gpa mizzou

Can other things compensate for a lower GPA? Or is the end all be all.

Absolutely. In fact personality is about 70% of what they judge you on and how you present yourself (looks) are another 20%. The rest is just what they see on paper and that is usually not the determining factor unless you're just a trainwreck with a 2.0 gpa. It's really just who you are not what you've done. Unless you're trying to get into theta. Then it's what you've done.

No one is going to be thrilled to take someone with a 2.6. That is far below the all-sorority average and very few houses want to take on a grade risk. If you can't do better than that as a freshman, there's not a lot of upside. The best houses won't be interested. Sorry, but that's just the way it is.

I'm in a mid tier house. We won't accept 2.6
I think a lot of the bottom tier is 2.8-3.0 for college too...

I also forgot to add, some houses like my own, make grade cuts before rush starts. We already know who we are cutting based on GPA before the girls even enter the house and the decision is final even if you have a stellar personality.

That's how my house does it, too, and we take this responsibility very seriously. We have a committee that really studies the information at our disposal. We look at high school GPA, the type of high school (college prep vs. average or rural school, public vs. private --where A's seem to be easier to get), the types of classes taken (difficult AP classes vs. easier AP classes or general curriculum), ACT or SAT scores and the portion of our rec form that specifically addresses academic potential. We know what the grade cut is before rush even starts and, sad to say, if you are on Pile B and don't make the cut, it is unlikely we will ask you back. From that point on, of course, personality, warmth, charisma and more take over. But you have to make the initial cut. That said, not every house does it this way.

Rush in the Fall to maximize your options and make sure you mention these things. A lot of houses have a certain number of grade risks allowed and there are some houses that might empathize with your situation and keep you despite your GPA.

The reason you don't want to wait and COB is because there is no guarantee that COB will happen. Yes, usually my house and a few others COB but there might be some freaky stuff happen with the numbers this year where everyone meets quota and then there is no COB in the Spring and you miss out on a chance.

Always. Always. Always give Fall Rush a try.

Just one more thing: even someone in engineering usually starts out freshman year taking typical freshman classes to meet the general requirements. If you were only able to get a 2.6 and intend to work on your GPA, you might want to give up the idea of joining a sorority. The first semester after joining is extremely busy and time consuming. It takes someone who is really focused and diligent to get good grades. Don't feel bad about it: sorority life isn't for everyone.