CONTINUOUS OPEN BIDDING (COB)

What is Continuous Opening Bidding (COB)?
Continuous Open Bidding (COB) is an informal recruitment process that Panhellenic sororities utilize to recruitment new members outside of the designated primary recruitment period to have the maximum number of allowable members (i.e. Chapter Total). For example, if Alpha Alpha Alpha sorority has 50 members for the spring semester and Chapter Total 55, then Alpha Alpha Alpha can extend 5 COBs if they are interested.

Is a snap bid the same as a COB?
No. Snap bidding ends when bids are distributed on Bid Day during Primary Recruitment. Continuous Open Bidding (COB) begins as soon as Bid Day begins in the fall and at the start of the semester in the spring.

Who is eligible for COB?
All female SLU students who are eligible to participate in COB provided that (1) they are a regularly enrolled student or plan to be a full-time student in good standing with SLU at the time of Recruitment in August, (2) they have never been initiated into one of the 3 National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) sororities at SLU or on another campus, and (3) they have not received a bid during the most recent primary membership recruitment and declined the bid or have left their pledgeship to a sorority.

Is there a minimum Grade Point Average to Participate in COB?
The COB process follows the same requirements as primary recruitment. A PNM must have a minimum GPA of 2.0 to participate in any recruitment activities. PLEASE NOTE: each chapter may have their own minimum GPA requirement that may be higher than the Panhellenic minimum. Please reach out to individual chapter recruitment directors for chapter specific information.

How does COB work?
Unlike primary recruitment, COB is very casual and unstructured. Each chapter does COB differently and the College Panhellenic Association does not set dates for informal recruitment events or oversee offering of bids. Chapters individually contact a potential new member and invite her to an informal recruitment event or chapter activities in an effort to get to get to know her better.

If a woman receives a COB, what are her options?
1. If a woman receives a COB from a chapter that she is not interested in joining she may decline the bid.
2. If a woman receives a COB from a chapter she is interested in joining she can accept the bid. Those accepting bids through the COB process will be required to sign a MRABA acceptance binding agreement, which must be completed within one business day of accepting the bid.
3. If a woman receives a COB from a chapter and is unsure about accepting at that time, she may ask to wait to accept or decline the bid. Each chapter is responsible to determining when an answer must be given by (normally 24-48 hours from time a bid is issued).

Which sororities are eligible to participate in COB?
Any Panhellenic sorority that has an overall chapter membership below Chapter Total is able to, but not required, by Panhellenic to pledge additional new members ton meet the campus total. Participation in COB is ultimately up to the discretion of the chapter, and there is not set number of chapters or a guarantee that specific chapters will participate.

How many women will receive bids through COB?
This number varies semester to semester. Given that COB is not mandatory and that chapters have the option to recruitment up to Chapter Total, we cannot speculate the overall number of bids that will be issued and/or number of women that will receive bids.

What do I need to do if I want to be considered for COB?
Women interested in being considered for COB should fill out the online COB Interest Form.

Is there a cost associated with COB?
No. There is not a cost to participate in Continuous Opening Bidding.

Are letters of recommendation required?
No.

How long will chapters COB?
Chapters are allowed by the National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) to extend bids or offers of membership to unaffiliated women during the regular school year (as defined by the academic calendar). During the fall, COB begins after the formal structured recruitment process has typically concludes in mid-November. During the spring, COB begins the first day of classes and concludes in the last week of March.

If a woman completes a COB Interest Form is she guaranteed a bid for membership from a sorority?
Filling out a COB Interest Form does not guarantee that a sorority will contact a potential new member nor does it guarantee that she will receive a bid.