NPHC Fraternity Selection and Intake
 

I thought I'd post a thread that shed some light on how "recruitment" works for NPHC fraternities.

Overall, I believe that most NPHC fraternity men would say "We don't recruit...aspirants come to us." Which, on the whole, is true, but has some asterisks thrown up in there.

For this post, I looked on the websites of all five NPHC fraternities. It was so weird looking up membership information for fraternities other than my own!

The websites are:
www.alphaphialpha.net
www.kappaalphapsi1911.com
www.oppf.org
www.pbs1914.org
www.iotaphitheta.org


Every fraternity is different, so nothing I write here is intended to be definitive.

Most black men come to college with at least a passing awareness of NPHC fraternities. Our teachers, pastors, deacons, mentors, and male family members were most likely members. Some of us come to college knowing which fraternity we intend to pursue. Others just know they want to be part of a brotherhood of some sort and do their research from there. Still others come to college with little to know awareness and are taken with a particular group.

I have never seen an NPHC fraternity "recruit." Most will publically advertise an information session and welcome any interested man to come learn more about the org. At my alma mater, they were generally held in on-campus apartments of the members. At other schools, they were held in classrooms or auditoriums. At minimum, they would be business casual events.

Some orgs would have public information sessions and then interest meetings that were more formal and invitation-only. It really depends on the campus and the protocol of that particular organization.

Also dependent on the campus is whether or not it is okay to hop from different interest meetings. In some places it is encouraged -- in others, it is frowned upon and grounds for being blackballed. In my opinion, it's better to have your mind made up about a specific org before you attend any membership-related event.

Once you attend the interest meeting, you will learn what you need to know about membership intake from that point.

Also important to know...if one is interested in an NPHC fraternity, get to know the members. Befriend them if possible. It's just the right thing to do. Like I somewhat said in another thread, BE a brother to be a BROTHER.

Sidenote: NPHC fraternities have a very active alumni component, and therefore active alumni initiation. Part of the reason for this is that historically, African American male college graduates did not have the same social and civic outlets as their Caucasian counterparts in the early 1900s. So GLOs provided those outlets. Also, alumni initiation was encouraged for those college graduates who came from colleges with no Alpha chapter due to small minority enrollment.

I am an alumni initiate into APhiA and I am more than happy to answer questions related to my pursuit of membership.

Are black men expected to join NPHC chapters over an NIC chapter, if a campus has both to offer? Do their peers look down upon them for choosing an NIC fraternity on a campus with strong NPHC chapters?d

I think it all depends on the campus. In general, people go where they best fit. I wouldn't assume that a black guy who is interested in NIC orgs would be looking at NPHC orgs anyway. And vice versa -- I never looked into NIC orgs. Nothing wrong with them. Just wasn't what I was looking for.

In terms of being looked down upon....I really don't know. My firsthand experience with black guys in NIC fraternities was at American, where it seemed like no one had a problem with it. The couples of black NIC members I've seen on GC haven't seemed like they were ostracized or anything, either.

Maybe the younger you are, perhaps you would look on the situation with resentment.

Some of the NPHC fraternities belong to the NIC, too.

Correct. Those organizations are Kappa, Iota, and Alpha.

However, in matters of recruitment, there is an NPHC "style" and an NIC "style."

The differences between the styles are what we are discussing, not the councils themselves.

Thanks for the information.

Something like this could have been used a while back and may go a long way in understanding.:)

And on some campuses, NPHC chapters do this along with IFC and other fraternity chapters. Part of a Greek Life overview as it were.

True.

I would consider these joint info sessions to be less formal and not a mandatory step in the selection process. We had them at my school, too.

Great thread!:D

I've always been curious about NPHC org's and how they do things... THANKS FOR SHARING!

Damn, I used to be really helpful and insightful!

transfer students
 

Is it true that transfer students have to be at the school for a year before seeking membership?

It depends on the organization and the school itself.

are NPHC organizations permitted to associate themselves or support younger groups? ifso which ones? for the ones that cant, why not?


ΓΞΣ
#___ Bonez
mA
L.O.A.D.B.

"The unity of many is stronger than the adamance of one."