I heard that rushing happens the spring before freshman year. Can anyone shed some light on how this works.
Thanks!
I’d like to know more about that too. My son has already received an invite from one frat to an event.
My son is first year at Alabama. Both of us just assumed that Alabama had some sort of formal rush process, but not really. Top fraternities start giving out “informal” bids in the Spring. By mid-summer, half the chapters have completely filled their pledge classes. Fortunately there seems to be some type of gentleman’s agreement that pledge classes be limited to 55 or 60, so you don’t have the four or five top “Old Row” fraternities taking all the members.
I would suggest emailing the rush chairmen of each fraternity. Some will get back to you and invite you to events, maybe the spring party. Plan on attending one of the earlier Bama Bound sessions and stay for the maximum time possible so you can attend several parties. Most fraternities have events at every Bama Bound. It’s all kind of informal. We were late figuring out what was going on, and I was able to let my son go for an extra visit during the summer where he stayed at Hotel Capstone; they allow 18-year-olds.
In the fall they do have a kind of formal process, but more than half of the chapters will have given out all their bids before this even starts.
@EarlVanDorn thank you for the information.
It is odd how the fraternities rush…yet they say the sororities’ method is too formal! Pledging BEGINS in the spring and continues all summer. For the fraternities that have been on campus for generation, it’s all about knowing someone in the house. But there are all kinds of fraternities out there - those with houses, those without, those that haze harshly (despite saying they don’t) and those that do not haze at all, huge groups and small groups. All have at least some OOS kids.
What guys do is e-mail the fraternities (list is through the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life on the UA website) and tell them they’re interested in visiting. Most groups have get-togethers or parties all summer long. They can visit during the summer, during their Bama Bound freshman orientation or a trip just for that purpose. Or, he may want to take his first year, or first semester, to look around, meet people, and get used to campus before pledging.