Schools where you absolutely positively need recs

[Titchou]

Can the poster clarify: are you concerned about excess letters of support or recs? At Bama, 2 recs for each group are really needed. More than 3 or 4 are overkill. My group doesn't do "letters of support" as we consider such letters as recs, or sponsor forms as we call them. In other words, the rec doesn't have to be on the form - it can be a letter for us.

And when someone from XYZ agrees to do one for you, you should ask her if she knows anyone in the remaining groups which you still need.

[DeltaBetaBaby]

Hang on, I am confused by the language here, "letters of support"? I'm wondering if that is something other than a rec. Like, maybe PNM's are having non-affiliated women (high school teachers, for example) send in letters. I remember my chapter getting those back in the day, and I was certainly not at a school like Bama.

[ComradesTrue]

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

Hang on, I am confused by the language here, "letters of support"? I'm wondering if that is something other than a rec. Like, maybe PNM's are having non-affiliated women (high school teachers, for example) send in letters. I remember my chapter getting those back in the day, and I was certainly not at a school like Bama.

No, in this instance a "letter of support" is an actual letter, not the rec form, that sorority alumnae write and send to the chapters. It is a common practice in Texas, and may be elsewhere too.

[AnchorAlumna]

My opinion, for what it's worth, which isn't much:
**If you're from Texas and she gets 80leven letters of support OR recs, the sororities at Alabama will know what the deal is. Don't sweat it.
**Don't NEVER turn down no letters of support, recs, or whatever you call 'em (Southern colloquialisms deliberately used here). It's not nice. Smile and say thank you!

[shirley1929]

Originally Posted by 33girl

I would DEFINITELY wait until some of these posters weigh in on what the real scoop is, shirley, before you decide what to do.

The way that is written on the Alabama Panhel website really really REALLY seems to be stepping over the bounds of individual chapters' membership selection practices, IMO. Plus, what if the alum doesn't even mention it to the rushee and just goes ahead and sends a letter? I'm sure some alumnae do/will.

http://www.uapanhellenic.com/index.p...d=15&Itemid=32

I agree with both your points here...I'm wanting to hear from a Bama advisor (apologies that I don't know which normal posters are the advisors...have I heard from one yet?)

And yes, it seems rather presumptuous of Panhellenic to blur the Membership Selection boundaries!? Unless it is something that the chapters asked/voted on for them to mention.

Originally Posted by Titchou

Can the poster clarify: are you concerned about excess letters of support or recs? At Bama, 2 recs for each group are really needed. More than 3 or 4 are overkill. My group doesn't do "letters of support" as we consider such letters as recs, or sponsor forms as we call them. In other words, the rec doesn't have to be on the form - it can be a letter for us.

And when someone from XYZ agrees to do one for you, you should ask her if she knows anyone in the remaining groups which you still need.

Yes, I'm concerned by excess rec/letters. Where I'm from, since the rec is a standard form...one "head" XYZ fills out the form and the other XYZ ladies send the "head" person letters supporting her recommendation. It all goes in one packet to the chapter house. There may be some stray letters that get sent separately, but the "in the know" folks get it organized so it's all put together.

Yes, of course, we're pulling together recs for all the houses. Even the ones where we don't know a member of ABC...we are definitely "working the connections".

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

Hang on, I am confused by the language here, "letters of support"? I'm wondering if that is something other than a rec. Like, maybe PNM's are having non-affiliated women (high school teachers, for example) send in letters. I remember my chapter getting those back in the day, and I was certainly not at a school like Bama.

DBB - Not exactly. Letters are sent (from my area anyway) by additional members of XYZ. It is basically to say "hey, these 5 ladies (as opposed to one) really believe that Rhonda Rushee would make a fabulous XYZ" Let me know if you need more clarification.

Originally Posted by Blondie93

No, in this instance a "letter of support" is an actual letter, not the rec form, that sorority alumnae write and send to the chapters. It is a common practice in Texas, and may be elsewhere too.

^^Exactly.

Originally Posted by AnchorAlumna

My opinion, for what it's worth, which isn't much:
**If you're from Texas and she gets 80leven letters of support OR recs, the sororities at Alabama will know what the deal is. Don't sweat it.
**Don't NEVER turn down no letters of support, recs, or whatever you call 'em (Southern colloquialisms deliberately used here). It's not nice. Smile and say thank you!

This is exactly what we're thinking...I would hate my niece to 1) be the ONE person from our area who doesn't "play the game" and have it look weird. and 2) It seems SO against everything we're taught to turn down a kind offer from someone looking to help her have a successful rush.

Oh, and yes...I'm not going back and fixing everywhere I said "rush" "rushee" or anything like that. If it dates me, so be it...

Thanks for the input everyone! If anyone else has more, I'll listen!

[VandalSquirrel]

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

Hang on, I am confused by the language here, "letters of support"? I'm wondering if that is something other than a rec. Like, maybe PNM's are having non-affiliated women (high school teachers, for example) send in letters. I remember my chapter getting those back in the day, and I was certainly not at a school like Bama.

I just checked the Idaho Greek FAQ and once I stopped being verklempt over the phrase "alumni sorority members" I read that people who are not "alumni sorority members" can write letters of reference to the Dean of Students office that are passed on to the chapters. They also say these things (recs, letters etc.) do not provide an advantage, but they do not hurt. We don't have an organized Alumnae Panhellenic but I wish we had one locally with satellite members in places we draw students so we could do this as an organized group and PNMs could submit things or be referred to someone in their local area. We draw so many in state students that a lot of it is handled through collegiate members knowing someone from back home.

Originally Posted by Blondie93

No, in this instance a "letter of support" is an actual letter, not the rec form, that sorority alumnae write and send to the chapters. It is a common practice in Texas, and may be elsewhere too.

