Do recommendations even matter anymore?

[TeaAddict]

Hi ladies-
I'm new here. Just found out that most of the girls I wrote recs for got cut after round one. Good grades, good girls, I just wonder what am I writing recs out for?! I feel bad for them- but I understand the chapter has to make appropriate cuts. But first round? I guess it's better than stringing them along, that's another way to look at it.
What I am wondering is- from the current members perspective- what happens with a rec (picture, resume, rec form) typically once it's sent into a chapter? Do they ever help?

[kddani]

At competitive recruitments, nearly every girl has a rec (or 2 or 3) for each house. Someone has to get cut!

[ComradesTrue]

Originally Posted by TeaAddict

Hi ladies-
I'm new here. Just found out that most of the girls I wrote recs for got cut after round one. Good grades, good girls, I just wonder what am I writing recs out for?! I feel bad for them- but I understand the chapter has to make appropriate cuts. But first round? I guess it's better than stringing them along, that's another way to look at it.
What I am wondering is- from the current members perspective- what happens with a rec (picture, resume, rec form) typically once it's sent into a chapter? Do they ever help?

Recs always help. However, at some school >90% of the PNMs have recs. Therefore, they can not be a guarantee to receive an invitation to the next round.

It was very thoughtful of you to write recs for those that you knew who were going through recruitment. No doubt the chapters appreciated your effort, and at some schools the PNMs would have no chance without one.

Answering your question about what happens once the rec gets to the chapter falls under private info.

[TeaAddict]

You are right- they probably all get recs these days and someone must be cut. I don't remember even reading thru recs (in the 1980's) but....I know if there wasn't one and we wanted to extend a bid we had to get an alum to meet the girl at a rush party...pronto! I'm starting to wonder how I got asked back to so many parties and got a bid.....without even one rec. I was not familiar with the process at all back then. But maybe it was like that for everyone.

[FSUZeta]

it is discouraging to alumnae who take the time to write a well thought out recommendation for a great girl, only to hear time and time again, that their rec. girls have been dropped early in the process. it seems especially futile when the pnm is dropped after the first set of parties.

i don't know what the answer is, however. if we don't write the recs., at some schools the pnm will definately not have a chance without a rec., but getting all excited to write a rec. to "always drops my rec. girls university" can be difficult. i guess we just keep plodding on and try to help the pnms as best we can.

[AOII Angel]

I guess all alumnae need to keep in perspective that we are meeting one great girl out of many that the chapter gets to meet. Hopefully on occasion one of our rec girls will pledge our chapters.

[33girl]

Originally Posted by TeaAddict

You are right- they probably all get recs these days and someone must be cut. I don't remember even reading thru recs (in the 1980's) but....I know if there wasn't one and we wanted to extend a bid we had to get an alum to meet the girl at a rush party...pronto! I'm starting to wonder how I got asked back to so many parties and got a bid.....without even one rec. I was not familiar with the process at all back then. But maybe it was like that for everyone.

You may have had recs and didn't know it.

First round cuts ARE harsher than they used to be. This is to avoid stringing the girls along and to get rid of the closed-minded girls who only want one of the "top tier" groups. (Not saying at all this is the girls you recced, but it is a prevalent problem.) Panhellenic is finally starting to walk the walk instead of just talking the talk.

[Titchou]

I know it's extra work but I've learned that if it's someone I REALLY want my group to check out, I do the rec and call/email the adviser personally. Since I've been around a long time, I know most of them at the nearby schools. I also have emailed friends in other groups on campuses where we don't have a chapter about someone I thought would be really great for their group. Right now, I've got one going thru recruitment next week at a school where we don't have a chapter (she's a legacy for us too.....boohooo....). Anyway, she's a great girl, very talented, so I called a 2 friends who advise this really good chapter at this school and told them about her. Made sure she had her recs in for them, too. I know that sounds overboard to some of you but there are places where you just have to do it. After all, I am in the deep south!

