how competitive is sorority recruitment?

If you pref two houses and list them both on your bid card, you will get one of those houses. If you suicide (pick one house only) you may not get a bid.

It’s very selective and common to end up in house you don’t really want.

Selective is the wrong word. Every house can take quota (the number of PNMs signing bid cards after pref, split between sororities. If 600 PNMs sign bid cards, than quota will be 60 new members for each of the 10 sororities). Some PNMs only put one house on their pref card and don’t get a bid at all. If you put two houses on your card you’ll get one of those houses.

Parts of recruitment are really fast. Top houses cut girls quickly (because they have to) and no matter what they say, looks are the biggest part of it. Top houses are very protective of the images they want to project. A PNM could be ah-maze-ing in every way, but if she’s overweight she’s not getting a bid to ADPi.

It can hurt to get cut heavily in the first rounds. Some PNMs drop out of recruitment right then and don’t bother to get to know their other options because they’ve already been told which houses are good and bad. That’s sad because the houses that don’t base everything on looks are usually ones girls have a better time in. At pref PNMs can end up with a house they like and a house they don’t feel as great about. Some get their second choice and immediately drop and wait until next year. Others give it a chance and find out that it was the best place for them.