Photo credit: University of Tennessee (UTK) Panhellenic – Bid Day 2024
Are you planning to participate in sorority recruitment, aka rush, at the University of Tennessee this spring?
We’re so excited for you!! Firstly, congrats on getting into UTK!! Time to start collecting your Tennessee orange game day outfits!!
Now that you’re all set on your school, let’s talk about the next steps as you head off to Knoxville this fall: getting ready for sorority recruitment.
The University of Tennessee (UTK) has a huge Greek community with 14 amazing sororities to join, and formal sorority recruitment is one of the best ways to get involved on campus!!
Here, formal recruitment takes place in the fall. It’s a week-long process in August with four rounds. When you participate in recruitment you’re required to “rush” every house vs. selecting just a few chapters to get to know.
University of Tennessee Panhellenic Sorority Chapters:
- Alpha Chi Omega
- Alpha Delta Pi
- Alpha Omicron Pi
- Alpha Gamma Delta *established fall 2024
- Chi Omega
- Delta Delta Delta
- Delta Gamma
- Delta Zeta
- Kappa Delta
- Kappa Kappa Gamma
- Phi Mu
- Pi Beta Phi
- Sigma Kappa
- Zeta Tau Alpha
2024 University of Tennessee Sorority Recruitment Schedule & Dates:
- Go Greek Module Completion (online): August 1-7
- Move-In for Recruitment Participants: August 11 & 12
- Recruitment Kickoff: August 13
- Open House Round: August 14-15
- PNMs view pre-recorded videos of the sorority chapters instead of meeting the chapters in person. **This means PNMs will not meet all the chapters, only the ones who invite them back for Philanthropy Round.***
- Philanthropy & Service Round: August 13, 14, & 15
- PNMs can receive a max of 10 chapter invitations; many will receive less
- Sisterhood Round: August 15 & 16
- PNMs can receive a max of 6 chapter invitations; many will receive less
- Preference Round: August 17
- PNMs can receive a max of 2 chapter invitations but may have 1 invite or none at this time (none meaning that the PNM is released from the process without a bid).
- Bid Day: August 18
- PNMs can receive a max of 1 bid, but a bid is not guaranteed
How can you maximize your chances of getting MORE invitations and therefore, boost your chances of getting a bid to a chapter you LOVE and are EXCITED about?
UTK’s Sorority recruitment does NOT begin in August.
Even though the University of Tennessee Panhellenic website says otherwise, recruitment DOES NOT BEGIN IN AUGUST with formal recruitment. The sororities start making lists of PNMs they’re excited about early spring of the girls’ senior year. At UTK, it’s not just important – it’s absolutely essential to get on the recruitment team’s radar as soon as you commit so that the chapter is aware of your existence.
At the University of Tennessee, Letters of Recommendation are a MUST.
How does a PNM get on a recruitment team’s radar if they don’t know current members at that chapter? One way is with Letters of Recommendation, which are also called Recruitment Information Forms (RIFs).
If you do not know anyone in the chapters (and even if you do) you should STILL obtain these.
The University of Tennessee has an extremely competitive recruitment process, and you absolutely need these if you plan to rush here.
Why? Aside from the fact that turning these in shows interest, if you don’t personally know anyone and you aren’t able to register for recruitment until May (when UTK’s recruitment registration typically goes live), turning in Letters of Recommendation helps the sorority chapters:
- 1) know of your existence months earlier
- 2) get to know you before recruitment and most importantly – get excited about you!
Think of it this way: if the chapters don’t know about you ahead of time, they can’t get excited about you during recruitment and it’s easier to slip through the cracks. It’s like expecting a cute guy from one of your 100+ person college classes who doesn’t know you yet to ask you out. You could be the cutest, sweetest, most interesting girl in the class, but if you haven’t introduced yourself, a date’s pretty unlikely, right?
——-> PS – Have you seen our Sorority Recruitment Guide with a step-by-step Checklist & Action Plan? Click here! <——–
Do not ignore the deadlines!
There are over 1500 PNMs and only 4-6 members on each chapter’s recruitment team.
In order to maximize your chances of receiving more invites back, University of Tennessee Letters of Recommendation are due on – or even better, before – May 1, regardless of the listed dates on the UTK University Panhellenic website & Instagram account, UTK sorority websites, and your city’s local Panhellenic Association’s suggested dates.
Yes, technically you can turn them in later, but think of this like you would a job application.
If a company opens a job application for 90 days, sure you absolutely can apply the day before they take it down. But if they’ve already found the right candidates and they’re excited about them, and there are only so many open jobs – what do you think your chance of getting that job is going to be? Less likely than the earlier applicants with similar qualifications – that’s for sure.
Ignore the national deadlines they’re legally required to post and have your Letters of Rec turned in by May 1st if you want to maximize your chances of receiving more invites from more chapters. (If you’re reading this after May 1st – deep breath, don’t panic. You’re behind, BUT it’s still better to turn them in ASAP vs. not at all. Not sure if it’s still worth doing? Depends on how far along in the summer you are.) *If you’re unsure if you’ve missed the window for recommendations, you’re welcome to contact us and we can help you fully understand what to do / when it’s due / and how to expedite this process.
We can help PNMs navigate this entire process surrounding what these letters are, where to turn them in, and who can/should complete them, but we can’t do anything after the window closes. What are Letters of Recommendation (LORs), Recruitment Information Forms (RIFs), and Letters of Support (LOS)? Read our 5-min blog post.
The University of Tennessee Panhellenic recruitment process has a mandatory PNM Video assignment that’s due with sorority registration.
- PNMs are required to answer specific prompts and record a video of themselves answering these.
- This video is due along with registration over the summer prior to formal recruitment and will be factored into your PNM score and impact whether or not you return for round 2. Take it seriously and turn it in early!
- We help PNMs with scripting, filming tips, and suggestions on how to be more memorable in their videos with 1×1 coaching sessions, so if you want guidance – that’s what we’re here for!
Plan to participate in sorority recruitment at the University of Tennessee this fall? Don’t risk slipping through the cracks!
Work with a sorority recruitment coach who specializes in University of Tennessee (UTK) recruitment and celebrates as tons of our PNMs happily receive their bids every year!! We’ve been nationally recognized in WSJ, CNBC, FOX, Cosmopolitan Magazine, Elite Daily, NBC, and many others.
A lot of the big decisions with rushees involve paperwork and are made months before recruitment.
We know exactly what the Director of Recruitment Records is looking for on your resume, how the sororities will rank your social resume and rec letters on a scale (and how you can get a higher ranking), how the bid list ordering and cut process works, and what you should actually be discussing during each round. (Hint – it’s not what the Panhellenic guides will tell you!)
Working with a rush coach maximizes a PNM’s odds and gives your daughter an advantage long before she steps foot on campus for recruitment so she can go in more relaxed and confident.
It’s just like the SAT – it’s better to go in prepared. Let’s get you (or your daughter) recruitment ready!
To reserve your spot with a sorority recruitment consultant, call us at (512) 827-7586 or complete the form below: