DD is thinking about joining a sorority, cost???

[StitchBuddy]

DD thinks he wants to join a sorority. Any advice???

 

[Jake&IzzyLand]

Tons of fun and tons of money. Formals, extras, etc.

I think that networking is there, but more so at prestigious schools or southern schools.

I'm sure you could research each one at each school.

 

[sdsatl]

If I remember correctly, the only fixed expense was dues -- mine were around $500 in the early 00s, and I can't remember if that was per semester or year. My grandmother paid them. They should let her know all that during rush, though.

She can get one of the less expensive badges, wear high school or secondhand formals, etc. It can be as affordable/costly as you make it... like Disney.

I think sororities -even social ones- are an excellent introduction to service (if she wasn't already involved in high school); I am still involved with my sorority's philanthropy. Also, she'll have to maintain her grades to stay active. And networking. Yes! I am a SAHM, so this isn't really on my radar, but I always see sisters saying xyz position is available to alumni before it's publicly posted.

Good luck to your daughter, whatever she decides! Rush is a fun experience, even if she doesn't pledge.

 

[afan]

It varies from campus to campus and sorority to sorority. My school doesn't have houses, so there were no fees for that. Though if she's already living on campus or away from home, the cost would probably be similar with the sorority generally including some meals.

Some sororities charge dues and that covers all of your activities for the year, some charge dues and then charge for activities and events. There's also the cost of t-shirts, event favors (tshirts, water bottles, things with the event logo etc), big sister/little sister presents etc.

My sorority charges an initiation fee, which I imagine all do, and generally some type of house corporation fee, every one pays, whether the chapter has a house, you live in or out.

Then there's event clothes, but there's normally a lot of sharing with that, so it's possible to do that without spending a ton.

Dues/fees etc are always addressed during recruitment.

Is she a senior in high school, or already at university? If she's already at school, she should be able to ask any chapter she's interested in about their dues before she decides to do anything. If she's a senior, then I strongly suggest she find out about greek life before she gets to school. Some campuses have recruitment before school starts and some require women to have recommendations from an alumnae of their chapter to even consider them.

I'd be happy to answer any other questions she may have. I think greek life can be great, but it's not for everyone. It can also be that greek life on her campus isn't for her, but could be elsewhere as they aren't all the same. I volunteer with my sorority advising alumnae chapters in my part of the country.

 

[mjkacmom]

A couple of dd19's friends pledged last year - dues alone are over $1000 a year (no house). She decided that with school, clubs and her social life, she really doesn't have any extra time for a sorority.

 

[HM]

I really depends on the school she is going to.
My DD is in a sorority that has no house, so they pay about $400 dues each semester. The first semester was a bit more due to paying for their pin and initiation. http://uncgcpc.wix.com/uncgpanhellenic#!faq/c186o (this page gives more info and has a link to the four soroties dues structure)

I found this information for UNC Chapel Hill (where I went to school ages ago). Every sorority had a house and some sort of meal plan. It's much more expensive. http://www.uncpanhellenic.com/finances/ You can see, even among the houses, they vary.

As far as formals and stuff. Sure they have quite a few things the girls need dresses for, but my DD hasn't paid more than $50 for a dress for anything and often the girls loan each other outfits. They offer t-shirts for just about any event, but you aren't required to buy them (except for recruitment outfits). You can do it frugally.

 

[pigletto]

DD just received her bid for her sorority yesterday. We're in Canada where it's not as big as in the U.S. but we do have sororities. So far it's looking like around $550 for dues for her first year. It will be less next year. She's needed two dresses in the last two weeks. The conditions were "all black" and "all white". I think she spent under $100 for both and all accessories (she already had shoes.)
This really wasn't a planned thing but she really really wanted to do it, so we made a deal with her that we would pay half her dues as her birthday gift and she had to pay the rest. I sent her the money for one dress, she used her money for the other.
She needs a deposit for her apartment next semester, we're paying her cell phone and just bought books etc., we're saving for a May vacation etc., and just finished Christmas spending. Our funds aren't unlimited. Because this was sprung on us, we felt paying half for her birthday was fair and she was more than happy with that. For the coming years, she will be expected to work and budget for this expense.
So I guess my advice would be to not just consider cost of dues, but events and outfits for those events as well. Then look at everything else your dd has to pay for, because there is always something that needs a deposit or a fee or money thrown at it these days .

 

[sdoll]

I was in a sorority in college. It was a small sorority on a campus that didn't really support Greek activities. 20 years later I still network with other Greek members I met during my years in my sorority. For me I could not put a price on the experience. I was a small town girl that had little exposure to diversity my sorority was diverse and taught me so much about leadership. It truly was one of the best experiences of my life. Since graduating 2 of my jobs have come by way of networking with my organization. Even my parents say they are so thankful I had the experience. My dues were about $500 a year but that was a while ago and we had no house.

