bids

I could be wrong but I think QA takes precedence over snaps. So like the list sororities get for potential snap girls doesn't have QA girls on it cause they've already been matched.

Are SO rare- don't bank on that option

Snaps are rare, QA is not. QA is guaranteed if you get cross cut after pref and no one ever knows if they're a QA anyway

Compared to the number of girls matched by normal bid matching, QAs are also rare.

I'm sure the number of QA's among girls who have 3 houses is very low, but you would think it would be higher among girls with only 2 and especially 1 house on pref. Not like it matters anyway cause no one ever knows.

A bid is a bid is a bid.
Snap or regular - it doesn't matter. Nobody will know you got a snap bid unless you tell.
Better to have any bid than no bid at all.

People will know if you weren't at pref.

Some people may realize you weren't there. But there are so many girls at pref, someone would have had to look at all the girls in the room at pref and then think about every girl in her pledge class and try to remember if she saw all of their faces at pref to figure out if someone got a snap bid.

you should be thankful for a bid period.... This is the largest recruitment in the nation. Period. So many girls that go through might only have one or two houses left on pref and would be happy anywhere. Don't go in with that attitude like "I just have to pray to God that I get my number one pick".

Here's the deal: If you go to 3 houses (and plenty will wind up with only 1 or 2 houses to go to), and you rank 3 houses. you'd better be prepared to be happy with a bid from any of the 3.
If you go to 3 houses, and only rank 1 or 2, then you've "suicided" - you run a big risk of not getting a bid at all.
But don't that the odds are low that you'll get a bid from #3. The odds are exactly the same for getting #1 and #2.
And don't think that if you don't list all 3, you won't get a bid at all. Yes, it could happen, but not listing all 3 will not prevent you from receiving a bid at all.

Very good points! It is much more common than you think for girls to get their #2 or #3 choice. We're expecting around 2500 pnms this fall. If you get a bid, be grateful. If I remember correctly, my rho chi told me when I rushed last fall that almost 200 girls were released after the first round. If you make it to bid day, be grateful!

I did want to add one thing though: because of quota additions, if you attend all of your parties throughout the week and "maximize your options" (meaning that you list all the chapters you attended for pref on your final ranking) then you will be guaranteed a bid. But again, make sure you only put houses on your final card that you would willingly accept a bid from. Sometimes girls will rank houses they hate because they assume they will get their first choice, then end up having to drop out immediately, taking a spot away from a girl who really could have wanted it. Don't be that person.