Minorities rushing for sororities?
 

I'm entering a top 20 school and I've always wanted to be in a sorority. I grew up as an only child so I've never had a great group of sisters that I could always count on and go to. However, being born to Chinese parents, my parents and I share very different views on college. My goal is med school, so they think I should concentrate on just school but I want to work hard to play hard. Another thing I'm really hesitant about is the fact that there aren't many Asians that are in the sororities at my school. Most of them celebrate their aZnPride (seriously??!!) through the Chinese Students Association and stuff like that. I'm not like that AT ALL and I don't identify with ANY of them.
What do you guys think? Will I be at a "disadvantage" since I'm Chinese? Any advice would really help?

Just go through rush and see what happens. No one here will be able to tell you for sure if you'd be at a disadvantage. I can only share my experience that I'm Asian as well and was not excluded from joining my sorority. Some GCers here can also say the same.

Just because there aren't too many Asians in the sororities at your school doesn't mean anything.

I'm one of 2 asians who is in a sorority at my school. there are 15 sororities on my campus

At many Southern and Midwestern schools, there aren't many minority NPC Greeks for two big reasons: there aren't many in those areas of the country, and not many minorities that do live in those areas go through NPC recruitment. Low numbers of minority members doesn't mean that the chapters don't accept minority members.

If you are at a school in the South or Midwest, I would strongly suggest getting recs. For example, if you rushed at an SEC school without recs and were unsuccessful, it would most likely be because you didn't make yourself known (by having recs), not because they don't want minority members in their chapters. If you don't have personal connections, there are Alumnae Panhellenics where you can go for recs.

I can say that with most chapters at my school, being a minority is a positive, all else constant. We want our chapters to be diverse.

You will not be at a disadvantage because of your race ... you could be at a disadvantage if you fail to get recs for such a large campus.

We don't even know what school she goes to, so how do we even know that recs are absolutely necessary?

If anything, poor grades and a crappy attitude would be definite signs of a disadvantage.

True ... I was making an assumption based on her entering a "top 20 school". I don't believe the OP mentioned anything about her grades.

Yeah I am not sure what a "top 20" school is. There are zillions of rankings for every category under the sun.

I wouldnt say that you would be at a disadvantage in rushing a sorority because of your race. If I were you, I would do my research on the sororities on your campus BEFORE you rush. Too many girls have failed to do this and THAT is the true disadvantage. You have to find the right "fit" for you. Sororities are not "one size fits all". It would be unfortunate if you rushed and it later one down the road, you realize that the sorority you originally chose was not right for you.

I've come to notice that most, if not all, people that say this are the ones from minority or culture-based GLOs.

If she wants to join and NPC then so what? She has already said this: So why would anyone suggest she do her research and see which is her best fit? That's why there is Rush Week, so she could meet all the NPC sororities and find which one is best for her. If she doesn't feel at home in the Chinese Students Association then she shouldn't waste her time "doing research" on different kinds of sororities because she won't feel at home in an ethnic sorority.

Not wanting to be a member of an "aZn" sorority is not the same as wanting to be in an NPC. She may be interested in a MCGLO, LGLO, or BGLO for all we know.

I know one GCer who could tell us what a Top 20 school is.

irishpipes FTW! ZING!

In general, you'll rarely find an NPHCer suggest researching BGLOs to someone who hasn't already expressed interest in a BGLO. I wish others would stop recommending NPHC (and MCGLO) orgs to racial and ethnic minorities who haven't already done the research.

I agree with you, if she wants to rush NPC (that wasn't too clear in her OP) and there's nothing (that we know of) stopping her from doing so. Good luck to her.

She's old enough to realize this without it being recommended, though.

If she wants NPC, her research will happen during rush (isn't that how it's done?) and if she doesn't want NPC she'll have to realize that on her own before, during, or after she goes through NPC rush.

Exactly. And who's to say that just because she's a minority that she won't be happy in an NPC. From my experience (and from what I've read on GC these past few years) doing research is only effective with BGLOs. W/ other GLOs, you can do research til you have carpel tunnel syndrome and it still doesn't mean you'll fit in with the group on campus.

With any school, the general approach of getting to know what the sororities on campus are like, checking out websites, and getting recommendations, certainly could not hurt.

Every campus is different in terms of diversity, and so is every greek system. I know plenty of Asian girls who pledged NPC groups--in a diverse geographic range of schools. All of them went on to stellar careers, whether med school, law school, or big time jobs on Wall Street. Like with any other organization, your membership responsibilities and extent of involvement must be balanced with your academic goals. You know what you can handle.

My own parents were very concerned when I first joined a house, as they had no understanding of Greek life and were convinced it would bring down my grades. The expectation of doing well in school was such that I could not bring home less than an A average, even at an extremely competitive college where a lot of kids came from East coast prep schools. It took them a while for my parents to come around, but they did, and now, when they see that my sisters are still a part of my life today, they know it was one of the best things I ever did.

