Letters of Recommendation and Sponsors
 

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Here is another odd one. Is it recommended to have a letter of rec for a group you are a legacy to, or is that over kill?
I have read and been told if you DON'T get a letter of rec from your relative it appears "odd" as in why DIDN'T they write letter for her/him. I would get that letter.

As far as your other question, hmmmmm.

Do you know many people or do your parents know many people who went to Univerities with large Greek systems? It woludn't hurt to be open and say you are planing on rushing and wonder if they know any alums of ANY GLOs. Most people are more than happy to help a young person with recs or at the very least point them in the right direction.

I would start with your "a" and "b" ideas.

Tell EVERY adult graduate what your plans are and just ASK.
Have copies of your resume' and photos to give them.
Supply them with the mailing address of the chapters noting "recruitment chair".
For first timers sending in a rec-Tell them they may need to go to their national website for a form if they never wrote a rec before. The easier you make it for them, the more likely it is to get done in the correct way.

sorority rush hurts my head. my rush:

Rush Chair: "Dude, you're wild man."
Me: "Nah dude, you guys rawk"
Rush Chaur: "Yeah dude, you wanna pledge?"
Me: "Sure, why not. Got nothing better to do"
Rush Chair: "Cool man, come to the interest meeting!"
Me: "Cool, check ya on the flip side"

I cannot get a letter from my legacy relative as she is no longer living. Should I find another alum to write one to take the place of hers?

On your application for recruitment, just make a notation that she is "deceased", but they usually ask for the campus where they initiated. If you CAN get a letter, do so. If rush isn't cut throat, perhaps recs aren't the "norm". Have you posted where you will be going (perhaps I missed it)? Maybe someone on GC has connections so you can get a clearer picture of what is necessary and what is lagniappe.

Arya-you are tooooooo funny! I know of one guy who pledged, depledged, repledged, depledged and then pledged a different fraternity!!! I lost track so I don't know WHAT his status is now. AND, this was at LSU a mere 3 years ago!!!

Don't forget to ask the friends that you know in the above groups, if they people in any *OTHER* groups....remember that Greeks often beget other Greeks!

These are very good threads too:
http://www.greekchat.net/gcforums/sh...threadid=18519
(be sure to read what dzrose93 has to say...wise woman, that girl!)
and
http://www.greekchat.net/gcforums/sh...threadid=16457

Timeframe
 

Ok, I have a question. How early is to early to start getting recs in? My rush is August 20-27. Should I start contacting my NPC office for Alums now, or should I wait until later in the summer. I just don't want to cut it to close. Also, and I may have asked this already but I can't find the thread it might be in, should I get recs for every chapter on campus, or only the ones I think I'm interested in so far. I just don't want to leave one out, then that be the house I like, but not get in cuz I didn't give them a rec.

Try to get one for all the ones on your campus. You never know which GLO is for you until you go through rush. The one you hated beforehand is the very one you love. The one "everyone" aspires to might not be where you fit in the best. The one you love now might be the one you wind up pledging. The whole process is fascinating to watch!

Re: Timeframe
 

I suggest that you check out the websites for the groups at your school. I believe that you can never be too prepared or too early. Some NPCs have deadlines for recs. For example, the DPhiE legacy form must be received by August 1st for Fall recruitment and December 1st for Spring Recruitment. Recs might work the same way. Good luck! :)

aurora_borealis,

Since there is no npc alum chapter there, I would suggest visiting the NPC site at http://www.npcwomen.org and contacting them. They have a list of contacts. I have contacted them before and they are quick to reply & super helpful. I wish I had known about them when I went through rush.

Good Luck!

While this is all great advice, don't let it ruin your rush experience if you do not get all your recs in. If rush isn't very cut-throat, it may not matter at all. Recs help, but if you don't get one for XYZ, don't walk into their chapter thinking that you have no chance with them.

Recs
 

Excellent advice, MSKKG. You never know how things will shake out during recruitment and you need to be prepared!

AZPinkkittie and I already spoke about this but at my school (University of Arizona) recs are really not needed. If you know someone who wants you to write you a rec then that's great but otherwise you shouldn't kill yourself to get recs. Most of the women I know in my chapter and other chapters didn't have any recs at all. So I would just like to point it out that some places recs aren't a big deal.

The use of recommendations may vary by campus but if you are a legacy, that information needs to be relayed to the chapter. If nothing else, contact the headquarters for that group. There may be a "legacy introduction form" that can be sent to the chapter if they verify membership of your grandmother. That is different from a reference letter. It is certainly not too early to start working on letters for an August rush (course, I'm in Texas and letters are essential here.... the greek advisor at your future campus can tell you how picky they are about having letters)

Here are some examples of Reference Letters (sometimes known as Sponsor Forms)
Delta Gamma
Delta Zeta
Legacy Form and Reference Form
Kappa Delta
Alpha Xi Delta