<p>First off, how many are there and what percent of the student population is a member? What I am really concerned with, however, is what are they like? What do they do, and what kind of students join them? Thanks</p>
<p>i wanna know too! greek life in general…</p>
<p>This YouTube video best explains fraternities at UChicago:</p>
<p>[YouTube</a> - Frat Boys vs Westboro Baptist Church](<a href=“http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZfZiBRFM5w]YouTube”>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZfZiBRFM5w)</p>
<p>(And yes, I know many of the people in this video. I am not Greek affiliated and can tell you little about what Greek life is “like,” but I know a lot of these bros from class and such.)</p>
<p>I think the percentage of students involved with Greek life at UChicago hovers around 10%. Not too big that it takes over, but big enough that if you want to join or visit a frat, you can. You should know that while a few fraternities have houses on campus, none of the sororities do. </p>
<p>As for what they’re like, that really depends on the specific frat/sorority. As in, I have no idea where to start.</p>
<p>You can read more about Greek life here</p>
<p><a href=“Center for Leadership and Involvement | The University of Chicago”>Center for Leadership and Involvement | The University of Chicago;
<p>I chose not to join a sorority because I had made so many friends already from my dorm, classes, and activities, but a lot of my friends are involved in Greek life. The fraternities are always a great place to head to on the weekends for parties. More often than not the parties will be themed, such as a graffiti night, rep your city, Heaven and Hell, drinks around the world, superhero party, nerd party, and Psi U always has a good Halloween party each year. Fiji (Phi Gamma Delta) also has FIJI Island each year, in which they dig a moat in the backyard and have a highly attended party. Sororities have really cool events, as well, such as the dating game and Mr. University, a pageant for men on campus that is always hilarious. Both of these are philanthropic events. That’s not all these fraternities and sororities do, so I encourage you to visit the link above and check out the individual links for each fraternity and sorority. They’ll have some great information on the chapter as well as photos and people to contact if you’re interested.</p>
<p>sorry for my ignorance… but are sororities based on the location of dorms?</p>
<p>No, qwt2, there is no exclusion by house or dorm for any of the sororities or fraternities on our campus. Sororities and fraternities are organizations that exist around the country, usually comprised of a group of individuals who have similar interests. I think that the greek organizations at the University of Chicago are incredibly welcoming to people of all different backgrounds and interests. From what I’ve seen and heard, the greek system at U of C is very inclusive. Now, I don’t claim to be an expert because I’m not a member of a greek organization, but I believe this is the general process of how one joins. Sorry if this seems obvious to most, but it seems that some people on these boards are a little in the dark about sororities and fraternities. If anyone has a greater idea of how the whole system works, please step in and correct me if necessary! So here goes: When you decide you want to rush (join), you can either receive an invite (a certain frat or sorority really wants you to join) or you can attend some sort of mixer (informal party) and express your interest. For a short period of time (usually during the fall quarter but you can rush in the spring) you will attend events sponsored by all the fraternities or sororities in conjunction or separately. At these events you will get a better understanding of who the brothers or sisters of the fraternity or sorority are, what philanthropic organizations they support, and just the general vibe of the greek organization. If they like you they will give you a bid (an official invite to join them) and if you like them you will accept!
So that’s my (rather simplistic) understanding of the whole process. Hope that helps!</p>
<p>that helps so much marcellad! haha… i was really confused before but now i understand</p>
<p>I believe there are other posters here who have a better view of what Greek life can be like from the inside. I won’t call them out by name :-)</p>
<p>As far as I’m concerned, I’m happy it’s there for the people who want it, and I’m also happy that I don’t have to connnnnstantlyyyyyy hear about “So-and-so rushed here” or “So-and-so-'s cocktail with so-and-so was awful,” etc. Greek life is just not a huge deal here, but the people who want it find it and like it, and when I find myself surrounded by gossipy sorority sisters, I find their comments and observations about their house pretty tame.</p>