Reasons NOT to pledge a sorority?

[irishpipes]

Originally Posted by gee_ess

Good advice by LowCSharp - I love the McDonald's in France analogy. BUT you need to start NOW getting your ducks in a row.

From what I have learned on here, the whole "recs are the end all be all" scenario is foreign to the west coast. So you may have a hard time finding recs and getting these women to understand how important they are for your success.

Start compiling a list of women who are alumnae of the groups on your campus, reaching out to them to let them know you are planning to go through recruitment, etc. It may take a while to find 3 - 5 for each house and have them mailed in by July 1.

Out of state PNMs who are going to highly competitive schools like those in the SEC not only have trouble finding recs, but like you alluded to here, the recs they do get may not be as helpful because they may come from alumnae who dont know how to write them.

I helped a PNM get recs from some Panhellenic friends of mine a few years back - PNM was going to Alabama. At a later date, one of those rec writers joked to me that she found that girl's rec in a pile of junk - she had never mailed it. The rec writer was from the upper Midwest and knew about recs but had no idea how important they are at Bama, and that she screwed this PNM at her sorority's chapter.

I think when a PNM is in a situation like the OP's, she might mention to her rec writers that recs are absolutely essential at her school. The writer likely will not know that.

[adpiucf]

Originally Posted by irishpipes

I helped a PNM get recs from some Panhellenic friends of mine a few years back - PNM was going to Alabama. At a later date, one of those rec writers joked to me that she found that girl's rec in a pile of junk - she had never mailed it. The rec writer was from the upper Midwest and knew about recs but had no idea how important they are at Bama, and that she screwed this PNM at her sorority's chapter.

No offense intended to you, and complete offense intended toward the rec writer in this instance-- what an irresponsible person to promise, not follow through, and then laugh about it later. That is an atypical scenario, but I agree with your statement that it is up to the PNM to follow up with her rec writer on the deadlines, to check to make sure the rec was mailed, and to follow up after recruitment as a courtesy.

So to the OP: don't join a sorority if you're one of those people who doesn't follow through on her promises. Per the above example, they can't all be weeded out, but sometimes people like that can really harm a sorority working toward a common goal.

[irishpipes]

Originally Posted by adpiucf

No offense intended to you, and complete offense intended toward the rec writer in this instance-- what an irresponsible person to promise, not follow through, and then laugh about it later. That is an atypical scenario, but I agree with your statement that it is up to the PNM to follow up with her rec writer on the deadlines, to check to make sure the rec was mailed, and to follow up after recruitment as a courtesy.

So to the OP: don't join a sorority if you're one of those people who doesn't follow through on her promises. Per the above example, they can't all be weeded out, but sometimes people like that can really harm a sorority working toward a common goal.

Part of my point is that the rec writer was from a background where recs weren't essential, so she didn't really understand that what she did potentially really hurt this PNM. She was thinking of recs as something nice to have but not all that important. If your rec writer went to a place like Bama they know how important it is. Just because someone is an alumna doesn't mean they know a lot about the details of recruitment, or recruitment at different chapters. This was a group that doesn't have much presence here, so a PNM would struggle to find anyone to write a rec for them. I felt so bad about it all. Anyway, just sayin that local PNMs might have an easier time securing strong recs than out-of-staters, although that is a generalization.