Sororities, fraternities add to Penn's social scene

For many Penn freshmen, Greek life is the place to turn for weekend fun.

And for some, attending these events will entice them into joining the Greek system.

Penn is home to 29 fraternities and seven sororities, overseen by the InterFraternity Council and the Panhellenic Council, respectively. Panhel is currently led by College senior Elizabeth Kimmelman, and the IFC is headed by Wharton senior Seth Cohen.

During the fall semester, many Greek houses appeal to potential members with free food, music and -- naturally -- alcohol. These open parties serve to spark interest in the houses and provide incentive for new students to rush.

Freshmen can learn more about individual fraternities and sororities during the spring semester rush. This period is when they can officially meet with current members to determine if they fit in with the house.

For the first week of rush, IFC fraternities and Panhel sororities hold open houses for potential members. At these events, freshmen have free food and non-alcoholic drinks, intended to encourage them to rush a particular chapter.

While men can visit any house they like, women participating in rush must go to every sorority. When open rush ends, women choose a maximum of six houses they are interested in joining.

The process is less formal for men. Each house holds three open events and three invitation-only events, which usually take place during the second week of rush. If a student does not receive an invitation, he can assume the fraternity is no longer interested in him.

After several rounds of parties and interviews, rush comes to an end on bid night. Each woman will only receive a single bid, while men may receive several bids. If the student accepts the bid, he or she then begins the semester-long pledge process.

A rush period limited to upperclassmen and transfer students takes place in the fall. This gives those students who were cut the previous spring or those who decided to postpone the process a second opportunity at becoming Greek.

There are also some traditionally minority Greek chapters, which fall under the supervision of the Bicultural InterGreek Council. The joining process, known as intake, is slightly different from rush in that each BIG-C chapter has an individual recruitment process, which lasts throughout the semester.

More information for freshmen considering joining a fraternity or sorority is available on the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs Web site -- http://www.vpul.upenn.edu/ofsa.

For general information on the Greek system, students should visit the IFC's Web site -- http://dolphin.upenn.edu/~ifc and Panhel's Web site -- http://dolphin.upenn.edu/~panhel.

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