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Collegiate sororities serve a dual purpose: service and social. There are 26 sororities that fall under the umbrella of the National Panhellenic Conference-- these are the sororities commonly referred to when you hear about sorority recruitment (rush).

These sororities are all national organizations, and they have various "chapters" of their organizations on various college campuses. Each chapter follows the bylaws and traditions of its national organization, but each chapter's culture or "feel" may differ from campus to campus.

I'll use an example. When I was a kid, I joined a chapter of a national youth group in my hometown. Loved it-- I was super involved. When I moved to another town, I expected to get involved again, but after a few meetings, I could tell that even though this was the same youth group with the same activities I didn't click with the people in the same way. This chapter of the youth group just wasn't for me. I didn't think any less of the organization, but I realized that even though its activities and traditions were identical, the feel of each group was a little different.

You'll find the same in a sorority-- the collegiate chapters follow the same ideals, but the "culture" of a sorority varies by chapter.

You should never base your impressions of a sorority chapter off of members you may know from another school-- look at the sororities on your campus and the members in them.

Sorority members in every chapter are from diverse backgrounds, races, religions, majors and hometowns, but there is a definite "culture" or "feel" in each chapter of a sorority. At recruitment, take the time to meet the sororities on your campus and see which culture feels the most comfortable to you.

So there's no general stereotype we can give you. And getting the opinions of people at your college isn't too helpful either b/c those are just their perceptions-- you won't really understand the culture and feel of a sorority chapter until you've met its members and see if it's "you."

Good luck!