why fraternity
Dr. Anthony Bradley and Lambda Chi Alpha CEO Troy Medley discuss the current landscape of higher education and why values-based fraternities are needed now more than ever.
Fraternity members experience stronger mental health and wellness.
While college men are experiencing loneliness and depression at increasing rates, fraternities empower students to create a strong support system. This family – this home – that fraternities provide offers help and guidance when a member needs it most.
Research shows that this connection can create a strong sense of belonging, leading members to have more positive mental health and less anxiety and depression than other students. Brothers feel comfortable having tough conversations and learning from each other, and when they seek help, research shows members are twice as likely to reach out to a fraternity brother than anyone else.
The Proof:
- Fraternity members report higher levels of positive mental health, and less depression or anxiety than unaffiliated members.
- Nearly 80% of fraternity men report excellent to good mental health and wellbeing.
- When members seek help, they are twice as likely to turn to a brother than anyone else.
- Fraternity and sorority members believe that good support systems exist on campus for students going through a tough time.
- Fraternity and sorority members are more likely to seek therapy or counseling at some point in their lives.
- Fraternities provide an environment where members can have tough conversations, especially about personal issues like relationships, family and mental health struggles.
Fraternities are an accelerator for success, in college and beyond.
Students spend 90% of their time outside the classroom. Fraternities capitalize on these hours by preparing men for success in college and in their futures far beyond what their peers experience. And a study of thousands of alumni of diverse backgrounds shows this holds true regardless of an individual’s background or socioeconomic status entering college.
Because of higher expectations, as well as the support and network fraternities provide, members experience greater gains in learning and graduate at higher rates than their peers.
Nearly 75% of chapters offer focused leadership development programming at least monthly, and 83% of members say their confidence in their leadership skills increased because of their membership. Fraternity and sorority members also report higher levels of interaction with people different from themselves, lending to members being more prepared than their peers to join a diverse workforce and community.
The Proof:
- 83% of members indicate stronger leadership confidence as a result of their fraternity membership.
- Fraternity members show significantly higher learning gains than their peers in their first year of college.
- Despite being less diverse than students in general, fraternity/sorority members reported higher levels of interaction with people different from themselves than did other students.
- Fraternity alumni are twice as likely to feel that their alma maters prepared them well for life after college and that they gained important job-related skills.
- Fraternity alumni find jobs more quickly after graduation and are more engaged in the workplace.
- They’re more likely to be thriving in every aspect of wellbeing – career, community, financial, physical and social wellbeing.
- Fraternity members leverage their networks, with almost half stating that another member helped them find an internship or job and provided them with career advice.
- One in five students considers joining a fraternity or sorority, but ultimately decides not to because they’re “too busy with academics” or have financial concerns.
- Fraternity members experience stronger retention and persistence to graduation.
Fraternities create lifelong connection to the campus, community and their peers.
Fraternity men love their collegiate experience – as students and as alumni. In fact, more than 8 out of 10 fraternity members say they would re-join their organizations. Research shows, fraternity membership connects men to the university in a way that nonmembers simply don’t experience. They’re more satisfied as students and as alumni are more likely to recommend and give back to their alma maters.
Members are more engaged inside and outside of the classroom than their peers—they report feeling more supported by their faculty and nearly half serve in leadership roles across campus. They’re also more connected to their local communities, with research showing they spend significantly more time volunteering than nonaffiliated students.
The Proof:
- 75% of fraternity members demonstrate strong satisfaction with their overall student experience
- 78% of fraternity members feel a strong connection to campus1 and are more satisfied with their experience.
- Nearly half of fraternity members serve in other campus leadership roles.
- Fraternity members are more involved in cocurricular activities, and membership promotes student leadership and development, as well as satisfaction with the collegiate experience.
- Fraternity members have stronger interaction with faculty than their peers, with higher rates feeling like their professors cared about them as a person or made them excited about learning.
- Fraternity members spend significantly more time volunteering, mentoring and doing other types of service work, and they feel like they belong in their communities.
- Fraternity members feel a stronger connection to and are more engaged in their communities.
- Fraternity alumni feel a deeper sense of loyalty with their alma mater because of their positive college experiences, and they are more likely recommend their school to others and donate after graduation.
- If they had to do college over again, more than 8 out of 10 fraternity members would re-join their organizations.
Cited research:
The Benefits of Single-Sex Fraternity Involvement, UT-PERC
The Greek Experience Revisited: The Relationships between Fraternity/Sorority Membership and Student Engagement, Learning Outcomes, Grades, and Satisfaction with College; Pike
Perspectives on Fraternity and Sorority Life; Positive Youth Development, EverFi
Fraternities and Sororities: Experiences and Outcomes in College, Work and Life; Gallup 2021
Mental Health and Wellness for Fraternity and Sorority Members; Biddix, Assalone and Grace
Greek Values and Attitudes: A Comparison with Independents; Baier and Whipple
Additional research:
Impact of the Change in the 18-Year-Old Drinking Age on College Students; Brumley
The Decrease in Drunk Driving from the 1970s to Present; Brumley
The Narrative Experiences of Black and Brown First-Generation Fraternity Men in Historically White Fraternities (Executive Summary); Gibson
Male Enrollment in College and What Can Be Done To Improve It; Wiese
The Role of Fraternity/Sorority Affiliation in Supporting College Student Mental Health and Wellness; Assalone, Biddix, Grace, Johnson and Svoboda
