fraternity life....

[abu204]

hey

i'm going to OSU (oregon not ohio) next year on an exchange from england, and am seriously considering joining a fraternity

rfom stuff i have heard/read and seen about them they seem like a really good thing to get involved in, but was just wondering what you guys thought - pros vs cons etc

thanks

[Lockbox911]

pros- always have a party, make great friendships.
cons- cost, some times initiation, time consuming

[abu204]

cost? think it works out at only being a little more expensive than halls of residance on campus...........

[Frndlefire]

I'm not in a [fraternity], but from what I've seen the experience largely depends on the [fraternity] you join. Some will be the out of control, GHB riddled party house that they have so been stereotyped (but I have seen multiple times as reality), but others are much more low key that focus on public service, academics, and the like. You can generally get a fairly good feeling for the [fraternities] during rush week if you just hang out with the guys for a little while. Check out the house. Does it look really run down or is it nice? Are they throwing big parties to attract new recruits, or are they selecting people based on their major/sports affiliation/etc. All things to consider. You can usually find whatever type of [fraternity] you're interested in...me? it's never really been my scene..

[stegmakk]

pros- always have a party, make great friendships.
cons- cost, some times initiation, time consuming
monetary cost would technically be less if living in a fraternity house...
(please don't call a fraternity a frat...we don't call our country a .... now do we)
anyway...i was in one...personally i look at it as the best and worst times of my life...
yes i had a blast...yes i learned many things about trust, friendship, myself, leadership, etc...but it was also one of the houses that partied alot (not violent or things like that...we were the grateful dead/phis kinda people if you catch my drift)...grades suffered immensley...and some other low points...
some of my friends were in other larger fraternities...i would say do NOT pledge your freshman year...go to the parties and let friends go through it first...learn #1 if it is right for you and what you want...
THEN look into WHAT fraternity you want to get into based on their + and -

[wolfie8914]

Well A) you are english, and that is tight, so you will automatically be wanted by all frats and B) there are many typed of frats...there are the "we are still not over the whole popularity issue from highschool, jock" frats, then you have your smart nerdy frat, a hippie frat, a lax frat depending on the school, an asian frat, an african-american frat, and everything in between. Those are just the extremes.

[Formerlaxdemon]

I was invloved in a fraternity since my Freshman year and I don't regret getting invloved when I did.

The only con I can think of is the matter of Dues. Ours were roughly $1000 a year which can be steep.

There were honestly too many pros that I could list. Being a member of a fraternity has done little to help me as a man in the real world, but it definitely made my college life interesting.

You really get a different mix of men in each house on campus. When I pledged, we were sort of a meat-head group at the time. When I went back for Homecoming, the chapter had become composed of mainly Southern-styled people. Kind of a shock. Our GPA was always the highest on campus and we had more than our share of "fun."

I would recommend that you get involved, but be careful and take your time in learning about each separate fraternity and getting to know the men there.

Since you are going to Oregon State, check out the Theta Chi house there. I have never met any of my brothers from there, but we are all generally good guys.

[enjoi]

Heres what you do: go to all the fraternities and find the one with the most well off Alumni join that fraternity.

[abu204]

thanks for all the advice, i was probably always going to join one anyways....

what are 'dues' is that on top of rent etc?

[TRELAX]

things to know about fraternities/lax- most teams wont let you pledge. being on a college lacrosse team is like being in a frat anyways.