Letters of Rec- Alabama
 

I will be attending University of Alabama next fall, and I am having trouble securing letters of rec and I was wondering if anyone has any advice or places to look. My mom was not in a sorority and none of her friends were. please help!

Start with your teachers, current and former
They all went to college (at least let's hope they did) and some of them were probably in sororities.

And the people you DO find that will write a rec...ask them if they know people in other groups that you might know who could write a rec for you.

There are a couple of really long threads on here about finding recs. If you are having trouble with the search function, try browsing the sorority recruitment section or searching via google with greekchat.com: in the search bar.

A lot of times, women you know are members but you were never aware of it.

-Have you asked women at church? Are there time for announcements where you could?
-Have you asked on Facebook if anyone has a family member who is an alumnae in ABC, DEF and XYZ?
-Don't forget to ask the male teachers at school if they spouse is a member?

The key is to never stop asking everyone and anyone you know if they are members or have mothers/sisters/daughters that are members.

To flesh out the response of church (or any house of worship), if there's a weekly bulletin, ask the church secretary to put something about "bamaboundgirl is going to be matriculating at the University of Alabama, and would LOVE to discuss sorority life with anyone who is familiar with it!" FWIW, all of my recs came from church or contacts from church.

You can also do the same thing in almost any other organization to which you belong (You do belong to a few, don't you? You'll need that for your recs!).

Also, start now to make up a type of resume, including what you've done in high school, any honors, any scholarships, any awards, any activities, any hobbies, etc. Include your parents' names & colleges, if applicable, and also your GPA, SAT, ACT, and any other letters of the alphabet you'd like to cover. You may wish to update this at a later date, but this way, you'll be ready. Best of luck to you!

Don't just ask women, ask the men that you, your father, uncles and brothers know, as well. They are often married to greek women or work with them. Let your personal universe know that you are interested in going Greek. You may be surprised. And second the advice that when you secure one rec, ask if they know others. Their co worker, niece, mother or cousin may provide that elusive last rec.

And have all your stuff ready to hand to them when they agree to write you a rec. You need a resume, picture and an envelope with a stamp that you have already addressed to where it needs to go. If you don't have all this ready you end up having to track them back down when you do get it together and that makes it complicated.

YES!!! A large manila envelope, please, or a priority post mailer!

Being familiar with this campus, having a rec (unless it is from your national president or a prominant alum) doesn't give you a huge leg up....but not having a rec gives the impression that you are not interested in that GLO.

You can also go onto every national organization's website and look for alumnae chapters. Pick the closest to your location and reach out to the contact officer. Offer to send your information, meet for coffee, etc. Sometimes just a good phone interview is enough to send a rec in your favor.

Good luck and Roll Tide!