real talk - how much do sororities cost?

Your friend is more right. It can cost up to that much for a sorority at USC. However, before I start, I want to say that the cheapest / most expensive sorority won’t matter and it shouldn’t either. It shouldn’t matter because there isn’t that big of a difference in dues anyway between the houses. If you’re actually that concerned about the cost of being in a sorority, think about it this way: is it worth paying that little to be in a house full of girls you don’t get along with? Or is it better to cough up a little extra to be in a house full of girls you really like, get along with really well, and have a lot in common with?

Additionally, if you’re concerned about the cost, there’re payment plans and scholarships. So that gives you some cushion, but I’ll be real: there’s only a handful of scholarships and how much they give you depends on the sorority’s national organization and its local chapter. The better the organization does nationally, the better funded the chapter, and the bigger the scholarship awards are. The better the chapter does, the better funding it gets, and the bigger the scholarship.

But anyway, to answer your questions, your pledging period / first year as a new member will be the most expensive. As a new member not living in, the cheapest house is $1500 per semester, and the rest are $2000 give or take a couple hundred per semester. Your dues generally include the basics: your basic pledge gear and your philanthropy shirt, exchanges, and invit

es. But they don’t include “hidden fees.” Things like game day gear, philanthropy donations, stuff for your little, and events off the books will cost you extra. Want to go Bacaro happy hour with the frat boys next door? That will cost you. Want to go to your sorority’s exclusive Brandy Melville shopping event? That will DEFINITELY cost you. Probably more than you anticipated even with the discount. A good example is invite. Your dues include the actual invite: the venue, transportation. Your hidden fees, however, are things like your outfit, sometimes your date’s outfit if it’s an outrageous theme, stuff to pregame with, stuff for your date to pregame with, dinner for two, maybe a roundtrip taxi ride if your group decides to pregame or have dinner somewhere off-campus.

About living-in, you won't be able to live-in your first semester but you can starting your second semester if there's room and if you have enough house points. Living in as a new member will obviously be more expensive. That being said, after your first year, dues will definitely me cheaper, and in most cases, if not all, living in the house will be the cheapest out of all the USC housing options and off-campus options. However, with these financial benefits come with some sacrifices. Can you live with that many girls in one house? There's definitely sisterly love, but don't forget you've got a hundred girls living under one roof. Drama. Will. Happen. Also, living-in also has certain rules and

and get a campus job when you start school. Ask your parents, aunts, uncles, grandparents to help if they’re willing. Set up a payment plan. Try for the scholarship. Go through the pledging process and at least get initiated if you really want to be Greek.

and get a campus job when you start school. Ask your parents, aunts, uncles, grandparents to help if they’re willing. Set up a payment plan. Try for the scholarship. Go through the pledging process and at least get initiated if you really want to be Greek.

You're most welcome :)
I would start applying now for campus jobs, that way you beat the applicant rush of students getting back to school and realizing they're broke from their summer lol. You also want to apply for as many jobs as possible asap because it takes time to process you too. Like, getting interviewed, paperwork once you're hired, training if it's required, getting into the payroll system, etc.

I should also mention that dues, like scholarships, are also based on funding provided by the national organization. So dues are subject to change based on the funding your chapter gets. So I'm not sure if the cheapest house is still $1500 (maybe it increased/decreased) but that's what it was when I rushed.