Vanderbilt is one of my top choices and i applied as a music major. When visiting, I honestly loved the environment of the music school, but my only concern is the rest of the university. I’ve read lots of stuff about the culture being very superficial and Greek oriented, but most of that was at least from five years ago. I’m curious about whether or not the culture has changed to a more diverse one and if admissions has made an effort to attract a wider variety of people than it used to?can someone give me insight about this? Thanks!
55% ish of females go Greek and that number has remained solid during a dramatic change in demographics in the student body over the last 15 years as Vanderbilt became a national/international university. I have a son who stayed independent and he had a (very) full life, including some friends in Greek life and the occasional invite to a Greek event as a date. Take a look at Vandy’s peer universities. I think it is a mistake to eliminate schools with active Greek cultures on campus. Better to buck up and walk your own path instead if you are not interested. I honestly think Vanderbilt’s location in Nashville is excellent for independent students. There is so much offered weekly in Nashville and on campus for all. Regarding the women staying loyal to Greek affiliation even during Vandy’s big transition to highly selective admissions— others can speak to it-- but my impression is that the sororities offer a definite spot for those who go through rush as long as you don’t get caught up in rank of each group. A guarantee of a spot is lot more fair minded that ending up with total closed doors after Rush. Women must find their sororities to be supportive and helpful or the new demographic at Vandy would have lowered their participation. It is important to be forgiving of your classmates who may get temporarily blinded and caught up by Greek Rush if you are not interested. It’s not long till everyone is doing junior semesters abroad and focusing on internships and getting more done in their majors. One way to guarantee getting to know Greek and non Greek classmates is to apply for Alternative Spring Break service work. My son enjoyed that experience three out of four years…when he wasn’t abroad or doing other things. Weight your best financial plan more seriously than you weight Greek life concerns in April.
my son is an ORM and not into greek life but he is having great time at Vandy. He is not into greek life but finds so many other options. He participates in lot of cultural activities and has ethnically diverse friends group. It all depends on you 
Thanks guys!! I thats very helpful. I have a friend there who joined a sorority and loves it- she said her group of friends are very down to earth, which is all I was looking for really! Vandy is a great place