Am I registered for Fall Formal Recruitment?
If you have sent in your registration form and check/money order to the Panhellenic office you will receive a confirmation email within two weeks of the date it was received. After two weeks, if you do not receive an email, call the office and double check on the status of your application.
How do I let the Department of Student Housing know that I'm moving in early?
We will take care of this for you! Once you have submitted your registration materials, your name will go on a list that will be submitted to the Department of Student Housing for early move-in. The cost for this is covered in your recruitment registration fee. They will be expecting you on August 17th and will have your room and keys ready to go!
How can I avoid a conflict with Orientation so that I can attend all of Recruitment, and how soon should I register?
The best way to avoid conflict is to attend an Orientation Session prior to Hawkweek. Here are some of the best reasons why:
· There are numerous options to attend Orientation prior to Hawk week, and the sooner you register the better. You can register at www://orientation.ku.edu
· Panhellenic leaders will be hosting a workshop during each Orientation session, this will provide you a chance to get your questions or concerns answered in person prior to the beginning of recruitment.
· In order to have the best opportunity to join a sorority you need to attend every recruitment event, and Panhellenic cannot rearrange your recruitment schedule to accommodate orientation.
· The sorority women and Panhellenic leaders have been working hard all year long to prepare a great week for you and we don’t want you to miss out.
What does my registration fee cover?
The $135.00 registration fee will cover meals and transportation during the week, early move-in for women living in the residence halls, a dining hall pass for those living off-campus, miscellaneous logistic expenses, and a 2011 Fall Formal Recruitment t-shirt that you will wear during Open House rounds.
Does the Panhellenic Association have a GPA requirement for Fall Formal Recruitment?
Yes. The Panhellenic Association has established a grade requirement for those participating in Fall Formal Recruitment. Incoming freshman women must have a 2.80 cumulative GPA and sophomores or transfer students must have a 2.70 cumulative GPA in order to participate in the process. Please keep in mind that individual chapters have grade requirements that they must abide by. Some of these requirements are above a 2.70 GPA. Unfortunately, individual chapters do not disclose their exact requirements.
Are there any exceptions to the GPA requirement?
Yes. Panhellenic understands and will make exceptions for any woman who has a medically documented learning disability. We must have written documentation and verification from your high school/family physician. Although Panhellenic makes this exception, individual chapters may not make exceptions to their own grade requirements. Again, please keep in mind that individual chapters have minimum grade requirements that they must abide by and some cannot individually make these exceptions.
My school does not go on a 4.0 scale/I took all honors/AP courses/my school was a college prep school, will this be considered when looking at my GPA?
The University of Kansas converts all high school GPA's to a 4.0 scale during the admission process. Panhellenic will use this same GPA during Fall Formal Recruitment.
What are the financial obligations that I will see if I join a sorority at KU?
Each chapter at KU has dues that must be paid in order to stay an active member. The range that a new-member could pay is $1,800 to $3,250 with the average new member paying somewhere around $2,247 per year. These dues cover initiation costs, one-time membership costs, a few meals per week at the chapter facility, and many other things.
What is the comparison of living in the chapter house and living in a residence hall or off campus?
Living in a sorority here at KU is comparable to living in the residence halls and off campus. Almost all of our sororities are actually more affordable than the residence halls. Live in fees range from $4,600-$7,300 with the average live-in fee being somewhere around $5,300 a year. The average rent in Lawrence is around $450 or about $5,400 per year (according to rentometer.com). The live-in fee for a sorority includes meals and parking.
What am I getting out of all these dues and fees I pay?
Each chapter at KU is different in where their fees and dues go. Most dues cover membership costs, room and board, utilities, meals, snack foods, cleaning, gardening, and other miscellaneous costs. [back to top]
If I can't meet the financial obligations, what do I do?
The Panhellenic Association and most sororities here at KU have individual and financial aid opportunities offered through their local or national organizations. Interested prospective members should inquire about these opportunities during Fall Formal Recruitment.
What should I wear for recruitment week?
A couple of general guidelines:
- You do not need to buy new clothes for recruitment! You probably already have everything you need in your closet.
- It is hot in Kansas in August so dress comfortably.
- KU is a hilly campus and you will be doing some walking so choose comfortable shoes!
For the first two days of recruitment we will provide you with a t-shirt to wear and you can choose what you want to wear on the bottom; chino shorts, capris, and or a casual skirt are all good options. From that point on each round gets progressively dressier. On the third day some good options would be a skirt, capris, or nice shorts and a top. For the fourth day a sundress or skirt/capris and a top would be a good choice. During the last round, the chapters will be dressed up and it would be appropriate for you to dress up too. A dress that you would wear to a wedding or to church would be appropriate - a prom dress would not be appropriate! Be sure to wear comfortable shoes with all of your outfits.
What if I can't make it to a recruitment round or I have to arrive late?
The Recruitment staff will work very hard to collect your conflicts during the week and make sure the chapters know that you have conflicts. The chapters are very understanding about conflicts and know that recruitment is not the only thing going on during this week. However, limit your conflicts to the very important things such as band, orientation, cheer squad and other KU activities that require attendance during this week. The more conflicts you have, the fewer times the chapters get to meet you and the harder it is for them to make decisions. If you know your conflicts now, please let us know in your online registration or email us.
What does it mean to “maximize my options”?
At the end of each day, you will have the opportunity to rank the chapters you visited in preference order. For each round of recruitment, you MUST rank every chapter that you have visited that day. Once you have attended the Preference round, we do not require you to rank every chapter that you have visited that night. However, if you do rank every chapter (maximize your options) we will guarantee that you will receive a bid from one of the chapters that you have ranked. For example, if you have visited three chapters that night and you rank all three, you will have maximized your options. However, if you visit three chapters and only rank two of them, you have not maximized your options and Panhellenic can not guarantee you a bid from a sorority.
Will I automatically get into a chapter by the end of the week?
KU has a very low occurrence of women who are not matched to a chapter for one reason or another. The average percentage of women who didn't match over the last three years is about 4% of women continuing through preference round. While we can't guarantee that you'll match to a chapter for the whole week, if you participate in the Preference round (the last round of recruitment) and you maximize your options when you rank the chapters you visited that night, and we will guarantee that you will become a member of one of those chapters.
If I'm a legacy will I automatically get a bid from a chapter?
No. Each Prospective member starts recruitment on a level playing field. While each chapter has their own policies for recruiting legacies, the will make decisions based on their standards and the potential member fit with the chapter.
Does recruitment interfere with Hawk Week?
The Panhellenic Association makes every effort to get you to as many Hawk Week events as possible. We will guarantee that you will have the opportunity to attend Traditions Night, Union Fest, Beach n' Boulevard, and Convocation, some of the largest nightly Hawk Week events. Also, there will be plenty of time to go on class and library tours.
Will I have to live in the house as a new member?
No. The Panhellenic sororities will not require you to move into the house until your second year. However, if you are interested in moving in at the beginning of your second semester, ask the sororities during recruitment if that is an option!
What is a recommendation and do I have to have one?
A letter of recommendation is an introduction and brief description of a prospective member to a chapter that is written by an alumna of that particular organization. Letters of recommendation are NOT required to go through recruitment; however, most women find them helpful in the process. Every year there are many women who join chapters that have many letters of recommendation and there are women who join chapters who don't have any letters of recommendation. If you would like to secure letters of recommendation, you can ask a woman whom you know is an alumna of a sorority represented at KU to write one for you and send it directly to her specific organization. The addresses can be found on this site under 'Recruitment' and 'Letters of Recommendation'