Hi all,
I am starting as a freshman at Penn State University Park in the fall. I know next to nothing about Greek life at Penn State, and any and all information would be appreciated. Is it something worth getting involved in? Does being in a sorority really affect your social life? And, finally, (and I realize this last one is an opinion question) could anyone give me “the basics” on each of the sororities? Like their general vibe?
Thanks!
@swanlake15 The good news is that you can’t rush for a sorority until Spring 2020, so take the fall to get academically acclimated and make friends. There are specific requirements about number of credits and GPA, so you can check out the Panhellenic website for that information.
As to your other questions, I will let others address them. Although I will comment that there is a terrific student life and social life outside sororities and you don’t need to be Greek to be social. There are many bright and terrific girls who are Greek, and many bright and terrific girls who are not Greek.
Oh no.
Remember you can have a terrific and wonderful experience at such a great school. Greek life is a bit of a hot potato here on this site. Just make good decisions and study hard!
If you go to the Panhellenic page you should be able to find out information about rush. If it is a spring rush then in the Fall, look to see if they have any open events like a philanthropy event. I know my D’s school who is a spring rush do their events in the fall semester and its an opportunity for PNM’s to go explore the houses and get to meet some of the girls.
At larger schools, rush can be a bit more competitive so targeting only one or two houses is not a good idea. Keep an open mind to all house and each round maximize your options. Focus on your conversational skills as you have a short time to make a good impression, think of it like speed dating. Just know that chapters Facebook and Instagram pages are marketing tools and used to put the chapters in the best light possible to attract new members. Also know that within each chapter will be smaller micro communities for you to find your core group.
Thanks!
Thanks!
Thank you for your response!
As mentioned, freshmen rush has requirements and a set timeframe. By the time you are permitted, you may have a better sense of whether it makes sense. I want to add something that isn’t mentioned enough — Greek orgs are often expensive and consider if you have that kind of money to spare in addition to all the other college costs. There is plenty to do, and plenty to join at Penn State that is less time- and money- consuming. It is an academically demanding school so be sure to have a good foundation, first. You will have plenty of social life whether or not you are Greek, at Penn State. Be sure to check out the Greek report card, too.
On the money part of Greek Life. You should get information on the cost of each house and I can tell you for my D at her school it has been about the same cost for her to be in the sorority as it was before she joined. She moved into her sorority house her sophomore year and it was about $1,000 cheaper than her freshmen dorm room & board. The money I saved went back into dues and other ancillary fees but the net save was about $200 for the entire year with her being in the sorority. In general she has better living conditions, a reserved parking spot and a chef that cooks all their meals which she says are a lot better than the campus dining halls.
I do know a few houses on her campus where it is more expensive with the most expensive one would have been about $750 more than what I paid her freshman year. It really just depends on the chapter. As for time commitment, my D has a larger time commitment than others in her house but mainly because she is on her sororities bike team and in the Spring the training they do is a lot to get ready for the big race. She will ride a minimum of 100 miles a week until race day. She also is on their schools Dance Marathon committee which is on top of her sorority commitments.
If you join Greek Life, just know that you can find balance between social and academic life. I do agree, you need to do your research and see if it is for you or not. Most people I know are excited about Greek Life at first but by the time they get to their senior year the focus is more on internships, work studies, oversea programs and graduation. A lot of people lower their involvement as they get to their senior year.
Penn State puts some information about their Greek Life online: https://studentaffairs.psu.edu/involvement-student-life/greek-life-penn-state/about-community/community-scorecard
That won’t tell you the general vibe, but you can glean some information from average GPAs, hazing violations, philanthropic involvement, etc.
@dcolosi does your daughter go to Penn State? because their sororities don’t have houses, they have floors of dormitories (or so I thought) and I’m also thinking they don’t have reserved parking either.
@greenbutton no my D does not go to Penn State that’s why I said “at her school”. Each school is different and even schools with houses have unhoused chapters. Greek Life doesn’t necessarily equate to a more expensive experience which was what I was saying. I often see people say Greek Life is so expensive and while at some schools that may be true, it isn’t in all cases. Even at schools where they don’t have houses it can be cheaper but it depends on each chapter.