[AnchorAlumna]

99.9% of the girls I write recs for don't pledge my sorority.

But occasionally.....they do! Happy happy joy joy!!
It's a numbers game.

Years ago, one of the chapters I wrote recs for had a "pledge trainer" who had the "pledges" write thank you notes to the ladies who had written recs for them. It was such a THRILL to get that note! I wish they would all do that.

One of the reasons for writing recs is to include alumnae in the whole process. It's such a great feeling when you do have a girl pledged...it strengthens your support for that chapter, and the entire Fraternity.

[SWTXBelle]

Just look at the "Who's Rushing" thread to see the results for some of us who have "rec crews" - obviously, the girls I wrote recs for were great or the other sororities wouldn't have snapped them up.

But I agree - it's the BEST when they pledge your sorority.

[ellebud]

Let me give you the flip side. My daughter just finished recruitment at a very competitive school. She had recs for four houses. As I mentioned in her recruitment story we live in an area where nearly everyone went AEPhi or SDT so my friends weren't much help. I was able to secure three recs that I know and one possible. (Thank you to someone here on the board again for one of them.) In the end my daughter had two houses, one with and one without a rec. They are both "top tier" houses. She wound up pledging the house where she didn't have a rec. One house with a rec dropped her at 5 party (10/8/5/2), one she didn't prefer and ranked them at the bottome after first round. Did the recs help? For one house that she preffed yes, they "knew" about her coming in. The other house? One girl knew her already and that helped, but it didn't get her the bid.

[gee_ess]

Originally Posted by Titchou

I know it's extra work but I've learned that if it's someone I REALLY want my group to check out, I do the rec and call/email the adviser personally. Since I've been around a long time, I know most of them at the nearby schools. I also have emailed friends in other groups on campuses where we don't have a chapter about someone I thought would be really great for their group. Right now, I've got one going thru recruitment next week at a school where we don't have a chapter (she's a legacy for us too.....boohooo....). Anyway, she's a great girl, very talented, so I called a 2 friends who advise this really good chapter at this school and told them about her. Made sure she had her recs in for them, too. I know that sounds overboard to some of you but there are places where you just have to do it. After all, I am in the deep south!

Titchou - you are dead on. The networking and extra work really helps - especially in the south and at large state universities.

Regarding what chapters actually do with recs. Well, that depends. But, if a chapter is smart and on their game, they utilize these recs and the information in them to aide their actual recruitment process. As I explained to an active once, "You can't possibly know everyone going through rush. The rec is a tool to learn more about a great girl that another member recognizes as worthy of our letters."

[Zillini]

Yes Recs are still important and on many campuses vital. Not having one can be an automatic and easy cut. On a Rec oriented competitive campus, every single Rec is read.

However, my Chapter had far more PNMs with Recs than Panhellenic allowed to be invited back to 2nd round. So obviously girls with Recs had to be cut.

[SWTXBelle]

Originally Posted by ellebud

Let me give you the flip side. My daughter just finished recruitment at a very competitive school. She had recs for four houses. As I mentioned in her recruitment story we live in an area where nearly everyone went AEPhi or SDT so my friends weren't much help. I was able to secure three recs that I know and one possible. (Thank you to someone here on the board again for one of them.) In the end my daughter had two houses, one with and one without a rec. They are both "top tier" houses. She wound up pledging the house where she didn't have a rec. One house with a rec dropped her at 5 party (10/8/5/2), one she didn't prefer and ranked them at the bottome after first round. Did the recs help? For one house that she preffed yes, they "knew" about her coming in. The other house? One girl knew her already and that helped, but it didn't get her the bid.

As always, you don't know for sure she didn't have a rec - I get networked into writing recs for girls who may not know I am writing one. Happens all the time - but either way, I'm so happy she ended up with a happy enging!

[ellebud]

You are, of course, correct. I don't know that she didn't have recs. I would be surprised if she had them for most houses. But yes, in the end, it didn't matter. She is happy. I will say that having a friend in the house really helps a PNM.