age question

GrayTiger · #1 07-07-2007, 03:22 AM

I am assuming this is the right place for this post ---- anyway, i have to brief you for this to make any sense

i got married young and it was over faster than the ceremony lasted - from dating this person to marrying her, i wasted 5 years of my life in which i should have been in school --- i had plans to go to school, join a fraternity and have a great time when i was at school, graduate, get a job, start a life........

well like i said, with the way my situations led it was all put on hold for a few years but i went back to school - i attended a junior college for a year and a half before going to finish at the university i attend now --- i started this past January and not many of the fraternities have a "formal" spring rush so i decided to wait until the fall which is coming up in August

now, i am 26 (i will turn 27 during the fall semester), but like i said, i had plans to do all this at the "normal" age but......i am one of those people that does not care how old i am, i am just a laid back guy that likes to have a good time with other people that like to have a good time without freaking out about how old somebody is - the way i see it, no matter what age i am, the fact is that i am in school and trying to graduate on time and i just want to have the best time i can while i am here and get the most out of my time here, so why not? why should my age hinder that - does that make sense?

my question is, do i have a chance to be accepted? i met a lot of guys in the spring semester that were in fraternities (by having classes with them) and i seemed to get along with them well, but i dont want to embarass myself if i dont even stand a chance --- i just figured i would run it by you guys first to see what you had to say

AlphaFrog · #2 07-07-2007, 08:08 AM

In general, fraternity rush is a lot more lax than sorority recruitment. Therefore, if you read the ookatrillion sorority recruitment threads on here, take them with a grain of salt to your situation. I know I read a post on here where the guy's chapter had bid a 30 year old. So it does happen. One of the top houses on my campus had an older gentleman in it. Obviously, us not knowing your school (and probably not a good idea to tell us either, as you'll be pretty easy to pick out if anyone from you school reads GC), we can't offer you spesific advice or statistics.

I personally think you just need to go for it. What harm could come out of it? And, otherwise, you're always going to think to yourself "what if?".

Styrofoam · #3 07-07-2007, 06:54 PM

I rushed my fraternity at 22 (turned 23 durring my pledgeship) and i wasn't the oldest guy there. One of my pledge brothers was 23 already, and soon to be 24.... my best friend (and a brother) is 19. Like you, I don't really care how old i am, its how old i feel that makes the difference. I still run around and have a good time with my younger friends (with the benifit of going to the bar with my older ones)

I also would like to point out, me and 3 other guys decided to go to Colorado University to install the colony there. (a blast i might add) and the initiation ages ranged from as young as 17 to as old as 30. So... Who knows, just go hang out with the guys you like and see what its about. You might find its not something you want to do anymore... but you might find it as rewarding as I do. YOu never know untill you try.

SWTXBelle · #4 07-08-2007, 05:25 PM

I know my brother's fraternity had some older members. Really, it wasn't an issue for them. If they were interested, and likeable, they had as much if not more of a shot than the younger men. I know several members reallly appreciated the perspective the older guys brought, and it worked out well.
I think it is more of an issue for sororities than fraternities, frankly.
Go for it, and good luck.

DDlegacy · #5 07-09-2007, 02:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SWTXBelle

I know my brother's fraternity had some older members. Really, it wasn't an issue for them. If they were interested, and likeable, they had as much if not more of a shot than the younger men. I know several members reallly appreciated the perspective the older guys brought, and it worked out well.
I think it is more of an issue for sororities than fraternities, frankly.
Go for it, and good luck.

Yeah, I know several older fraternity men. And guys tend to stick around longer than girls do--maybe because they can. Sometimes its a maturity thing. If you don't mind hanging out with 18-19-20 year olds, I don't think it would be a problem at all.
Even in my sorority we had a sister (she just graduated and went alum) who was 25/26 when she joined. She made friends with some of the older girls, to be certain, but I never really felt like she was older than me. There are older women that go through, but they generally don't stick it out--maybe they don't want to hang out with a bunch of fresh-out-of-high-schoolers.

Dionysus · #6 07-09-2007, 02:18 PM

Go for it. It's better late than never...or too late.

Tom Earp · #7 07-09-2007, 02:38 PM

I love the word older!

I started a Local at 24 and am still doing after 42 years.

Age is one thing only and that is regarding where you are in college year.

Any time and many times a more mature person can give a big boost to any chapter and Fraternity!

