<p>I am going to be a freshman next year and I am interested in joining a fraternity. I have a few friends in this one house who are telling me to go rush in the fall. I am in the LSA Honors program and I want to apply to Ross Business School after my freshman year. Is pledging very time consuming? Does joining a fraternity make pre-gaming better for football games? Can I still go to frat parties even though I am not in a fraternity? Can I choose to pledge sophomore year instead of freshman year? Can I still maintain a good GPA even if I pledge? What are the pros of joining a fraternity at Michigan? okay done bombarding u with questions.</p>
<p>Pledging varies widely, depending on the chapter, some have minimal time commitments, while others have extensive time commitments. However, every chapter has GPA minimum requirements and most have mandated study hours. Fraternities always have pre-game parties for all Football Saturdays. This is one of the great aspects of Michigan social life and fraternities are renowned for their pre-game festivities. Typically, a fraternity will exclusively partner with a sorority for football season and host a joint pre-game at the fraternity’s chapter or senior house. The majority of the University’s social scene (parties, drinking, etc.) is Greek Life. You can still have an active social life without being in Greek Life. Fraternities have a couple of “open” parties throughout the semester, where anyone can attend the event. However, fraternities most throw mixers exclusively with a sorority, which are not open to all students. Therefore, to reap most of the social benefits of a fraternity, you would need to pledge.</p>
<p>You can pledge as a Sophomore, but it is unusual. I pledged as a Sophomore and sincerely regret not going through rush as a Freshman. Despite stereotypes, we all still go to Michigan and academics are always the principal concerns of most students. Many chapters on campus have pledge class GPAs that exceed the average Freshman All-Male GPA. I would recommend participating in Fall Rush to see if Greek Life is for you. It’s free, you’ll get to meet a lot of new people, and maybe you’ll find a house you like and receive a bid.</p>
<p>depends on the house, some youd be fine and others it would be tough. football pregames are much better when you’re in a fraternity, youll be fine</p>
<p>“The majority of the University’s social scene (parties, drinking, etc.) is Greek Life”</p>
<p>this is heavily biased, only about 20% of UMich students are involved with greek life, and if you aren’t into the whole frat party scene there will be plenty of house parties for just about anything you get involved with on campus, complimentary booze and fun included.</p>
<p>^ I feel like that statement only applies freshmen year, when mostly everyone is living in dorms. Once people have their own apartments, things change.</p>