lobsta

When I visited USC i became somewhat interested in Greek life. I had never really thought about joining a sorority, but then again I had never entertained the option. Can anyone speak of the positives and negatives of going greek. I heard each house already has connections with the community for community service. I've never heard anyone mention it, but is going greek good or bad as far as being admitted to grad school? I don't suppose all the houses are sterotypical. I'd appreciate any comments.

trojangirlie05

Greek Life at USC is a pretty large thing on campus. I would say the majority of my friends are Greek (I'm not - I rushed, but with a double major, one of them engineering, I don't really have the time).

So, the benefits - you can live in the houses, which are sweet; you always have people to chill with in your classes; you have access to the Greek study files and networking connections; lots of social aspects.

The negatives - frat guys are all idiots; you'd end up wearing those cheap looking ridiculous sorority shirts; and the biggest negative of all, you would have to go through rush.

As far as community service, the houses do raise money for charities, but I don't know how much hands-on type stuff they actually do.

As far as grad school, I don't know that Greek experience has an effect one way or another. Joining a sorority can give you access to leadership positions in the house, and that can only be a good thing as far as I can tell.

My advice: Go through rush, if you hate it after the first day, drop out and find another social outlet on campus.

intelliot

What is rush?

trojangirlie05

it's the way you join a sorority or fraternity.

intelliot

That's clear from the context, but what does it entail?

USCwannabe

im a transfer applicant for usc, and i will definately join a frat.

i am currently going to UNLV and i am in a frat now. My rushing experience was one I will NEVER forget. It truly is a worthwhile process. Its an awesome way to make good friends, meet girls, and do some crazy things. Its very tough to balance school and rushing though cuz many frats drain your life when your rush. I know when I rushed, i had to partake in frat activities like at least 4 hours a day, 6 days a week. It was crazy.

Rushing is all about proving your loyalty to the frat. They push you really hard to filter out all the little girls, and keep the men. I remember my rushing class was ordered to wake up 5 in the morning every week day to eat breakfast! so be prepared to stress yourself out when you rush. I would seriously reccomend rushing your sophomore yr so you can get the hang of college work first, then balance it with rushing, or else you will overwelm yourself.

afterhours

I was in the same position as you, and I would say the positives outweigh the negatives. I personally think of it as a social outlet, and as long as you don't get caught up in the lifestyle, what's wrong with that? I think it's a tremendous social tool, and another valuable opportunity to network - which is key at USC - and establish friendships. Yeah, the rush process is fake, but it's only for a little while and you won't fall under the stereotype if you don't parade it around campus.

Try taking leadership roles within your sorority and that can help you later on your resume. As for helping you get into grad school? I really can't see it helping much, but it can't hurt you.

uschicka

Rushing for sororities consists of two days of meeting the houses (sitting down with one girl, talking for a few minutes, then talking to one or two other girls). Then you choose your favorite houses (like 6 of the 9 or something), and you get house tours. After house tours you narrow down again, and you get the slide show day, where the sororities present a slide show of their experience, and the last day you have a brunch thing, and then you choose the sorority you want, and if they choose you as well, you get a bid to be in the sorority.

That experience was one of the most exhausting ever!

I definitely recommend a sorority though, if it is for you. There are many different types on campus, and you should be able to find one that is the right fit.

trojangirlie05

USCWannabe- that's not rushing that you are describing, that's pledging. And those are two entirely different things. Frat RUSH at USC is parties, girls, alcohol, and dinners. They schmooze you, basically. PLEDGING is when you show your loyalty to the house and do all those activities.

And-if you are already in a frat at UNLV, chances are you won't be allowed to join a different frat at USC. It's kind of a one-shot thing. You might be able to join the USC chapter of the frat you are already in though.

But to Lobsta, don't worry to much about what USCWannabe said. Girls don't go through pledging, per se. From my impression, most girls are only required to do Monday night activites (dinner/chapter) and a new member activity every week...maybe 5 hours a week that are mandatory. Everything else is optional. The girls at USC don't haze.

