How do I learn more about fraternities?

[MBM]

I know very little about Greek life in general except for what I learned from the movie Animal House ;); however, my son is thinking of joining one so I'm trying to learn what I can.

 

Where can I learn more about the process of joining (rushing?), what it entails, and most important of all, the reputation of different frat houses at my son's school?

 

Any suggestions or advice?

[Jenny in Florida]

My son is in the process of pledging, but he's joining Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, which it seems is something in between a traditional fraternity and a professional organization for musicians. Like you, however, I was familiar with the concept of "fraternity" only from Animal House and the ABC Family series Greek.

 

When he first mentioned wanting to rush, I hit Google and just started searching for information about the group. I read the Wikipedia entry, checked out what Reddit and and even the Urban Dictionary had to say. I searched for news articles about hazing and other issues . . .

 

I did turn up a few things that concerned me, but most of the problems seem to be associated with one or two chapters. Otherwise, I found a lot of comments from members of other fraternities almost making fun of Sinfonians, who seem to be perceived as somewhat nerdy. That was okay with me.

 

So, while I'm still a bit nervous about the whole thing, my son seems really happy with his decision, and we're crossing our fingers it turns out to be a good experience for him.

 

[Kathy in Richmond]

Greekrank.com - The comments and rankings are done by current undergrads involved in Greek life. As a result, some of it is just kids bashing each others' organizations, but it can give you a general feel for the reputations of the different fraternities & sororities on campus.

 

Do you know any upperclassmen in Greek life at your son's uni (if I remember correctly, he's nearby)? They'd be best for giving you some inside info.

 

Does his uni have a rush website? My dd's did, & it outlined the formal rush rules & procedures. She also surprised us by joining a sorority at the start of her sophomore year. It turned out to be a *wonderful* decision for her. :)

[MBM]

Jenny and Kathy, thank you so much. I have to find a student from there to take in my old cat for awhile so maybe I'll ask their opinion. I am definitely going to check out all the sites and suggestions you two recommended. The hazing and out-of-control partying are my two main concerns. Ds is pretty good at making good decisions but at times he'll follow along and… that's not wise. I can see we'll be having a lot of discussions if he decides to do this.

 

The campus is technically dry although ds told us that he has already gone to a few parties and said the frat guys he met are really nice and do a lot of charitable work. I think the real reason he wants to join is that some of his new friends are planning to join. That's okay with us as long as he's researched the different frat houses, thought about what it entails and, most importantly, behaves.

 

Yes, he's nearby. About a 10-minute drive away. We already got a 5 am phone call to pick him up because he thought he might have strep and wanted to sleep at home for a few nights. Now he has pinkeye. Yeesh. I hope this isn't one of those years when he catches all the colds!

 

[Starr]

So the frat house is off campus where they can party? Sorry, I live in a college town. ;)

[MBM]

I do not even know where all of the frat houses are! I know at least a few are on campus.

 

The frats and sororities had a table of information for parents but it was the one table we completely passed over because I would never have thought ds would join one. Ha!

[Harriet Vane]

My husband was in a fraternity and had a really good experience. In his case, yes, there was partying in the fraternity. However, he was not pressured to drink--his preference to not drink or be drunk was respected. That said, everyone knew there were some houses that were known for partying, and some were known as being unsafe. 

 

One idea would be to contact InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, which has a large Greek arm. They can let you know where there are Bible study groups and in what houses. Campus Crusade is also very pro-Greek.