northern tiger
Active Member
An aspect of joining a fraternity or sorority that is rarely dicussed is when is it the best time in a person's life to become a member. Crossing undergrad may seem the most glamorous route, but its not convenient for everyones life situation. It would have been a beautiful thing if I would have crossed while at JSU (A Phi A), but I can honestly say that for myself that the appreciation I have for the frat is at a level that could not have been imagined in my younger days. I did submit a letter while a student but it just was not meant to be at that time so life goes on. I don't pass judgement on either method of obtaining membership (grad or undergrad). If that's what you truly desire, you will pursue it after graduation. The only problem I have is that some people make comments like, "I didn't want to participate in those silly activities in undergrad" make me question that induviduals true interest. But you can tell who truly participated in a pledge process grad or undergrad. One aspect is that a true bond was developed between their "ships" or "sands". Actions speak louder than word. Its true that some greeks do put a heavier emphasis on the path that you took to become a member ( you can't always assume because someone crossed undergrad that they actually "pledged" and that all grads are "paper", it just depends on if you are familiar with the activities of that persons chapter), but with todays climate, its about the "financial" survival of our organizations. Just imagine discussing how much wood you took, the missions, or sessions you participated in on your road to membership of an organization that is no longer in existence. Almost like an HBCU that has closed its doors.