Formal Recruitment
From JhuWiki
Formal Recruitment for Johns Hopkins University Panhellenic Sororities is a week-long process during which Potential New Members ("PNMs"), usually freshmen, meet the sisters of each of the three Panhellenic sororities and are (usually) ultimately offered a bid, or invitation to join, by one of them.
All participants in Formal Recruitment must register with the Office of Greek Life and pay a small fee. They are required to attend all the events of Formal Recruitment, which include three rounds of parties. These parties take place on campus at the beginning of second semester. Although all undergraduate women in good academic standing are allowed to go through Recruitment, PNMs usually are freshmen and the occasional sophomore. It is very rare for a junior or senior to participate.
The schedule for Recruitment 2010 is:
Friday, January 29th: Recruitment Information Session
Saturday, January 30th: Icewater Round
Monday, February 1st: Theme Round
Wednesday, February 3rd: Preference Round
Thursday, February 4th: Bid Day
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[edit] Rounds
The three rounds of parties during Formal Recruitment are Icewater, Theme and Preference.
[edit] Icewater
Icewater, so named because that is all the sorority sisters are allowed to serve to the PNMs, is the first round of Formal Recruitment. PNMs attend parties thrown by all three Panhellenic sororities. These parties have no decorations because the PNMs are encouraged to meet the sisters of each sorority in a minimalist environment, where they can choose their best match without being swayed by the sorority's party theme. After Icewater, PNMs rank the sororities in order of their preference. The sororities also cut PNMs.
[edit] Theme
Theme is the second round of Recruitment, and PNMs may attend a maximum of three parties. It is possible for a PNM to be cut by one, two or (rarely) all three sororities at this round, in which case they would sttend fewer than three parties. These parties each have a different theme chosen by each sorority, and the PNMs complete a small craft related to the group's national philanthropy. After Theme, PNMs again rank the sororities whose parties they attended in order of their preference. The sororities also make their second round of cuts.
[edit] Preference
Preference, commonly called "Pref", is the final night of Recruitment and is a formal affair. PNMs attend a maximum of two parties, though it is possible for PNMs to attend only one (or to be cut entirely). These parties are the longest of any during Recruitment, and a non-secret ceremony is performed. After Preference, PNMs rank their preference of the two groups whose Preference parties they attended, and the sororities draw up their bid list, or list of girls they wish to offer bids to.
[edit] Bid Day
Bid Day takes place the day after Preference. Each PNM may receive one bid, based on which sororities she attended Pref parties for, how she ranked the groups and how the groups ranked her. If a PNM accepts her bid, she is invited to Bid Night, where she meets the sisters of her new sorority as a New Member, or "pledge". Most sororities "pin" their New Members on Bid Night, making them official New Members of the sorority. They will not become full-fledged sisters until Initiation, which takes place after a new member period of 5-8 weeks.
