hard major and pledging
by: newKidSo I'm in a freshman CS (Computer Science) major here at UT and was thinking about pledging next fall at some places like sigep, delt, or sig chi. But I'm also signed up to take the hardest classes in my major next fall which are known as huge weedouts. One of the classes literally is a full time job and requires 50 hours a week of work. I wanted to ask if it's possible to pledge with such a time-consuming major and such difficult classes. Most people I've met say I should look into spirit groups like Tejas or Iron Spikes so I'd like to hear about that as well. Thanks again for any help
Commentby: yesJan 6, 2016 3:45:12 PM
by: SoJan 6, 2016 3:46:39 PM
#3 by: experience2
Also consider whether you'll fit into the culture at Sig Ep, Delt, Sig Chi, or Iron Spikes. All of these organizations are largely composed of athletic business/non-STEM majors from a wealthy background who are really into sports, talking to girls, and socializing. I know it sounds like a harsh generalization but Comp Sci types rarely fit in organizations like that. You don't need a top fraternity to be socially successful at UT and a top fraternity won't make you socially successful either. I feel like you should take a step back and ask yourself if you really like these organizations because you've met people in them or you just saw their reputation on GR and decided you'd rush to be one of the cool kids. Because when you're going through pledgeship and trying to pay the pledge dues and taking hard stem classes, you really need to be down with the group you're trying to get into for it to be worth it.
#4 by: @experience
Thanks for that amazing insight. I'm actually interested in it for the reasons you mentioned since a lot of my business friends pledged and I really felt left out. It was really a boring semester for me but I have heard that it's easier to stick with spirit groups for a similar experience but less money. Looking at the fees I could probably afford sig chi and delt but I don't think I'll enjoy the experience overall on top of paying all the dues myself. That being said, do you think it's a good idea to try for groups like iron spikes or wranglers? I'm not really looking for social prestige but more of an outlet where I can unwind and have some type of a social life. Thanks again for your help
by: experience3Jan 6, 2016 9:32:39 PM
If you have friends in a fraternity or you rush and actually vibe with the people there then by all means pledge if you have the money. Just make sure you really want it if your workload is that heavy. Also look at other fraternities besides sig chi and delt. For example, ATO, Pike, and Phi Psi are all 2500 a semester and not 5000. I don't particularly like any of them but I mean I don't know a lot of them in the first place. Or if you're just looking for a casual social outlet maybe look at Tejas or try some bottom tier fraternities because over there it's less of a serious thing and more of a party and know everyone there thing. Some of them are really weird but I've also seen friends of mine rush larger fraternities and then go lower tier because they just liked the atmosphere better. Or maybe sigma chi and delt are perfect for you, again you don't know until you rush. Hit up your friends and go to some of the parties next semester, hang out with some of the dudes and see if you like it. Hit up some spring rush parties even if you won't pledge over the spring just to check it out. Basically what it boils down to is don't pick a fraternity that will pressure you to drastically change yourself as far as trying to be someone you aren't to fit in if you're going to pledge during a semester where it's already going to be a lot of academic pressure. I've seen people burn out of college that way.
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by: experience4Jan 6, 2016 9:35:54 PM
Oh I forgot to answer about iron spikes and wranglers. They're both athletically focused spirit groups with an emphasis on playing sports. Their pledgeships focus heavily on intramurals and athletic stuff, so if you wanna join you should be good at sports. They mainly mix with a chi o which is a good sorority. Tejas is similar but less extreme, though they have their own house.
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by: YeahJan 8, 2016 1:49:21 AM
but I'll be taking 439 while I'm pledging. That class is like the monster for our degree
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by: YeahJan 8, 2016 12:11:30 PM
That sounds like a bad idea. You should probably do what other posters have said and pledge spring or join a spirit group or something
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by: Lambda truthJan 27, 2016 10:34:14 AM
They have an "associate membership" which is essentially a pledgeship, but they don't haze and their pledgeship isn't very time consuming at all. They are an upper bottom tier fraternity and it really depends on what you're looking for. If you're looking for a fraternity with big parties, a lot of mixers with good sororities, and a house, this probably isn't for you. But if you're looking for more of a laid back scene where the average party is more of what a kickback would be for mid tier fraternities then they'd be a good fit
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by: IJan 6, 2016 2:19:15 AM
can't do that since my parents said they're not paying for greek life. I'm going to use my internship money from the summer and then join next fall
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