Anonymous wrote:For OP: I think the question you and your DD have to ask yourselves is what is she looking for in a social scene. If a DC is looking to spend a sizable portion of their social time going to large parties with alcohol available, then yes, fraternities will often dominate that scene. If for whatever reason, it's important for her to both consider and be at the top of a perceived traditional social hierarchy, then look into sorority affiliation at schools that interest her.

But my experience with kids at two Greek-heavy schools is that there are plenty of other social scenes at larger schools, and if the reason your DD doesn't want to go Greek is because she enjoys other types of socializing, then she likely will find that as well. Have her focus on figuring out what social life would make her happy and seeing if kids with similar interests thrive at that school.

Anonymous wrote:
Now that clamps desired by helicopter parents have reduced college activity to 6th grade daycamp activities ..why join a frat. For that manner, why not do 90 percent of college online at home?

Anonymous wrote:I am suspect of an 18 year old who states they are not interested in Greek life. What exposure have they had to the Greek system to form that opinion?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Im old and went to a large public - majored in engineering. I was not Greek nor did I have an interest in it. My social circles were largely outside of it, though I had some acquaintances that pledged - very few engineering majors as I recall, but there were of course some. I wasn't into parties and large social events, so I personally didn't care. I had my own interests apart from that

My recollection and presumption is the idea of a school 'dominated' by Greek is probably tied to social bubbles. If you're in it or closely associated to those who are, it seems like a big deal. If you are outside those circles, you are in a different bubble where other things are deemed important. The only reason I would think it would matter would be FOMO. Wanting in but not a part of it for whatever reason. Even if have the campus is affiliated, the other half isn't. That's a lot of students charting a different path

How is an old person's experience relevant today? Have you seen social media? TikTok? Greek life is booming. The frat concerts themselves are insane productions with professional-quality staffing. The wrist bands (and their "distribution methods") are so different than your "recollection".
Not to be mean, but your experience is irrelevant and dated. Not helpful here.

Anonymous wrote:Im old and went to a large public - majored in engineering. I was not Greek nor did I have an interest in it. My social circles were largely outside of it, though I had some acquaintances that pledged - very few engineering majors as I recall, but there were of course some. I wasn't into parties and large social events, so I personally didn't care. I had my own interests apart from that

My recollection and presumption is the idea of a school 'dominated' by Greek is probably tied to social bubbles. If you're in it or closely associated to those who are, it seems like a big deal. If you are outside those circles, you are in a different bubble where other things are deemed important. The only reason I would think it would matter would be FOMO. Wanting in but not a part of it for whatever reason. Even if have the campus is affiliated, the other half isn't. That's a lot of students charting a different path

Anonymous wrote:Based on my very recent observation, i think greek participation numbers can be deceiving and i am a bit surprised. My kid just started at a medium size private university with an official number of around 20-25%. My kid says the 'social' kids all intend to rush. Greek is growing in popularity and also hard to track because of the number of 'unoffocial' off campus Greek groups. Yes, most kids don't join greek, but it's a bit more nuanced. Despite the diversity on campus, there seem to be social cliques and silos based on major, int'l kids, etc. My kid says despite it being a decent size school, she sees the same core group out all the time and the school feels pretty small socially. Not necessarily in a bad way but that was my concern of a slac, so I'm surprised about this at a mid size school...

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The answer is more nuanced than you might think.

It's not necessarily what %age of the school that directly participates vs. how much of the overall social life revolves around Greek parties.

I think at UPenn like 25% participate, but there is always lots going on at the school and the City that the 75% that don't directly participate don't feel like their experience is significantly impacted. Also, many of the parties are generally open to all.

It seems like other schools perhaps in more remote locations may have similar direct membership, but the social scene is dominated by the Frats and Sororities.

I’ve heard it’s hard for Penn boys who aren’t Greek to get into parties after freshman year?

Anonymous wrote:I am suspect of an 18 year old who states they are not interested in Greek life. What exposure have they had to the Greek system to form that opinion?

Anonymous wrote:It depends on the school and the vibe.

At Cornell, it dominates. At Vanderbilt, it dominates. At Duke, it's off campus, but it dominates social life/culture.

At Northwestern, it's growing. 3 more frats came back over the summer. Too much demand and not enough after the failed Abolish Greek Life movement.

I think social media (all those frat parties with big-name performers and the sorority dance/videos) has had an impact even at the most selective schools.