UGA 2013 Sorority Recruitment

[uga17mom]

My daughter is down to 5, with 2 favorites. She's very nervous about the next round of cuts!

[carnation]

Hang in there, UGa moms! We're behind you and your girls!

[lilybeth3]

wishing all the uga girls best of luck today during Prefs....

[PearlGirl13]

My daughter has a friend who decided to go through UGA Rush less than a month ago. Her mother went to a private art school and her father is not US born and went to "University" in Europe. Needless to say, they aren't very in the know about SEC Rush!

The girl is very pretty, very sociable and really just a delightful young lady, but had few, if any, recommendations. And.....she went to five third round parties today and has a very good selection. I am very happy for this girl - she will make a great sister for ANY sorority, but .....

How does this work like this? It is all so hard to understand.

[DubaiSis]

I don't understand the question.

[ladybug12]

and, because there are so many "vanilla" references written, many chapters are looking past the references and actually looking at the potential a PNM has to offer their chapter.

There is no greater value than a hand written reference from a 50+ year alum from your chapter for a young women she has known from birth or has lived mext door to her family for 20 years.

But a reference written from an alumna from a different school who admits in her letter that she does not personally know this PNM but endorses her for membership...not so much.

Just my opinion...

[IndianaSigKap]

Originally Posted by ladybug12

I think most chapters note WHO is writing the rec, like national officers, foundation members, etc. But, I think if you have an alumna writing your rec who has not done a thing, paid alumnae dues, or given money to your foundation since she graduated...you need to take into account that her reference will not stand up compared to the PNM who has Nancy National Officer who has known her since birth who writes a reference and follows up with the chapter to let them know what a great girl she is....

Originally Posted by ladybug12

and, because there are so many "vanilla" references written, many chapters are looking past the references and actually looking at the potential a PNM has to offer their chapter.

There is no greater value than a hand written reference from a 50+ year alum from your chapter for a young women she has known from birth or has lived mext door to her family for 20 years.

I agree with both of these statements. With the large number of legacies going through, I think this could also hold true in that arena too. I helped a young girl at IU who was a legacy. Her Mom did not even know there was a form that had to be filled out and sent in to the chapter. I had to explain it to Mom on the phone. She had not joined an alum chapter, paid alum dues or anything since graduation. She was also very surprised that her daughter was released after first invitational having no idea how many legacies go through recruitment at Indiana.

[IndianaSigKap]

It sounds like the young lady mentioned above is definitely the exception, not the rule. Her success could be due to a variety of reasons such as having girls from her high school or hometown pulling for her. Perhaps she made such a strong impression on the 5 chapters who invited her back that they found an alumna to write a rec for her. Obviously, no one will ever know for sure, but I feel fairly safe in saying that this is not the norm for UGA/SEC.

[ladybug12]

I honestly think that with the overwhelming number of legacies and PNMs with competetive recruitments in the SEC and elsewhere, the power of references has been diluted.
When there were only 600 women going through recruitment at Alabama or Georgia 12 years ago, it was easy to see who had references and who did not. Now with 1600-2200 women, no one in their right mind can keep up with who has references or how many they have.
I think most chapters note WHO is writing the rec, like national officers, foundation members, etc. But, I think if you have an alumna writing your rec who has not done a thing, paid alumnae dues, or given money to your foundation since she graduated...you need to take into account that her reference will not stand up compared to the PNM who has Nancy National Officer who has known her since birth who writes a reference and follows up with the chapter to let them know what a great girl she is....

[UGAalum94]

Originally Posted by ladybug12

I honestly think that with the overwhelming number of legacies and PNMs with competetive recruitments in the SEC and elsewhere, the power of references has been diluted.
When there were only 600 women going through recruitment at Alabama or Georgia 12 years ago, it was easy to see who had references and who did not. Now with 1600-2200 women, no one in their right mind can keep up with who has references or how many they have.
I think most chapters note WHO is writing the rec, like national officers, foundation members, etc. But, I think if you have an alumna writing your rec who has not done a thing, paid alumnae dues, or given money to your foundation since she graduated...you need to take into account that her reference will not stand up compared to the PNM who has Nancy National Officer who has known her since birth who writes a reference and follows up with the chapter to let them know what a great girl she is....

While I think you're probably right that who writes your rec matters at some chapters and even that the power of recs may have been diluted, I think most SEC chapters have systems in place to get and track recs.

As far as the question about how great girls who don't know anything about recruitment still do well, it's important to remember that chapters seek out rec writers and that alumnae often actively look into sending recs for PNMs who may not even know they have them. Just because a girl doesn't know she has a rec, doesn't mean she doesn't have one.

[DubaiSis]

I agree.

[Katmandu]

Also, this PNM could have a sparkling personality and have some influential members really advocating for her. It happens.

[DubaiSis]

This varies by sorority. Some require a rec so they'll find an alumna to write one for a girl they love. Others don't care as much about the power of the recommendation. The problem for the girl going through rush is you don't know which is which. And that's why, while I'm not a fan of the way recs are gathered as part of a mandatory part of rush prep, I'd still say if you are going to a school where this is tradition, I'd still do it. Why self-limit?

[UGAalum94]

Originally Posted by DubaiSis

This varies by sorority. Some require a rec so they'll find an alumna to write one for a girl they love. Others don't care as much about the power of the recommendation. The problem for the girl going through rush is you don't know which is which. And that's why, while I'm not a fan of the way recs are gathered as part of a mandatory part of rush prep, I'd still say if you are going to a school where this is tradition, I'd still do it. Why self-limit?

Totally.

My point about chapters and alumnae initiating some recs was just to emphasize the point that some PNMS with recs don't know it. They say things like, "I didn't have a single rec and got invited back to max parties every round." Maybe that's true, but it's also possible that you had some recs that you didn't even know about, and you're misleading PNMs who might not have your connections.

[Bamamom13]

My rec girl had 11 houses yesterday. She had a full schedule today but was cut hard by some of her favorites. She had one of her favorites and two others that she could really see herself as a sister. I am hoping her Preference list tomorrow includes those three.