The key is picking the correct one first.

If they want to haze, drop them and find one who does not beleive in it not only from their site but in fact.

I would suggest one but I won't, you ahve to make up your mind first.

Get to know the Members and Brothers to get a better idea!

SNUIGC · #8 07-09-2007, 02:40 PM

Yeah, I agree with what everyone else is saying... at my chapter we just accepted a guy who was 27 during the Spring semester... and he had just got out of the Army and was coming back to school. So, I mean, it's definitely more than possible and would definitely say go for it.

Firehouse · #9 07-13-2007, 08:13 PM

I'd add: don't spend time explaining your circumstances. If anyone asks, just say you worked for a few years after high school. Don't lie, but if you start out explaining your "journey", the undergrads' antenna go up and they tend to get spooked. You're obviously older; all you have to say is I worked after high school then went to junior college. That makes you a normal guy and not something they don't understand or identify with.

UGAalum94 · #10 07-13-2007, 09:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Firehouse

I'd add: don't spend time explaining your circumstances. If anyone asks, just say you worked for a few years after high school. Don't lie, but if you start out explaining your "journey", the undergrads' antenna go up and they tend to get spooked. You're obviously older; all you have to say is I worked after high school then went to junior college. That makes you a normal guy and not something they don't understand or identify with.

I don't know anything really about age and IFC, but what Firehouse says seems really important.

You don't want to seem like bitter-I-wasted-my-youth-guy. So the less you call attention to how you feel about what you did instead or getting into having an ex-wife, the better I think.

Is it possible to talk to some of the guys you met already informally before hand rush?

GrayTiger · #11 07-24-2007, 03:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AlphaGamUGAAlum

I don't know anything really about age and IFC, but what Firehouse says seems really important.

You don't want to seem like bitter-I-wasted-my-youth-guy. So the less you call attention to how you feel about what you did instead or getting into having an ex-wife, the better I think.

Is it possible to talk to some of the guys you met already informally before hand rush?

maybe, if not the ones i have met before i know i can talk to some members of other fraternities - my roomate for this semester (wasnt last semester) was a member of a fraternity when he was there (he took a semester off) and he knows some guys...

i agree about the whole "life story" bit ----

sigtau305 · #12 07-24-2007, 03:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Firehouse

I'd add: don't spend time explaining your circumstances. If anyone asks, just say you worked for a few years after high school. Don't lie, but if you start out explaining your "journey", the undergrads' antenna go up and they tend to get spooked. You're obviously older; all you have to say is I worked after high school then went to junior college. That makes you a normal guy and not something they don't understand or identify with.

Good Point.

Tom Earp · #13 07-25-2007, 01:40 PM

Gray Tiger, nothing ventured, nothing gained!

Introduce yourself to some members and just ask questions.

Let them get to know you and vise versa.

SnuKnight172 · #14 07-27-2007, 01:07 PM

Within my chapter it seems as if every few years a guy that is significantly older than a normal college student rushes.

When I rushed I was 22 and one of my Candidate Brothers was 24 in my class of 11 there were only 4 guys fresh out of high school and 18 years old the remainder were 20 or older. I transferred to the University changed my major and was an undergrad for 5 years giving me plenty of time to be a productive member of my chapter.

The year after my Candidacy we gave a bid to a guy who was 32, just out of the Army and owned his own business. The problems he ran across were a little different he could not understand that the guys in chapter who were 18-21 years old were his superiors and he refused to listen to them when it came to drinking rules and such. He was a friend of some of the Alumni prior to rushing and he had a hard time differentiating between the relationship he had with the Alumni as friends and the relationship he had with the Actives as his guidance to be a good Greek.

A little advice: If you do decide to rush make sure you follow the rules as they are written. Don't consider age when making your decisions. If you are a natural leader don't be afraid to be a leader. Don’t just lead because you are older and the younger pledge/candidate brothers look up to you (this always lead to problems).

As a side note I am 2 years older than my Big Bro and 1 year older than my Grand Bro. It is weird sometimes to think about I always feel they are older than me.

tchi252 · #15 08-06-2007, 10:46 AM

Age really has nothing to do with it as long as your not in the 30s or 40s. WE still have two or three active brothers who are in theyre 7 year or so in schoold and are around 27. The girls still love them and they are a great addition to the chapter. So go for it and dont worry about it