<p>Hello, could a student at Dartmouth please explain to me how Dartmouth is reforming the Greek system? Also, how has Greek Life been on campus so far this year? Is the drinking and hazing more controlled? I'm interested in Dartmouth, but I'm not a huge fan of Greek Life. I understand that a large majority of the students are involved with it, and I want to major in economics. I feel like Greek Life at Dartmouth gives an unfair advantage, as far as recruiting and networking, for people interested in business as opposed to students who are independent. Can someone tell me if this is correct or not?</p>
<p>Classes don’t start until September 10th, so there’s little to report regarding Greek Life “so far this year” (assuming you’re asking about the new academic year).</p>
<p>I am not aware of any meaningful efforts to reform the Greek system itself. There have been some efforts, starting this past summer, to change the College’s alcohol policy to crack down a bit more on underage drinking. However, there’s been a lot of push-back, and it’s unclear how many of these proposed changes will actually be implemented.</p>
<p>(Here’s the latest article from the D: [TheDartmouth.com:</a> Alcohol policy changes updated](<a href=“http://thedartmouth.com/2012/08/10/news/alcohol]TheDartmouth.com:”>http://thedartmouth.com/2012/08/10/news/alcohol))</p>
<p>You are correct that a large majority of eligible students are involved with Greek life, and I can confirm that there are recruiting and networking advantages associated with joining a Greek house. Here’s a sample (from my inbox, with some minor editing):</p>
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<p>That said, I have several friends who were independent who did just fine in corporate recruiting. (There are plenty of non-Greek organizations that offer similar networking opportunities, and the corporate recruiting at Dartmouth is top-notch even if you <em>don’t</em> have these networking opportunities.)</p>
<p>There’s more to life at Dartmouth than Greek organizations, and it helps that students aren’t allowed to join Greek organizations until sophomore year. My recommendation: keep Dartmouth on your list, and if you are accepted, revisit the issue then.</p>