Sororities: Local vs National

In attempt to educate those who are interested, and those who are interested in rushing in the near future, I think it’s important to know the difference between local and national greek life. The main difference between these organizations is that locals are one of a kind, that is there are no other chapters in other areas, while nationals have chapters in colleges and universities all across the country. Both have benefits and drawbacks. Those who are a part of a national sorority like the fact that they can relate to thousands across the US who share a similar greek background as them. Those who are in local sororities take pride in the fact that if they meet another member of their sorority, they know that that particular person went to their exact college and therefore has an even closer bond to them. This relates to the strong connection local alumni bring. They are extremely supportive because they have a personal connection with the school and chapter they belonged to. This also has something to do with the small school atmosphere that local sororities and fraternities are usually located in. A benefit of being a national is the increased amount of alumni support that they have. This could lead to better networking opportunities due to more alumni all over the nation. Another main difference between locals and nationals is their dues. Locals can stay smaller and do not always have a quota to meet, thus their dues can be much less. National organizations have to pay national dues as well as their personal dues, so this can add a substantial amount of money onto the amount due. Along with money differences, nationals and locals receive punishments in different ways. A local sorority or fraternity may have to deal with the school’s administrative body while a national will have to be investigated by their headquarters. A national representative will have to come in and that coater could potentially be removed from that campus. These are the main differences between the two types of greek organizations, as almost all sororities and fraternities have different ways of going about things. Each chapter and local chapter has different traditions and rules that are followed no matter if they are local or national. It depends on your preference, and during rush, it is best to go with your gut feeling when choosing your home.