<p>Hi!
Is there anyone who can tell me how dominant the greek life is at Elon? My D was looking to possibly visit this summer and then talked to someone who told her that the Greek life has a very strong presence there. Since one of her criteria is that she wants a school with a very low level Greek scene she is now worried...</p>
<p>Comments/thoughts?</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>Glad you asked this question. My son is also planning to look at Elon this July. While he has some interest in being a Greek, he has some concerns that Greek life is all about partying? Are there different fraternities for the different types of students(i.e. student involvement/spirit in the school, academic fraternity, and just social fraternities.) Also, is the importance in being a Greek different for girls than guys?</p>
<p>I feel more competent to answer the first post since I have a daughter. Yes, Greek life is very big at Elon. There are certainly other ways to make friends, but Greek life is dominant. My daughter is in a sorority. She had three best friends before rush- and they still best friends even though they are not all in sororities. She is doing an Elon program this summer and one of her roommates is an athlete and not in a sorority; she said this was her first opportunity to meet girls in sororities.</p>
<p>There are different types of sororities, but if your daughter is absolutely dead-set against joining a sorority, I’m afraid Elon may not be the best place for her.</p>
<p>My son (rising junior)is not in a fraternity but knows many guys and gals that are Greek. My impression is that it may be a bigger thing for girls. There are different types of Greek organizations.
As a guy my son was invited to several sorority sponsored formals and just plain parties.
He decided against joining a fraternity himself. He felt he could not handle an additional activity/commitment.</p>
<p>Greek life is big at Elon, and it is bigger for women than for men. About half of the women are in sororities. They aren’t totally segregated from the rest of the population though. Elon’s Greek houses are college-owned and clustered together in an area of campus called the Loy Center. Each Greek house only holds 6 - 12 students, so only a tiny percentage of the frat/sorority lives in them. The Loy houses provide some meeting and storage space for the groups, but only have a small kitchen for the kids who live there, so they don’t have meal plans. Greeks eat at the same places and live in the same places as the rest of the students.</p>
<p>My daughter is in a sorority. She feels it’s important for everyone to find “their people” - at Elon some do it through Greek life, others through their varsity sports team, and others through a special interest group (for example a religious group or Student Gov’t). She knows non-Greeks who are happy, but most of them are involved in some type of group - such as a sport or a religious-type group, or maybe the musical theater program (which is very intense). She also knows a few kids who transferred out because they didn’t like the Greek system. She and 2 of her freshman year suite mates went thru recruitment together, and although they were very close friends they ended up in 3 different sororities. She is still good friends with both of the other girls and may live with one of them senior year.</p>
<p>As for academic fraternities, Elon has a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa, and it has honor societies/fraternities for many majors. But most of the fraternities you see/hear about are social in nature. Each has its own flavor, but yes - most of them do like to throw parties.</p>
<p>Just transferred from Elon after my Freshman year, and the dominant Greek social scene had a lot to do with it. It is true that it’s more of a big deal for girls than guys, but it’s still huge for guys. The school tries to downplay Greek life on campus, but the fact is, if you’re not in a fraternity/sorority but still want to have a good time and the “typical college experience,” there are not many options for you. The surrounding Burlington area is pretty sleepy, so you’re pretty much stuck on campus on the weekends. The only real nightlife options, aside from a couple hole in the wall bars in Elon, are fraternity parties, which are pretty much impossible to get into if you are a guy who is unaffiliated. I’m not saying there is anything wrong with Greek life, it’s just so prevalent and in your face on campus that it negatively impacts the overall culture of Elon.</p>