"I want to join a fraternity or sorority, now what?"

If you are interested in joining our community here is what you need to do next:

  1. Attend an orientation session for the council you are interested in joining. Not sure which one? Check out our four councils here! We have three councils with sororities and three councils with fraternities. Attendance at orientation is mandatory for anyone seeking to join a fraternity or sorority. Specific information about each council's orientation can be found on their pages, linked below. 

  2. Learn about and participate in one of our councils intake or recruitment process. Each of our four council's joining process looks a bit different so check out those you are interested in. 

  3. Sign the Online Gold Card. This includes information about the obligations of membership so make sure you have read it over closely! Once you have received and accepted an invitation to membership, you will receive an email to your uiowa email address containing information about completing the Online Gold Card.

  4. Complete the New Member Academy. This online course, housed on ICON is a broad overview of what it means to be a member of a fraternity or sorority at Iowa. Learn more about the NMA here! 

Things to keep in mind:

  1. Do your research!
    • Check out the community scorecards. The scorecards give data and insight about each council and each chapter. The information given on the scorecards are an important aspect to consider when making your decision. 
    • Research chapters. Many chapters have their own local and national websites. Check out what the chapter stands for, what their values are, and what causes they support? We have linked some local websites here. Just click the chapter's name. 
    • Your research should also include obligations as a member. What is the cost? How many hours should I plan to commit?
  2. Keep an open mind
    • While it’s important to do your research, its also important to keep an open mind. Each chapter has it’s own personality and getting to know the members is the best way to learn that personality. 
    • Take the time to get to know more than just a one or a few chapters. There is a chapter for everyone, it is vital that you do your due diligence to find the best chapter for you!

About Joining:

Fraternities and sororities have been on campus since 1866. Over 3,600 men and women at Iowa are members of the FSL community. That comes out to over 14% of the total undergraduate student body.

Being a part of the Fraternity and Sorority Community at Iowa means caring about Fraternity & Sorority Life's five opportunities. The opportunity to belong, serve, lead, thrive, and succeed. By joining a fraternity or sorority, you have the opportunity to begin your legacy at Iowa. A variety of different chapters exist on campus to help you do just that.     

There are 40 chapters at Iowa that are governed by one of four councils: the Interfraternity Council (IFC), the Multicultural Greek Council (MGC), the National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC), and the Panhellenic Council (PHC).

Each of the four councils has its own recruitment and membership intake process:

    Council recruitment and intake

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    Interfraternity Council Recruitment

    Our 15 IFC fraternities have the opportunity to formally recruit once a semester and informally recruit year round, through 365 recruitment. This means there are many opportunities to join a chapter throughout the year, outside of our formal recruitment period. However, we highly encourage anyone interested to participate in formal recruitment.

    Learn More
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    National Pan-Hellenic Council Intake

    Greetings Interests! If you're looking for more information on how to potentially join an NPHC Organization then you found the right spot!

    Learn More
    group of fraternity and sorority members standing outside

    Multicultural Greek Council Intake

    We are really excited to showcase our organizations and what we represent here at the University of Iowa! MGC is proud to be the newest and fastest-growing council on campus. Our council governs multicultural fraternities and sororities that represent Latinx, Asian, and LGBTQ+ communities, yet are inclusive of people of all cultural identities.

    Learn more
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    Panhellenic Council Recruitment

    Sorority life at Iowa began with Pi Beta Phi and Kappa Kappa Gamma in 1882. Today, the Panhellenic Council includes 14 chapters. These unique chapters carry out the same values of leadership, scholarship, friendship and service as their Iowa founders of the past.

    Learn More

    Other ways to learn about us:

    • Talk to members of the community about their experience
    • Stop by the FSL table at Student Org Fairs
    • Participate in one of the recruitment/intake processes organized by the councils