I've written letters with our official forms for any PNM and for legacies, but I attach it to a form. Usually it is to explain some extenuating circumstance, especially academic and the grades or activities aren't stellar or are borderline for some reason. I also have done it for a legacy to explain why the member didn't send one on her legacy, which has always been a result of said member having entered Chapter Grand. I also have done a couple for women who aren't official legacies but have relatives who are members, to make that relationship known.

[Zillini]

In regards to Alabama and Recs vs Letters of Support:

As already stated, a Rec is the actual form that each GLO has generated for its alumni. A Letter of Support is just that, a hand written letter. Typically a Letter writer doesn't provide all the info that a Rec form does such as GPA & activities unless they attach a resume.

With that being said though, different chapters consider things differently. Some give Rec forms & Letters equal weight as a Rec. Some dismiss the letters because they aren't on the official form and don't have all the needed info. Then others may give "partial credit" (for lack of a better phrase) to Letters as long as the PNM also has at least 1 Rec form. There is no way of knowing how each chapter treats them.

But the undeniable truth at Bama, regardless of what anyone anywhere says, is each PNM needs a minimum of 1 official Rec form submitted to each chapter and two is better. More than that though, unless coming from family members (Mom, Grandma, Aunt, etc.) or important/influential alumnae, is a bit of overkill. More than 2 Recs are especially unnecessary if they come from random alumnae who don't know the PNM personally.

PNMs without a Rec form are an easy automatic cut. With the sheer number of women participating in the process (1500-1600 the last few years) and typical 1st round RFM mandatory release numbers, chapters are often looking for easy automatic cuts. GPA is another easy one (and that's regardless of whether a PNM has Recs or not.*) FWIW and anecdotal proof only, while I always hear of PNMs getting cut for not having any Recs, I have never heard of anyone getting cut for the sole reason of not having 2 or more.

*Please note: while most I/Natl have policies that having a Rec insures at least a 1st round invite, most chapters on campus have received permission from their I/Natl org to not honor that promise. Why? Because most chapters at Bama have more PNMs with Recs than Panhellenic allows to invite back with RFM.

Back to the original topic. What is Panhellenic saying here and why? In a nutshell, chapters are being drowned in paper. It takes an enormous amount of man hours to process all of these: collecting & opening mail, recording that it has been received, tracking/crediting a PNM's Recs/Letters, sending out Thank You's, etc. Panhellenic is trying to help the chapters by communicating to PNMs and alumnae that sending a dozen Recs and/or Letters are not going to increase a PNM's chances in comparison to a PNM who has just 2.

[princessamy]

What about Louisiana Tech and Southeastern Louisiana?

[KSUViolet06]

^^^I'm familiar with Southeastern, and it's not a MUST HAVE RECS school. If you can get them, cool. But it doesn't hurt you if you don't.

[SWTXBelle]

I received a panicked call from a pnm's mother who had gone to Panhellenic Preview at Bama and came away with the impression that she was supposed to get the information packet back from the alumnae panhellenic and send it - registered mail no less - to the chapter houses ALONG WITH THE REC. They even gave out a list of chapter houses and contacts.

I told her that the advice was counter to everything I knew about other sororities' recommendation process, and that I could not imagine any group giving rec forms to the pnm. I freaked out - and then called Bama panhellenic. Mystery solved, I think - apparently (and the woman I spoke with said she was also at Preview) girls who DON'T register with alumnae panhellenics were given the information in order to make sure they had recs and my pnm's mom misinterpreted it.

If they are inundated with paperwork after that mis-communication I can understand why!

[SWTXBelle]

. . . but the question has come up from a sister in the north - which sororities REQUIRE a rec before a pnm can be pledged? If it is treading into membership selection, I apologize. Please feel free to pm me with whether or not your GLO requires recs. I will use the information only to answer my sister's question, and certainly will not publicize it.

[33girl]

Is she looking for this info for a daughter/bio sister's rush, or just to know it?

I trust you, but quite frankly, she might be another story (as would be anyone who we don't know from their posts on here).

[DeltaBetaBaby]

I'm not going to answer your question, but let's put it this way: a rec is, when it comes down to it, an endorsement from an alumna. Every chapter I have ever heard of in any NPC org has alumna present at membership selection. You can connect the dots.

[SWTXBelle]

This sister (who I know personally) is working with an alumnae panhellenic in the north which is resistant to sponsoring informational sessions for pnm because "We don't do recs in the north". Her point is that while chapters might not use them in the same way chapters in the south do, there are groups that require them.

We know of at least 4 groups that REQUIRE them before pledging; she simply wanted to be able to quote a specific number of groups when she addresses them and tries to get them to provide informational meetings for high school seniors.


I certainly understand if you don't want to spill the beans; personally, I wish groups would be upfront about it. It seems to me a bit unfair to require recs and not let pnm know that they cannot be pledged without them.

eta - And it's unfair to advisers to have them need to scramble to get a rec on a girl the chapter wants but who doesn't have a rec. Not that I've ever done that . . .

[33girl]

Ahhhh. I'll put it this way. There are groups on my campus and on friends' very similar campuses, who members of those groups on GC have pretty much said on here you MUST have a rec to be formally bid/pledged to the GLO (and it's been that way for a long long time). I would be very surprised if the majority of the women who joined these sororities had recs going into rush. What they did or how they got these recs during or after rush, that's their biz and something I'm sure that they take care of.

Alumnae are not always a part of rush.

The problem is if you say that so and so group needs a rec to be pledged, it could potentially affect the rushee's perception of that group. "ABC wants me to jump through hoops, screw that. I'll just concentrate on XYZ."