<p>You say “And those who are not Greek have a more difficult time finding things to do.” This makes me question your friends. You make it sound so cut and dry - you can be Greek and party or you cannot be Greek and sit on your ass. Does being Greek really open up that many social activities that a non-Greek doesn’t have? Other than partying and hanging out at the fraternity house/with fraternity brothers I don’t see where the discrepancy is that big (although I’m sure you could argue that). Maybe your non-Greek friends need to get out and do things.</p>
<p>If you aren’t Greek, you won’t party as much. That’s a fact. But activities other than partying are countless. I had no trouble partying, going on dates, hitting up the rec, volunteering, exploring Nashville, attending sporting events and concerts, playing poker, and a multitude of other things. I never said to myself “man, it sure is hard to find something to do around here”.</p>
<p>For the record, I am not a parent. I graduated in 2009.</p>
<p>True, I must take what parents say with a grain of salt, and students too for that matter.
But for my specific fear, it’s a bit different. I consider myself very social and outgoing, and I do enjoy going to parties and getting wasted, from time to time that is. I also enjoy doing other things, but the ideal college experience definitely includes partying, which some posters interpret to mean that you either party and have fun, or not party and do other fun activities, whereas I want a mix of both.</p>
<p>It would seem that pledging is out of the question, considering it’s not worth the drop in grades to me, which are the reason I’m there. And to get a decent job or good grad school I’ll need to work my ass off, and memorizing fraternity stuff and staying up all night to do it doesn’t sound fun.</p>
<p>With that said:</p>
<p>Is it possible for a social and outgoing guy to go to big ragers without being in a frat or being “creative”</p>
<p>To clarify: I’m not asking if I can have fun otherwise, i know i can, but rather, can i get into the big parties basically whenever I feel like going, being a sociable guy.</p>
<p>Actually, as I said in my last post, you can find fun things to do if you aren’t Greek. My main point is just that it’s more difficult than at a school where Greek life isn’t as big (or doesn’t comprise as much of the student population. For example, Alabama has a huge Greek scene, but the overall percentage of students involved with Greek life is lower than Vanderbilt simply because of the sheer size of the student population).</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>It actually sounds to me as if you might want to consider rushing, especially if you enjoy the party lifestyle. As long as you manage your time efficiently, pledging barely affects your grades, if at all. You have mandated study hours to get much of your work done. And taking into consideration the recent changes in pledgeship, you might even have more time next year. Also, keep in mind that some of the best students are in fraternities and sororities (I know several Greek students with 3.8+ GPAs, etc…).</p>
<p>VanderbiltDore gave a good answer. I don’t think you’d have a problem. Go to the parties first semester and see what you think. If you want to rush, great. If you don’t, you can still find parties to attend.</p>
<p>oh and if youre a guy and dont rush, its extremely hard to get into frat parties second semester if you say that youre not rushing. if you do rush, you can get in. however, second semester, if youre not in a frat, its almost impossible for guys alone to get into frats, which take up both friday and saturday nights. if you dont go to frat parties as a freshman, there’s really no where to go on weekends. they rarely let guys in past 11 even if your friends are in there and even if youre friends with the pledges. I’m not trying to turn you away from vandy or greek life, but that’s just how it is.</p>
<p>“if you dont go to frat parties as a freshman, there’s really no where to go on weekends.”</p>
<p>Really? In the entire Nashville metropolitan area (population ~1.5 million) there is nothing to do but go to frat parties? No wonder no one wants to live in Nashville.</p>
<p>Yes we do go downtown on thursday nights and nashville is amazing i love it. However, the truth of the matter is, on friday and saturday nights, your friends will be going to frat parties. I personally wish it were different, but it’s not. Vanderbilt is very focused on greek life. Of course there are people that don’t go and find other things to do, but going downtown as a freshman…first of all, you can’t get in anywhere downtown or into any bars and clubs unless its a frat sponsored one, and second, if it’s not frat sponsored, you need to be 21. I’m sorry if you don’t like what i’m telling you but it’s true.</p>
<p>So what are the 2,000+ guys who aren’t in fraternities and going to the parties doing? I’d like to see you prove that each and every one of them is doing nothing on Friday and Saturday nights.</p>
<p>I think the fact that dtotheustin09, but continues to have so little in his life going on that he goes back on a college board should make you seriously consider if you want to take his advice about having fun in college.</p>
<p>Zing! You really hurt my feelings with that low blow.</p>
<p>It’s called making a contribution. If you haven’t noticed, this site is largely for incoming students to get questions answered from those who have been there before them (at least Vanderbilt’s board). I’m sorry if you have a problem with a graduate trying to help dispel some negative information. Not everyone has the same experience in college and it’s important for incoming students to realize that via anecdotes, facts, etc.</p>
