[ASTalumna06]

As much as I hate doing it, I send thank you notes a lot. It doesn’t have to be anything over-the-top.. just a nice way of letting someone know that you appreciate something they’ve done for you.

Knowing little to nothing about recs, I still wouldn’t request that someone write one for me without sending a thank you. It seems weird to me to not include even a post-it note that said those two, short words. Just like I thanked every one of the teachers who wrote me letters of recommendation for college, I would thank any sorority member who wrote me a rec, as well.

Btw – I always send a thank you note/letter/email following a job interview. I only think it’s polite, and even if it doesn’t help my chances, it definitely can’t hurt. However, I actually had a job interviewer comment on the fact that I sent a thank you note. She said it was refreshing to know that the practice wasn’t completely lost on younger generations. I didn’t get THAT job, but for what it’s worth, I did get a phone call back from her 2 months later where she offered me another position, which I gladly accepted. Whether or not that thank you note made her think of me first, I don’t know. But again, I’m sure it didn’t work against me.

Originally Posted by VandalSquirrel

I would also be thrilled if I never had to see another post on GC about manners and/or etiquette where it is implied the South has some monopoly, higher expectations, or exceeds any other region of the USA. I know those of you from the South aren't directly or intentionally insulting everyone else in the country, but in the end reading it over and over again is tiresome and insulting to me.

Thank you! It was only a few posts/posters in before people started assuming that this is a “southern thing.” How anyone could deduce that from a few comments about the original post, I don’t know.

Originally Posted by 33girl

I was going to say - maybe the girls don't send thank you notes because they don't know if the women wrote the rec and have no way to find out? I mean isn't that kind of like sending a thank-you note before someone even sends you a present, just assuming they will do so? I would feel quite silly if I wrote a TY note to someone thanking them for the birthday present and never got anything.

You don’t have to specifically say, “Thank you for writing a rec…” You could keep things vague. Using Blondie93’s example ‘thank you,’ I have included one small change:

Originally Posted by Blondie93

"Thank you for taking the time to review this information. I recognize that your summer is busy, and appreciate that you would offer to help. l look forward to attending ABC university and can't wait to participate in recruitment."

Originally Posted by Blondie93

..or something like that.