Rush 2013 sees more students rushing, over 50 percent of freshman men pledging
Rush 2013 sees more students rushing, over 50 percent of freshman men pledging
The first week of the academic year marked another successful Rush period, according to IFC Rush Chair Haldun Anil ’15. Of the 451 bids MIT fraternity chapters issued to 381 students, 330 have accepted their bids, accounting for more than half of the male freshmen population. (Not all students issued bids were freshmen.) These numbers are an increase over 2012 when 440 bids were issued to 375 students, yielding 324 pledges, and 2011 when 455 bids were offered to 369 students, yielding 321 pledges. Historical records show that the number of bids issued has remained fairly constant over the years but that the number of students receiving bids has increased steadily since around 2009.
According to Anil, the increase in rush yields are due to the IFC being better prepared for the Kresge Kickoff, the first event of Rush every fraternity has a table on Kresge Oval.
“There was a concerted effort to make sure that it was widely publicized,” said Anil. The IFC made use of both physical and digital media when advertising and did their best to spread the word in person as well, which Anil said contributed to a “critical mass” attendance at the Kresge Kickoff.
Rush isn’t over however, Anil says. “Rush is a year-long experience … most houses are willing to recruit new members even as the semester progresses.”
—William Navarre