connections!

By: Cam
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by: ….   

For real

By: ….
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by: WPS   

Spring rush would have its own things to make it weird but I agree

By: WPS
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#3by:    
#3    

This is really true and I wish I’d understood that this year as a pnm

By: Sooie

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by: Hi   

Hi! You can pass along this message to girls you know going through recruitment in the fall!

By: Hi
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#4by:    
#4    

oos girl here with zero connections before going to UArk. Wish I had been told this as well before rush. Top houses might seem to show an interest in oos girls on social media, but when it comes down to it, they’ll drop you in the end for girls they know. Connections are key.

By: @woo
by: Etty   

Connection are key but I think what the original poster is saying is if you don’t have connections then it’s more difficult to make connections if you do get in.

By: Etty
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by: @woo   

Same. Wished I had known this. All houses are good though and finding one that did not need connections was the best choice for me.

By: @woo
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#5by:    
#5    

Love this explanation!

By: Uark
#6by:    
#6    

Top does not mean best

By: True
#7by:    
#7    

Top just means LESS SPOTS available to get in because their members & alumni are pulling for so many girls that a random OOS outstanding PNM has slim chances of getting a spot.

By: ark
by: jmg   

@ark yea that’s a good way to put it. PNMs need to know top isn’t really most popular or greatest. I didn’t get that when I was a sr in high school

By: jmg
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by: Jup   

This is true. PNMs need to think — do you want to be in a sorority where everyone already pretty much knows each other? If you know them, too then maybe you do! If you don’t, it might be hard to form a true sisterhood.

By: Jup
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#8by:    
#8    

This thread is not quite accurate. There is the same number of spots in 'top' houses as in other houses. The size of new member classes is not a predetermined number before rush and quota is the same for everyone. The difference is that stronger recruiting houses are forced to make larger cuts in the early rounds, cuts that they would make anyway. Forcing these inevitable cuts to come sooner in the process prevents pnm's from being strung along without really having a chance, and allows them to focus on other houses where they are likely to get a bid. It used to be that houses could invite back as many as they wanted all week long and the pnm's did the cutting. It was a disaster because right before prefs all those pnm's that were always going to get cut from certain houses got dropped. These girls didn't have a clue that this was going to happen and so they were dropping houses all week long and then ended up with absolutely nothing come prefs. By letting them understand what's what ahead of time, they can focus where they have a chance. And just because a 'top' house drops you it doesn't mean that there is a thing wrong with you - it's just a numbers game and don't take it personally.

By: Hang on
by: sooie   

Yes exactly what @hang on is saying it’s a numbers game! Do not take it personal!

By: sooie
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by: Melissa   

I agree with @hang on to not take it personally however I think by less spots is sort of accurate in that being cut first round doesn’t even provide you with an opportunity to make an impression to get one of those spots. So I guess less spots for people without connections. Pnm’s will see once on campus that there is zero difference between a chi o and an axo. I would often be shocked when I would meet a top house girl. Most would make zero impression on me. I am in a lower tier and we are all the same except we do have a lower gpa score overall but not by much!

By: Melissa
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#9by:    
#9    

Good read

By: jill
#10by:    
#10    

every PNM needs to read and understand this!

By: true

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