Is 24 to old to join a Fraternity?
 

Im 24, from Alabama, and plan on transferring to Alabama or Auburn as a Jr. Do you think there is any chance that they will be interested in me because of my age? I assume they would not. I spent the last 4 years traveling with a band all over the place and I’m ready for a change and to finish school. I’m afraid that there won’t be a lot of people my age to hang out with because of my age unless I join a fraternity because of its built-in social atmosphere.
Any ideas or suggestions would be great…

hey bro ill be 25 when i transfer to UGA..and well i was wondering the same thing.
ive been kickin in doors and getting blown up for the past 5 yrs in the army so the dream of going to uga and pledging has been whats gotten my thru my 3 tours to the sandbox...so i hope there are room out there for guys like us

I know someone that is 25 and is in a fraternity, he is a really fun guy and is highly respected. He is a sophmore right now and started college after the army. Honestly, I think being older helps because 1. You will probably be more mature than the average freshman. and 2. You will be respected for fighting overseas. I think it is more about personality than your age.

We had a guy pledge at 23... He was referred to as Murp (Mr. Pledge).

Swampcritter, I just want to say, God bless you for your service to our country. I think that you will truly enjoy your college experience no matter what the outcome is to your fraternity recruitment. Please let us know how things turn out for you. :)

There is no age cut-off, bar none.

In fact, I would say you have a major advantage going into a house being a little older, especially if you have military experience!

Pledge classes often look to their older members for leadership and mentorship, and having served overseas (or in a band, even) gives you a great deal of experience you can bring to the table.

Just make sure when you find he house you want to join, you emphasis theses qualities, and don't dwell on the age subject.

-James

Don't give him false hopes.

Age CAN be a detriment.

And often will be, at Alabama/Auburn.

one of my pledge brothers was 25. i never really gave it a second thought. but yeah, at some schools and some chapters the age difference might be a bit of an issue

thoughts?
 

What about at Syracuse?

Very true. I think the "why" matters a lot as well though. Military service is, in my experience, rarely a problem. Being in a band, I am not so sure. I guess it depends on the type of band and the part of the country where you plan to pledge.

I will just tell you that when I was an active in my chapter, military service as a reason for pledging older would not have bothered me at all- but being in a band/going to LA to be an actor etc. would at the very least have made me cautious- and it would have taken a lot to convince me to vote yes for extending a bid.

EW and CB correct me if I am wrong; but if a guy were from the same high school, background and reputation as is the norm for top tier chapters at a given school- then I do not see how having served in the military first would be an issue except possibly for the fact there are already too many top prospect incoming freshman right out of high school for that chapter to expand the pool of potential rushees.

In other words, a guy who went into the military and did not come right from high school to college could be out of the running purely due to the realities of numbers- but would still be a good candidate provided there was room in the pledge class.

On the issue of being in a band or some other show business type venture, I cannot speak for every school- but at Texas, Auburn and Georgia that would be a very unusual issue for most chapters. It really comes down to the types of guys that populate most big southern chapters and the fact that being a "star" is not a common pursuit, nor something that is generally looked upon with favor.

bama24- I still say go for it and see how it goes. Noone here can tell you if you will find a good place. But just be prepared for the fact a lot of questions might be raised, and just be honest. If you are honest about what you did and why- then if there is a good place for you, you will get a bid. The one mistake would be to downplay the last few years like they did not matter. That will make you look shiftless and without direction. But if you are glad you took that time to travel with a band, own it and it will be to your credit that you gave it a shot when the opportunity arose.

Essentially.

But the fact that he's lost alot of his rushing ability (being no longer connected to the high school/home town), kind of hurts him.

My Big Bro pledged when he was 25. We had a 28 year old pledge last spring, and a 26 year old pledge currently.

My chapter doesn't take age into consideration when extending bids, as long as the guy is cool and fits well with our chapter.

Just go out and rush to find a fraternity you fit in with =)

In my experience, the older a guy is the less active he is due to other obligations. IMO once you get over 21/22 the person fits in less. Granted if the person is military then that doesn't tend to be an issue, but all others fit into the mold of being less active.

Unless the school is really nontraditional, I couldn't imagine having anyone over 22 pledging that wasn't in the military. I think at mixers a 28 year old would be a burden. I can just picture a 28 year old new pledge trying to score with some 18 year old sorority pledge. (Doing the math he was 20 when most of the girls were 10-13. Gross)

if you dont feel comfortable, wait to graduation and pledge as a grad, there are members in fraternities that are even in their 80's

Not in traditionally white fraternities, which we've sort of presupposed he's interested in.