Question about joining frat as an international student

[questionz1]

Going to graduate in my early 20s from a technical school, had to put my social life aside and just focus on difficult science courses all day long.
Want to study abroad for a year abroad and get the chance to study some liberal arts and get a 'proper' university experience since I feel like I'm missing out. If I ended up in the states, would it be possible to get into a nice frat or do I have too many things working against me? Also, is being a full-time student a requirement? Thanks

[Kevin]

A lot of groups won't be interested in you because you'd basically be pledging for one semester and leaving after that. Some won't mind. Be up-front about your situation because if you hide that and they find out, they can remove you from their program and you'll be denied that experience.

Also, make sure your conversational English is up to snuff (if you don't know what that means, that's an indicator you might have a problem).

All that aside, one of the members of my class was an international student who ended up finishing up at the University of Tokyo (very prestigious) and is currently doing grad school in (I think) Amsterdam. He does occasionally come back to visit. He has been a real asset as an alumnus.

Since him, our international students who we've rushed haven't really panned out very often at all. Good luck to you.

[Kevin]

In addition, do everything you can to connect with as many locals as you can. Do not fall in to the trap of only hanging out with other students from your country. My former University has a pretty high number of international students (7%), so if you're Malaysian, there is a Malaysian clique which doesn't socialize with anyone outside of their little group.

If you do that, you might as well stay home.

If you get the chance to study here, soak up the culture. Do as much as you can to eat American food, drink American beer, make American friends. Joining a fraternity is a really great way to do that. If you're looking at anywhere near Oklahoma, send me a private message and I can maybe help you out.

If cost is a concern, you might actually want to check out Central Oklahoma (or any school in Oklahoma). The tuition prices for international students are pretty attractive. Not the University of Tulsa though, it's probably 4x what the other schools cost.

[questionz1]

Do you think if I emailed the frats ahead of time to ask, that would be a good idea? Or should I wait until I'm there in person?
Yeah, I'd say my english should be adequate, I'm from an english speaking country .
How long did the member of your class study there for? I've been told that only studying for a year is a turn-off for frats because then they're stuck with paying your dues since they're on the hook for 4 years of dues
Thanks for all the advice, I really appreciate it

[Kevin]

Originally Posted by questionz1

Do you think if I emailed the frats ahead of time to ask, that would be a good idea? Or should I wait until I'm there in person?
Yeah, I'd say my english should be adequate, I'm from an english speaking country .
How long did the member of your class study there for? I've been told that only studying for a year is a turn-off for frats because then they're stuck with paying your dues since they're on the hook for 4 years of dues
Thanks for all the advice, I really appreciate it

It would really depend on both the school and the group. If you're from an English speaking country, you might actually find yourself in high demand. The gentleman from my class was only there a year.

As for the dues issue, that's going to depend on who you join. Some groups pay a flat rate to headquarters every year. Some pay based on an average number of members in a certain period. I've never heard about being on the hook for 4 years, so I don't think that's going to be an issue. It's mostly a liability insurance issue.

As to the one year thing, if you want to joint a competitive fraternity which rejects the large majority of people who want to join, they'll probably strongly consider that you're not going to be there for but one year and may reject you on that alone. If, however, you go someplace like Tulsa or Central Oklahoma, where the Greek system isn't really competitive at all, I doubt that'll be a major issue, but it's just going to vary.

As for the email thing, I wouldn't do that just yet. First, if you've decided and been accepted at a certain school, I'd advise you to start by emailing their Greek Life Adviser who is usually a school employee tasked with overseeing the fraternity and sorority systems and figure out the proper protocol by discussing things with them.

[questionz1]

Is there any place to find out about which places are similar to Oklahoma where things aren't that competitive or is it mostly like word of mouth?
Thanks again for the info.

[Kevin]

It depends on the schools you're looking at. As you consider schools, consider the whole picture--I'm not sure whether you're looking for academics or just a U.S. school to put on your resumé saying you studied abroad. As you're considering schools, send an email to their student life director inquiring about their Greek system. The only way you'll find out anything specific is through direct investigation.

Also, don't worry about the school being less competitive. Even at highly competitive southern schools, there are still going to be multiple chapters who would probably love to have you as a member.

[questionz1]

Thanks a ton Kevin, you've been really helpful

[DubaiSis]

Choose your school first and let existence of fraternities be one piece of that selection process. I wouldn't pick the Greek system first and then try to wedge yourself in there.

As you know, the US is a VERY big place and culturally is probably like 4 or 5 completely different countries. So what type of experience are you after? Big city, urban, high rise kind of living, small town Midwestern very enclosed college town? Big formal southern school with age old traditions? A west coast vibe of beaches and surfing? You could have a fraternity experience at any of these, but your "American" experience would be vastly different.

Having lived in a completely different culture for a few years, I'm all for everyone doing this at least once in his life. But the US can swallow you whole if you're not ready or make choices contrary to your personality.

[questionz1]

Originally Posted by DubaiSis

Choose your school first and let existence of fraternities be one piece of that selection process. I wouldn't pick the Greek system first and then try to wedge yourself in there.

As you know, the US is a VERY big place and culturally is probably like 4 or 5 completely different countries. So what type of experience are you after? Big city, urban, high rise kind of living, small town Midwestern very enclosed college town? Big formal southern school with age old traditions? A west coast vibe of beaches and surfing? You could have a fraternity experience at any of these, but your "American" experience would be vastly different.

Having lived in a completely different culture for a few years, I'm all for everyone doing this at least once in his life. But the US can swallow you whole if you're not ready or make choices contrary to your personality.

Good questions, I've been looking at Florida and California (though increasingly Oklahoma), someplace warm and laid back in a moderately large city. I don't want anything academically too rigorous (I've had enough of that), and ideally someplace not too expensive (though I know I'm going to be paying a lot regardless)

On a kind of unrelated topic, I heard the word "social affiliate" used, kind of like a more informal joining. Is that an option that most frats offer?