The reason USCChicka and I are saying that rush is so *strenuous* is that it's just kinda long. Rush week you spend like 4 hours a day at the chapters (its very structured) having the same conversation at every house you visit. I mean, you can only talk about "how's your dorm?" and "why'd you decide to come to USC?" so many times before it gets tiring. And then there's the screaming. The sororities do these cheesy chants and songs before and after every party. They're cute, but be prepared for it, they can kind of catch you off guard!

(I remember the first time they did a door chant I was TOTALLY freaked out! I had no idea what was going on!)

lobsta

trojangirlie05- thanks for the clarification, I wasn't sure if "strenuous" meant physically or mentally.

Do you know what percentage of pledgees actually live in the house sophomore year after pledging freshman year? I assume there would be competition for living in the house sophomore year.

Plus, after rush, what "criteria" do sororities base their bid decisions on?

Camaro_Kyle

Hey everyone,
I am trying to transfer to USC, and very interested in joining a frat. Which are the elite or favored frats at USC? Are some more regarded than others? Are any of them well known for their parties, or other reasons?
Thanks

afterhours

Cheesy indeed!

USCwannabe

I dont understand why my affiliation with a frat from a previous school would interfere with my interest in another frat when i transfer. Maybe I will stay in the same frat when i transfer, but i really want to look into other ones too.

MrTrojanMan

well, im a frat guy. and as one adequitly put, i am therefore an idiot(trojangirlie). since i am therefore an idiot, you might not want to listen to my advice. but heres my advice anyway: people alwyas ask "whats the best?". well, there is no best. only a best for YOU, dummy. poor rushees, they always have a hard time grasping this. frats and sorities are organizations. organizations function best when they have direction which is best realized when evreybody fits in and likes each other. if youre rushing and youre like "hey, i can see myself being friends with these guys/girls" or "hey, i share similar interests with these guys/girls" or "hey, i have a lot of friend in this frat/sorority", that would probably be an organization to consider. its a big and expensive consideration, thats why rushing can seem like a pain.

USC sororty girls can be really really diverse. there are smart ones and dumb ones, ugy ones and hot ones. so can individual sororities. try NOT to base your choices on stereotypes, it comes down to the individual most of the time anywyas. in fact, dont even consider stereotypes, they wont matter when you are happy or upset with your choice. you will get a bid, unless you are a truly horrible person. if you dont get a bid from your first choice, they are doing you and themselves a favor b/c you proabbly wont fit in if you cant even geta bid.

just rush and be happy. focus on getting to know the girls, not their sorotity.

i am a transfer, too. and i was ina frat at my last school. i rushed anywyas and found that i seemed to fit in better with other frats other than the one i was already in. but then i thought about pledgeship and how i didnt want to do it agian. actually, i wouldd. mine was really carzy but fun and i feel that ireally earned my letters, but i dont have the time and energy like i did when i was a buckwild freshamn. if you want to join another one, it depends on the orgoinazation you are affiliated with. if your frat is predicated on a lot of secrecy ( like sigma nu, pike, and kappa sigma) then your frat will probably say no. they also wont take you in if you pledged another frat. i think others that are predicated on being social (like sae and lxa) MIGHT let you slide. you have to call in to headquarters to be truly sure.

trojangirlie05

Mr.TrojanMan-
I didn't mean you, per se, were an idiot, I simply meant that frat boys en masse, are idiots. Individually they can be intellectual, fun, and charming. In groups, they come up with *great* ideas like LA Riot Parties and setting fire to couches. ;-)

And, if you are in fact an idiot, then that makes me one too, because I am about to agree with you.

I agree with Mr.Trojan Man that if you have already been initiated into one frat, you will have to check with your national before you can join another. For sororities at least, you can't join a different one after you have been initiated into one.

And I also agree that you should pretty much ignore stereotypes. I remember that when I went through rush there was a big stereotype- rumor going around that if you ate any of the candy at a certain house, they would cut you. I have several friends in that house now and know that not to be true. I also remember hearing that a certain guy's house was stereotyped as the "gay" house, yet I haven't met one gay guy in their whole frat - and in fact, they always have a *****load of girls there whenever i go to visit.

Whether you are going through frat rush or sorority rush, just base your decisions on who you meet then.