As of fall 2020, 3,535 of the 14,479 undergraduate students enrolled at Syracuse University were members of Greek life organizations, or about 24%, even less if professional houses are excluded. Yet when spring recruitment rolls around, it seems as if the entire campus is involved in Greek life. So, what makes fraternity and sorority culture seem so much more widespread than numbers would suggest?

I would pin that on the influence that the sororities and fraternities have over social media. Greek organizations’ online presence results in them appearing larger to SU students than their actual size. The houses’ mass exposure on social media is far from an accurate picture of campus life, and I’d urge everyone (regardless of Greek-affiliation) to keep this in mind when navigating platforms during the post-bid period.

After a grueling recruitment process that seems to have bled its way into every conversation amongst the majority-freshmen group of potential new members, social media platforms have been loaded with content pertaining to recruitment over the past few weeks.

This rise in Greek life-related posts and stories about bid season serve as a reminder of how omnipresent the organizations are online. Looking at social media alone, one could easily assume that fraternities and sororities are one of the only ways to be involved at SU outside of the classroom. The disproportionately large influence that Greek life has on social media can create a distorted view of extracurricular life on campus. Oftentimes, this presence makes it seem as if the 300+ student organizations at SU are absent.

One of the leading reasons for this perception is the resurgence of Yik Yak, an app that most college students are likely familiar with. The forum-based platform grants users the ability to anonymously post tweet-like messages for everyone within five miles to see. And due to Greek life being commonly associated with the more controversial aspects of college social-life, the houses are unsurprisingly a staple of the app. Very rarely does one see a Yik Yak about OttoTHON, CitrusTV, Otto’s Army or University Union, and it isn’t because of a lack of members in said groups, but rather the impact of the internet in deeming them less newsworthy than Greek life.

Meanwhile, on more conventional social media platforms (i.e. Instagram), the fraternities and sororities themselves promote a justified passion for their houses’ respective social and philanthropic endeavors. This enthusiasm further creates the impression that Greek life is the be-all and end-all for extracurricular options at SU, given how passionate its members are versus other organizations. But because the Greek system can be so polarizing, in large part due to its relationship with partying and drug use, as well as past allegations against houses on campus, there’s a newsworthiness that many other groups don’t warrant.

And it’s also important to remember that participation in Greek life and any of these aforementioned hundreds of organizations are not mutually exclusive. Plenty of the members in the houses are also involved in other extracurriculars as well, even if social media makes it seem like there’s an “us vs. them” mentality.
So whether one is not part of a house for financial or scheduling reasons, because they got dropped or simply out of choice, the majority of campus is in the same boat. Especially during this time of recruitment, bidding and pledging, it’s important to keep in mind that the overwhelming influx of Greek life-related social media content is not reflective of reality. There are plenty of other opportunities to get involved on campus this spring semester.

Jonah Weintraub is a freshman broadcast, digital journalism major. His column appears biweekly. He can be reached at jsweintr@syr.edu.

Published on February 21, 2022 at 1:02 am