<p>Here in the south, kids that are in top frat/sorority are usually kids from prominent families. I wonder what the parents of these kids do for a living, neurosurgeons?</p>
<p>How would anyone know whether their kids are in a “top fraternity / sorority” at their campus? Is there some published list somewhere that everyone agrees on? LOL.</p>
<p>In normal Greek systems, no one much cares about whether there are “rankings.” If you find friends that you mesh with, that’s all that counts, and it’s irrelevant what other people outside that house think of them.</p>
<p>Then again, in normal Greek systems, people choose one another because they like / get along with one another, and what their parents do has nothing to do with anything whatsoever. How would one even know what someone’s parent did for a living, anyway? It’s just so odd. </p>
<p>PG - I have to disagree on “How would anyone know whether their kids are in a top fraternity/sorority at their campus?” I know how my kids’ sorority is ranked at their school and their school’s top 3 sororities. At every school, people know which sorority/fraternity are top tier, and people do care about how they are ranked. Top houses have an easier time to recruit and lower tier houses have a harder time filling their quota.</p>
<p>I know my kids’ (they belong to the same sorority) sorority doesn’t care about what parents do, but some sororities and fraternities do care. It is not publicized, but most people do know which sorority/fraternity only admit wealthy students, but those houses are not necessary top tier houses on campus. I was told by my girls that they mix with one of such fraternities because they have the best food (sushi) and drinks (real champagne).</p>
<p>People do choose one another because they like and get along with one another. For some people it may mean hanging out with people who are from the same social economic background. I don’t think we should be surprised by that. But for many other people, it is usually because they have common interest and values, and it may not have anything to do with money. You would see a lot of sports teammates join the same sorority/fraternity.</p>
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There must be because I’ve never heard anyone tell me about their kids Greek activities without including some sort of house evaluation or ranking in the second sentence. Sometimes it’s proud and sometimes it’s more "explanatory’, but it’s nearly always there. Actually, it doesn’t seem too surprising since it is a social system and aren’t they so often about ‘ranking’?</p>
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<p>At the Greek dominant campuses in the Big 10 some cousins attended, there were fraternities/sororities well-known for picking students from higher SES backgrounds, those who are physically attractive and/or fashion obsessed clotheshorses, those those who aren’t as/unpopular for lacking such selection criterion or other factors such as being known derisively as the “geek” or “fat slob” house.</p>
<p>And the cousins attending such schools weren’t outsiders to such systems, but insiders so I got to hear about it from some who were part of the more popular fraternities. One was picked for being a tall well-built athlete despite having some academic achievement issues and another was partially picked for being a winner of a highly competitive state-wide beauty pageant during HS and both came from upper-middle class suburban backgrounds. </p>
<p>Granted, things might have toned down a bit since they attended undergrad during the '80s, but I still see and read about this on some Greek dominant campuses. </p>
<p>There’s seriously a sorority/fraternity ranking system? </p>
<p>Fwiw, if there is, I don’t think any of us outside of the system know or care about it… </p>
<p>You wouldn’t care unless you were rushing or recruiting. Why would you care about something you have no interest in.</p>
<p>There is often a hierarchy on campuses in terms of what houses are more “popular”, and hence, have an easier time recruiting. The ranking sites, however, are bs. Some members go on the ranking sites and self-rank or deride their rival houses - a disservice to all Greeks IMHO. Many colleges publish a ranking of their Greek organizations by GPA. As PG pointed out, what matters is finding a house where one is comfortable and likes the other members. Every house has its own personality. You have to find your fit. IME, the majority of houses don’t really care what your parents do for a living. If a group does care how much money your parents make, do you really want to belong to that house? </p>
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Apparently some do, and they belong together.</p>
<p>When I went to school my sorority was “known” for checking out your shoes for designer labels, yet I was a scholarship student. At DS school, the "rich fraternity also has two guys that are foster kids with no money to their name. There will always be stereotypes and exceptions to the rules. </p>
<p>My son just told me about one who wants to make sure you have enough Instagram followers. They are all judgey in their own way, but isn’t that the whole point? And, he knows who the top three are but said that changes over time. </p>
<p>Certain Houses tend to attract more well-heeled students. Often their dues are a lot higher, and their activities are more expensive (out of town formals, etc). </p>
<p>Sometime the older the House’s charter is makes a difference as well. </p>
<p>There are some houses that care about wealth, and others that really want to everyone to find a way to participate. The house I was in had several girls on scholarships, and several who couldn’t participate in some weekends. We also had several who were very wealthy. We tried to find a blend of things we could all do together and enjoy.</p>
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<p>Some may have interests in doing so for anthropological, sociological, or political organizational interest reasons.</p>
<p>Also, marketing folks who are interested in targeting that demographic may have a great financial incentive to do so…</p>
<p>Of course at any particular campus certain groups will be “more popular” or “less popular”. But at the midwest college I attended, no one cared about what anyone’s parents did.</p>
<p>"There is often a hierarchy on campuses in terms of what houses are more “popular”, and hence, have an easier time recruiting. The ranking sites, however, are bs. Some members go on the ranking sites and self-rank or deride their rival houses - a disservice to all Greeks IMHO. Many colleges publish a ranking of their Greek organizations by GPA. As PG pointed out, what matters is finding a house where one is comfortable and likes the other members. "</p>
<p>I get that unofficially, you know whether your house is strong or not by size, how easily it fills quota, its desirability to the opposite sex, etc. All the same, it matters most whether you like the people in it. </p>
<p>@1jupiter99tang2 Are you interested in the Southern Greek system ? If so, I’ll spend some time describing how my middle class son survives and thrives in a “highly ranked” southern fraternity by doing work in lieu of dues. He is also President. </p>
<p>Not sure if you’re asking an actual question or making a statement.</p>
<p>You’re correct, Southern frats are a whole different beast. I have one in the same frat at a northern school and there is almost no similarity. </p>
<p>PS- Southern son also lives with his pledge brother, who is actually a neurosurgeon’s son. It takes all kinds.</p>
<p>My d is in a southern sorority. She went in knowing nothing. She couldn’t tell you what her friends or sorority sisters parents do for a living. Much like you knew in hs who was popular and who wasn’t, it’s the same thing. In general the newer sororities will be lower ranked because they haven’t had time to develop themselves yet. She tells me a lot of researching goes on behind the scenes at some of them. And don’t think for a second you aren’t getting searched on social media. But her sorority is actually a pretty small part of her college experience. Her best friends are in different sororities. She has friends who aren’t greek. She goes to class, clubs, etc At her school greek gpa is higher than non greek. But she could tell you the ranking and reputation of each house. Not all sororities care about your parents jobs. She also said she could walk into any one of them and have friends and be fine. </p>
<p>I get that you could go to a campus and say (for example) the Thetas, Kappas and Tri Delts are the top houses, and the Chi Os and Pi Phis are the weakest as they are smaller and don’t fill quota. But I reject the notion that there is a specific 1,2,3 through 15 type of ranking as is being implied. </p>
<p>Well, as with any ranking system one can (and should) ignore it if it seems ridiculous. I agree that it is much more important to go on fit, just as it is with college selection in general.</p>