 

[Callie]

I joined one in college. We didn't have a house, but dues were around $200 - $300 a semester. I think they have gone up now. It was a great choice. I always loved having sisters in class, and now that I'm graduated and moved away I'm part of our alum association. I love hanging out with the ladies from all over.

 

[StitchBuddy]

Thanks for your replies, she's a freshmen at The Univ. of Arkansas. Sororities are BIG there.

 

[tvguy]

As others have said, it varies. We had 3 tradition Sororities on campus, and 1 un-traditional Sorority off campus. On campus, they paid the same rate as if they were living in the dorm, plus social fees. The off campus Sorority cost a lot less for room and board, so even with with similar social fees as on the on campus houses, it was cheaper than living in the dorm, with a sorority life style.

 

[clh2]

DD's dues are $80/month.

The huge benefit of this was in DD's sophomore year, they were required to live in-house; and that room/board cost was $6000/year. This compares to $10000, for room and board in the dorms; and dorms are required for sophomores. (DD pays all sorority fees; we paid room and board)

Yes, there are formats; DD reused her high school formal dresses, so no additional cost there.

And- another bonus; at least for gen-Ed classes, there is a huge network of used book borrowing/selling. In DD's 2nd semester of her freshman year, she spent less than $50 on books because of sorority.

And while I personally am anti-Greek, my DD is an only child, so this has given her some really close friends/sisters that she will have for a lifetime.

 

[belle032]

I wouldn't trade my sorority experience for anything! My campus had a fairly large Greek population, about 30% of students. We had an amazing house I lived in for 2 years as well.

Dues will really be your only fixed cost. And room & board if she chooses to live in her house. Some sororities require at least a year of living in the house.

There will be plenty of formals and other events that she can spend money on, but that would be optional for the most part. Some extras, like tshirts for philanthropy events, will probably be a required purchase.

I'd tell her to go for it. Sororities are huge in the South, so being part of a Greek organization can always help in the future!

 

[afan]

Thanks for your replies, she's a freshmen at The Univ. of Arkansas. Sororities are BIG there.

Is she planning to go through recruitment in the fall as a sophomore? Or has there been interest this spring? I know some chapters can add members outside of formal recruitment depending on their numbers.

I looked at their greek life site and it's informative.

 

[gottalovepluto]

I wasn't in a sorority so I don't have the personal experiences above but my friend's dues were around $1000 7 years ago so that figure is entirely possible. (Full disclosure: I ran a professional fraternity that we sat up with the assistance/supervision of my friend and a few other social greek life members who taught us the basics of "greek life" so that experience is where my info comes from. When we expressed concern about setting $150 dues per semester they actually laughed and that started the money conversation.) We only had a couple sororities on campus so they were not nearly as integral to campus life as they sound like they will be to your daughter. It's hard to talk about that sort of thing sometimes but if you can not afford to spend that kind of cash maybe ask her to talk to the other girls at the sorority to get a feel for the costs they encounter through the year? Greek life participants were always running events wearing different outfits at my school but that is something that can be done budget consciously- throw in some creativity mixed with target, walmart and/or thrift stores and it's amazing what can be done. Admittedly we did have a sorority on campus where budget-consciousness was not a thing (gifts to the Littles were dues in themselves). It would be awful to get in the wrong sorority and end up leaving because their tastes were too expensive, best to know before hand. If sororities are big on campus she should have a variety to choose from to find where she feels at home! Best of luck!

Edit to add: whether this is a topic that should be broached at all during Rush or wait until after offers (bids) have gone out I haven't a clue. Hopefully others can help there!

 

[sdsatl]

Thanks for your replies, she's a freshmen at The Univ. of Arkansas. Sororities are BIG there.

My sorority was founded at the University of Arkansas!

 

[sk!mom]

DD's sorority is $1,500 for the first semester and just under 1K for each semester after. They do have a house so there are fees to support the house but she hasn't chosen to live there. I don't know what the cost would be if she chose to live there.

 

[2bPooh]

My sorority was founded at the University of Arkansas!

Chi Omega?

 

[Vernie822]

If I recall our dues were $45/month. This included basically everything, I think even 2 t-shirts for different events (it was always a pain to collect $10/tshirt from people 4 times a year, so that was built in eventually). Formal was extra per person, as well as other random events. We did fundraisers to offset the costs but $45/month wasn't all that bad if you saved over the summer and such for it. New member dues were a few hundred and we did extra fundraisers for them. We did not have sorority housing at our school so that was a plus (didn't have to pay for it).

 

[sdsatl]

Chi Omega?

Yes!