Washington University in St. Louis - Greek Life

Quick Stats

College Prowler Take

The Greek scene is a popular resource for incoming freshmen at Wash U. It is an easy way to make friends, meet guys and girls, and ind a set of ready-made activities and social events. The frats and sororities have mixers, crush parties, and semi-formals throughout the year, as well as other intra-Greek events that make them a tight-knit community on campus. Nearly a quarter of the student body joins a fraternity or a sorority, and among the socially active, that percentage could represent almost half. Most students argue that the Greek scene does not dominate, though. There are plenty of other parties and social groups around, and not joining a fraternity or sorority isn't social suicide.

Freshmen have plenty of time to decide whether or not to join a fraternity or sorority. They get a feel for the different fraternities and sororities in the first semester, attend rush events in the beginning of the second semester, and receive bids about a month later. Another option is to rush sophomore year, but few people actually do so. To give a rough impression of the different groups, here’s a caricature of each fraternity and sorority: Sigma Alpha Mu (Sammy) and ZBT are the off-campus party frats, Sigma Chi has lots of athletes and techno parties, AEPi is sort of a Jewish Sammy-lite, Kappa Sig is a random assortment of outgoing guys, Sig Ep members pay too much attention to their hair, Beta Theta Pi members are laid-back all-American types, Theta Xi is ’80s-rock-loving beer drinkers, Phi Delts are jocks, Sigma Nu is mostly nerds and potheads, and SAE is kind of a mystery. For the sororities: Kappa Gamma is almost all blondes, Pi Phi and AEPhi are Jewish girls and their friends, Alpha Phi is athletic fun-loving girls, Delta Gamma is an unclassifiable mélange, Chi Omega is very Asian, and AOPi is just getting started.

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Students Speak Out

WasJF says: Washington University in St. Louis 2015 Business

In my opinion Greek life plays an... In my opinion Greek life plays an extremely prominent role in the social scene. Not only are they the ones hosting most of parties, but they are usually the ones orchestrating off-campus social events. 12345 Greek Life: March 17, 2009 Report

WasRA says: Washington University in St. Louis 2016 Arts, Visual and Performing

Greek life is the party scene at... Greek life is the party scene at WashU. What's nice is that the houses are usually open to everyone. You can sense 'Greek presence' in the social scene, but it's not necessary to go Greek if you want to party on the weekend. 12345 Greek Life: March 02, 2009 Report

Anonymous says:

You don’t have to be Greek to... You don’t have to be Greek to party or meet people at Wash U. It’s not at all exclusive either. I’m not Greek, but I’m an athlete and we all kind of form our own coed, giant fraternity/sorority sometimes. Plus, going to the Greek parties, you always see people you know, but there are always more people to meet, and it can be fun. Joining just means it’s another good way to meet tons of people, but it’s definitely not a necessity. If I had it to do over, I still wouldn’t have rushed. 12345 Greek Life Report

forthewin223 says: Washington University in St. Louis 2016 Biological and Biomedical Sciences

Sigma Alpha Mu (Sammy) and ZBT are... Sigma Alpha Mu (Sammy) and ZBT are the off-campus party frats. Sigma Chi has some athletes, and they're mostly cool guys. AEPi is sort of a Jewish "Sammy-lite." Kappa Sig is a random assortment of outgoing guys—some weird, some alright. Sig Ep members pay too much attention to their hair—some are cool, some think they're cool. Beta Theta Pi members are laid-back all-American types, and typically the most "gay" frat in terms of members in it. Theta Xi are all the rejects from rush that no one else wanted. Phi Delts are jocks, Sigma Nu is mostly nerds, and SAE is kind of a mystery—aka sketchy. 12345 Greek Life: June 08, 2009 Report

ArielS says:

It may be true that only 20% of... It may be true that only 20% of students here are involved in Greek Life. However, I'd say about 70% of people with social lives are involved. I'm not and it doesn't usually hinder my social life, but there are some events (i.e. Greek week, Greek prom, semi-formal, etc) that are more exclusive. But those (albeit pretty rare) occasions are good excuses to catch up on work, watch a movie, or hang out with friends that aren't in frats or sororities. 12345 Greek Life: September 28, 2008 Report

Facts

Did You Know?

Once a year, the fraternities build sets and prepare a series of skits to perform as part of Thurtene Carnival, the nation’s oldest and largest student-run carnival.

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