honest rush advice (frats)

I'm a member of the class of 2019 and joining a fraternity is honestly my best decision at Cornell. I want to share my experience to help freshmen (or others) get the best experience that they can over the next few years. To avoid bias, I will not mention any specific organizations.

This site can be dangerous and warp your perspectives of the real value of a fraternity. There's a reason you call the other members your brothers. These will be the guys you eat with, work with, and have fun with. Try not to rush based on where you had a fun party. Rush based on where you fit. Greek life can be a real community in a way that is unique among opportunities on campus. It's far more important to find people that you want to spend your days with rather than where you think you'll have a better shot of getting laid. Your fraternity brothers will have an impact on you as a person. Find a house that will encourage your growth in a direction you want. Find decent, moral people who will mature with while still having fun. Find a house that will encourage you to be who you are rather than turning you into a cookie cutter ________ brother.

Finally, have fun. Rush week is a great time, and I went not sure if I would rush. Talk to as many people as possible, tour a ton of houses, and eat all the free food. I ended up in a "mid-tier" house and can't imagine being anywhere else. Find a house you love and the rest will sort itself out.

PS: beware what you read here. Almost everything positive you read is someone promoting their own organization or self-ranking. The negative stuff is spread by people discouraging you from competing organizations (not saying it's all untrue).