Thanks for everyone's advice. I think I'll definately go through rush just to get a feel for what the sororities are like and see if anything clicks.
Just to clear some things up,
I didn't mean to cause a stir when I said "top 20 school." I go to a large private university 10 mins outside of Atlanta (think about it).
I'm also very sure I wouldn't want to join a MCGLO, LGLO, or BGLO. For the latter two, I don't meet the very obvious criteria. As I've said before, I just don't identify enough with people in MCGLO's to want to go through the whole rush process.
Also, can someone please explain recommendations to me? I was looking at my school's Greek Life page and it said that "It is the responsibility of the chapter to obtain a recommendation if one is needed."

Thanks again y'all

I just want to say you should consider all orgs. While LGLOs and BGLOs do emphasize on Latin and Black culture respectably, they are for all ethnicity. All that really matters is that you feel home with the people. My chapter was until recently considered an all asian fraternity and I ma not. So keep an open mind.

Well...are you sure about this? Because I have gotten the opposite impression, especially NPHC-wise.

As far as LGLOs are concerned, several non-Latinos (including myself) are members. Multicultural membership is generally encouraged by several. I've also met several non-black NPHC/BGLO members as well.

As long as there's no push to change the focus of the organizations, race isn't really THAT big of a factor.

ETA: changed "most" to "several" due to LatinaAlumna's true statement.

While I don't know of a LGLO that would deny membership to a person because they are not Latina/o, there are some LGLOs that are still overwhelmingly Latina/o in membership and aren't going towards the "Latino-founded with a multicultural membership" trend.

:) There are a few nonblack NPHCers on GC. knight_shadow is right about the focus of the organization. We've discussed this on GC numerous times. Join us but don't you dare try to change us.

Race is a factor to the extent that 95% of NPHC chapters will remain majority or entirely black and African diasporic--for a number of reasons--and that's not a bad thing.

Very true. My comment was geared more in the area of saying that race may factor into bidding decisions more than in an NPC organization. However, membership selection is private and of course I don't know for sure.

One thing that isn't private is the fact that we don't have "bidding decisions." :)

None of us can tell people whether race will or will not be a factor in whether they are selected for certain NPC/IFC/LGLO/NPHC chapters. There are informal criteria that are up to the chapter's discretion. If saying you're a Democrat can informally get someone cut in certain chapters, being nowhite can informally get someone cut in certain chapters. All we can do is say "go for it and see what happens." The only racially and ethnically diverse organizations are MCGLOs so people pursuing an org where you (in general) are the minority means that there are a number of reasons why most of the members don't look like you.

My school has a relatively small minority population, about 10% Asian, 10% Latino, 3% Black. Both NPC and IFC are still very diverse in their population, for those wanting the more traditional sorority or fraternity experience. And there's nothing wrong with joining one of those organizations. Two of my best friends and my boss are in NPC sororities. And I, along with some of my sisters did go through the NPC recruitment, but didn't find the "fit" we were looking for, so we went over to the cultural organizations. My campus has about 15 Latina/o, Asian, multicultural, gay, and religious GLOs on our campus, with a BGLO and lesbian sorority in the works, spread across the NPC, IFC and CGC. It's just a matter of finding where you fit. My sorority is a Latina Interest Sorority, but our newest class has members who are Vietnamese, Chinese, Scottish, and lesbian/bi, plus our other members who are Italian, Indian, and Fijian.

There's nothing wrong with joining an organization that isn't your ethnicity, and there's nothing wrong with joining an organization that doesn't specify a cultural focus. It really is about getting along with the people in the org, as well as getting the most out of your experience in that org.

Suggestion: If you want the Asian culture, along with the sorority, and didnt find your fit anywhere else on campus, you could always look into starting a chapter of an Asian sorority, allowing you to create the type of environment you want.

And if you still can't find what you're looking for, there's the professional GLOs. :)

I'll be honest here and say that starting a new organization just because you're not happy with the existing ones is not always the way to go.

If you have the drive and determination and time and resources, by all means go for it. But many college kids have full courseloads and jobs. Based on what I've read here from GCers who have (successfully and unsuccessfully) started their own GLOs, it's ten times harder than joining an existing one.

Additionally, even if she wanted to go that route and start a new sorority, why does it have to be Asian interest?

the disadvantage you have is that you look at being chinese as a disadvantage. your post reeks of self hatred.

Well, it kind of struck me as odd that she's "hesitant" that there aren't very many Asian women in the sororities at her school, but yet, it seems like she's trying to get away from the Asian students. I would think she would prefer to be part of an organization with as few Asians as possible, based on her comments.

just be cool---dont be a creeper....thats pretty much all u got to do. As cliche as it sounds....be urself lol.