What do you guys think ?
 

Hello I am looking to join a fraternity and I feel that I would bring plenty to offer not only to this particular fraternity but to the world around me as a whole. I have taken my time to research the frat, the requirements, and much more. The ONLY thing I find myself to have trouble with is by far the most important, my GPA. Its not that I dont try hard enough but more that im just having trouble adjusting to college. Im only entering my sophomore year and my GPA is a 2.25 and the required GPA is a 2.5. Should I be worried or just be patient and get used to college?

What's there to worry about?

If the minimum is 2.5, and you don't meet it, no worries. You don't qualify.

Take the time to get used to college. If you have a 2.25 GPA and the requirement is a 2.5 (btw this is a LOW requirement, we just bumped our IFC requirement up to 2.75) you won't be allowed to rush (unless the group wants to break the rules which is possible).

How long does it take to "get used to college?"

OP, please find the resources at your school that are there to help you succeed (free study skills classes, writing classes, math tutoring, time management, whatever). It's amazing what's available now.

A fraternity should be the last of your interests right now.

I don't think Greek Life is a good idea if you can't maintain the minimum GPA without fraternity obligations distracting you. I'm sorry if this is news you don't want to hear, but I really would suggest you work on your grades and time management skills.

I agree. Work on your grades this next year(seek help from your professors-the majority really do want their students to succeed and are willing to help, your campus academic achievement office, math tutoring services, writing workshops, etc.) and then (a caveat), if you have improved your GPA significantly, you might rush as a junior.

These three ladies quoted below, and Jazing above, are four of the wisest people I know. You should listen to them because this advice is not only true but will save you time and wasted money for classes where you don't perform and a Greek Life that decides it doesn't want you because you haven't nailed down the scholar part just yet.


For men your age, how old you are is not quite as important as it is for women in recruitment. A fraternity that will make you a better man than you already are will want to see the steps you will take for yourself so they know that they can rely on you as a brother.

Are you interested in an NPHC fraternity?

Yes its NPHC.

I understand what you mean and all but just think about it how many first time freshmen do yoyou know that just came right into college with the best grades ? Not bashing or anything but I'll leave it to myself to decide if its a good idea or not I mean I do have 3 more years possibly more.

Thanks every one for the advice. Its not like im just failing every class they throw at me I just have reaaaallll trouble with math. I believe once I can get over that hump I believe I'll be doing a lot better.

If you are going to "leave it to yourself to decide if its a good idea or not" then why did you come here and ASK OUR OPINION? :confused:

And for the record, not explaining that you are looking at NPHC makes a big difference in the people who offer opinions and advice that you receive.

I asked should I be worried about my GPA not being where it should be. My mind is already made up on joining. And yeah I should have specified thst it was NPHC but that info also could have been obtained from a simple question like the person above asked.

Depending on the organization, the chapter, and the people in the chapter, it *could* be a good idea to tell a friend in the chapter that you are interested in the organization but are having problems with your grades.

They might do nothing but wish you good luck.

But *some* NPHC chapters have public study hours, tutoring sessions, and other service activities which help everybody acclimate to college. The Alpha Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha, for example, does this sort of programming all the time.

In other words, academic success is often a community affair in NPHC organizations.

As always, the best thing for you to do is to befriend members of the chapter you are interested in so that people who know you can provide the most accurate advice.

And as other posters have said, do everything you can do do raise your grades, also. If your campus has a writing center, make a habit of going. If they have free tutoring, use it.

And my own advice: don't take hard classes if you can help it. It only took one flunked midterm for me to change my major from History to English. It's not that I was afraid of hard work - it's that graduating on time was important to me.

Good luck!

Seriously??? :confused: Go to college, but only take easy classes so you can be sure to get good grades & graduate on time. Not going to worry about getting an actual education?

http://24.media.tumblr.com/166f1d096...ugwco1_500.gif

Yeah, I said it.

I. Senusret.

I can hear the "teeth sucking" sound from here! Thanks, Sen!:D

Yes, you should be worried.. which is why you shouldn't pledge (and most likely, can't). Unless a chapter is willing to do you a favor and make a huge exception - which usually only happens if a chapter truly knows a potential member and MUST have them as a member - you're SOL.

Study. Focus on school. Then worry about becoming Greek.

Quite a few actually. Look, you are in school to learn, not join a fraternity. Get your grades under control then worry about going Greek.

Grades first, like others have said. There's really nothing wrong with rushing when you're an upperclassman! I have several sisters who did that, and they're just as much sisters as the rest of us. So no worries! Just focus on your grades first. If you get them up, then think about Greek Life.

I love it when people ask for opinions and then tell us that they don't want our opinion.

OP, the people I knew who struggled in the first year dropped out or transferred to easier schools. The "grade risks" I knew in the Greek System were terminated within their first year because they could not maintain grades because Greek Life was too attractive of a distraction and did not help their already-poor study habits, learning challenges, and/or time management skills. Good luck to you; perhaps you will be the exception to the rule.

If he's looking at an NPHC group, he has a while to do so (i.e. graduate membership).

He's looking at NPHC. Whole nother ball of wax. It's not at all unusual for people to join NPHC as upperclassmen or even graduates. As for the grades, I could be wrong, but I don't think they make exceptions, so this whole thread is probably pointless.

Ok are all yall overlooking that I keep saying im just a freshman??? Just because im saying I wanna join one does NOT mean im gonna go out & start that process tomorrow. I've only had like 1 person understand that on here geesh.

You asked if you should be worried about your grades. The answer is "yes."
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No one is overlooking anything. People are answering your question. And frankly, they're also probably responding to the text-speak, use of words like "im" and "wanna," and poor punctuation. Yes, we all know that this is just an Internet forum, but if you come here asking questions about your grades and you don't put a a single sentence together correctly, you're pretty much asking for the kind of responses you're getting.

What are we overlooking? You asked if you should be worried about your grades. We said yes. We told you to wait to join, and you got all defensive saying, "My mind is already made up." No one told you that you can never join. We said get your grades up and then join.

So basically.. we (as in you + all of us) understand that you want to join, that you need to raise your grades first, and that you can try to join once they've improved.

What's the problem here?

ETA: And understand that the way you worded this:

..made it sound like you wanted to know if you'd have an issue rushing this semester. Naturally, that's why we all told you to wait to try to join.

You have completed 2 semesters (or the equivalent). That should be 25% of your college career, unless you are going to be on the or 6 year plan. Getting a break because you are still adjusting to college life is O-V-E-R. If you are still trying to get used to it after a year, there may be a problem.