<p>When I was coming to Vanderbilt, everyone always said that you could either be in greek life or not, and there were so many things to do outside of campus. the reality, is that at vanderbilt youre on campus the majority of the time. and the main attraction on weekends is frats. I have learned to love vanderbilt, whereas during my first semester freshman year i was thinking of transferring. I don;t want to candy coat vanderbilt like people did for me. Frats are a big deal. If you have a group of friends that also aren’t involved then that’s great, you’ll be happy. However, a lot of friends get split of during pledging because the new freshman pledges spent almost all of their time at the house. I’m in a sorority and it was definitely a bigger deal during rush and the week after, but now it has slowed down. I know that there aren’t many guys in frats because each one only takes about 15-20 pledges, but the ones that are get so involved and love it. And it definitely gives you a consistent social life.</p>
<p>…@whatup,… You’re doing a great job dispelling frat guy stereotypes considering you’re in a freaking sorority. I don’t get it, if 50+ percent of people aren’t in frats, I legit don’t believe they all decide not to go to parties. </p>
<p>I realize being in a sorority and being a girl in general is totally different with parties, and do NOT insult me for trying to find out what goes on at a college i’m going to be paying 50k a year for.</p>
<p>Are there any non frat male students on this board? All it seems to be are parents who say there will be tons of fun things to do and frat students who say that the frat kids have fun and everybody else sits there like a loser and is miserable. Where’s the *****ing middle ground.</p>
<p>I’m a potential Vandy parent and an actual Vandy alum. Obviously, saying that, my information about the social life at Vandy is very dated, so take it with a grain of salt, a large one…</p>
<p>That said, when I went to Vandy, I believe a much higher percentage of kids were in the Greek system than are now, and I wasn’t, and yet I had a great four years socially. You make friends in your freshmen dorm. You hang out with them. You meet girls. You date them. You join organizations, making more friends. You go out to concerts, movies, dinners, and the like. You go to some frat functions as a guest. Once you get to live in the Towers, you throw big parties yourself, seeing how many people you can cram into one “living room” (I think 50 or so worked). You go to football, basketball, baseball, and rugby games with your friends. You play tennis, or run, or workout with others. Really, I don’t see the big issue. I didn’t know any indies who sat around sobbing on the weekends. I certainly didn’t. </p>
<p>College life, even at Vandy, was what you made of it. It’s probably still that way.</p>
<p>@enjolias “Are there any non frat male students on this board”</p>
<p>I am one. I don’t know much about the frat-dominated social scene that has been depicted in this thread. I do know that I have not lacked for fun things to do at Vandy. Much depends on one’s idea of fun. A nice thing about college is that one can find people who enjoy the same things as oneself.</p>
This is sage advice. Indeed, this advice is particularly useful, because there are plenty of students who might want to entirely avoid a college where folks offer this kind of advice.</p>
<p>It’s interesting how only the sensational comments are taken seriously. dtotheustin09 and VandyEng2014 have posted comments that are largely ignored, and those who post things like whatup224’s post are given the weight of truth. Yes, that is his truth … but there are a couple THOUSAND other truths that exist.</p>
<p>My son is a senior at Vanderbilt. Although a very social person, he has never had the slightest interest in joining a fraternity. He has a lot of friends, and he has never lacked for entertainment. His girlfriend is a senior at Vandy also; she has never had any interest in joining a sorority, has not lacked for friends, or entertainment, or activities on or off campus. Both have been highly successful, and both recommend Vanderbilt to younger acquaintances who have no interest in Greek life.</p>
<p>I will add that both are broadminded people, and don’t care if other people want to join Greek organizations. The university isn’t that small, and Nashville has plenty to do. There really is room for everyone.</p>
<p>As for hazing, the original topic, I have no knowledge of any sort on that subject. But, as others have pointed out earlier in the thread, more eloquently than I can, those who contend that there is no life at Vanderbilt for those who don’t join fraternities are suffering from tunnel vision. They need to get out more.</p>
<p>whatup224 really understands what vandy is all about. It IS dominated by the greeks and if you are not greek, you will spend a huge amount of time and energy either bored or trying to figure out what else there is to do. You will frequently feel like a second class citizen, even if you really are an attractive, cool, interesting, and socially acceptable person. What warped kind of a situation is that for your college years, a time in your life when the world should be open and you should be open to everything in it! Isn’t college supposed to be about widening your scope, not narrowing it?</p>
<p>Actually, topbrass is a parent whose son was not given a bid. Apparently, he is having trouble finding a happy niche at Vanderbilt. I do hope that topbrass is not sharing this dour outlook with his/her son, because that sort of attitude will not help the young man find happiness.</p>
Vandy alum. Obviously, saying that, my information about the social life at Vandy is very dated, so take it with a grain of salt, a large one…</p>