Recruitment at CWRU
Fraternity recruitment at CWRU occurs in three parts:
- Rush! The first three weeks of each semester is CWRU’s the sanctioned fraternity rush period. During this time, unaffiliated men attend recruitment events run by the different fraternities on campus. This allows potential new members (PNMs) to meet brothers and their chapters.
- Bid Day. On the fourth Monday of the Semester, fraternities extend formal invitations to selected PNMs called bids. If you receive a bid, brothers must honor a day of silence, and will not initiate contact with you until Wednesday. This gives you the freedom to make your decision without any pressure. On Wednesday, you can choose to officially accept your bid.
- After Bid Acceptance. From here on, each fraternity has a different program for PNMs who accept their bids, now called candidates.
Our Process
Our chapter offers some important distinctions in the joining process.
Presenting at Café Sigma Nu.
You may be invited to one of our final recruitment events, Café Sigma Nu—a longstanding tradition in our chapter. Here, we lay out all the technical aspects of joining: The exact cost of Sigma Nu, the GPA requirements involved, our new member education program, and more. You can ask questions at any event, but Café Sigma Nu is often a convenient time. An invitation to Café Sigma Nu does not guarantee a bid.
Our bids are voted on by unanimous approval. If you receive a bid, you will know that every member of the chapter welcomes you warmly and wholeheartedly into our fraternity.
Moreover, a Sigma Nu bid is good for your entire undergraduate career. Unlike other fraternities, Delta Alpha allows you to delay your decision for a semester or more. In fact, some of our current brothers have done so. With that said, the benefits of Greek Life and of being a Sigma Nu do not begin until after joining.
If you wish to accept your bid to Sigma Nu, you can officially do so starting the Wednesday following Did Day. Historically, we have Bid Acceptance Dinner on this night as well.
Candidacy
We hold our Candidate Ceremony the first Sunday after Bids are extended. Here, individuals who accepted their bids formally become candidates. This is the first step to becoming a full member. Candidates will progress through our new member education program, LEAD (Leadership, Ethics, Achievement, Development) Phase I. As an added perk, all candidates and first-year brothers may eat house food without charge. This encourages new members to eat at the house and mingle with future brothers.
Candidates working on their candidate class project.
In the middle of the semester, we hold our Brotherhood Retreat during which candidates are revealed their big brothers, who serve as mentors throughout your time in Sigma Nu. At the end of LEAD Phase I—the end of the semester—you will go through the Knighting Ceremony, our initiation. Once Knighted, candidates become full members, with all of the rights, privileges, and knowledge of every Sigma Nu before them.
This graduated process should ease the wary minds of you and your parents. Candidates are under no obligation—and are offered no promise—that they become full members. This time period is a way for candidates to get more familiar with the chapter, while allowing for either party to easily drop out of the relationship without hard feelings.
And Beyond
Our membership development does not end there. As a full brother, you will complete LEAD Phase II, a program primarily concerned with the qualities of leadership, within two semesters of initiation. Phases III and IV will continue your development as you become an upperclassman.