- The palindromic class of the 21st century. That's pretty cool. It has a much better ring to it than 1991. So welcome to Dartmouth and I hope you enjoy yourselves a whole lot while you're here.
I'm sure that you've all heard from tons of people a lot about how wonderful Dartmouth is, what a great education it is, what fantastic teachers we have, DOC trips, UGAs etc. What I would like to talk to you about is something you may not know as much about: Dartmouth's social scene.
Dartmouth is a frat school. We have one bar that only serves to 21 or above, and we have not much else to do for excitement on the weekends within the immediate Hanover area. Except the Greek System. Odds are, if you wind up becoming a very social person here on campus, you will spend a lot of time in the basement of your favorite fraternity. Although three sororities on campus have open parties each term, the majority of the raging is done at fraternities. I've been asked to give you a little info and advice on what to expect, so here goes.
1)Freshmen are not allowed into houses in the fall. This of course means that all of you will be dying to get into any house you can. Don't sweat it. First off, girls get in. But for guys it's tougher. Your UGA, or your trip leader, or older people on your floor will invariably be in a fraternity or sorority and will be able to get you into some places. There are also plenty of other options that will help you, such as climbing through windows, groveling and general underhandedness. But don't freak out. If you don't get into every single raging party in the fall, it's no big deal. The winter is the exact same and you're allowed to do whatever you want. Kiss up to older people and they will want to drink with you and show you a good time. But take every option presented to you, if possible. The Greek system has a ton of different perspectives to offer you.
2) Be wary of Safety and Security. You can actually get into quite a bit of trouble if you get picked up by S&S enough times, and they are everywhere, so try to at least resemble sobriety when walking around campus. And if at all possible, when you do get picked up, try not to implicate the house where you were drinking. After all, they were kind enough to let you in, and you can repay them by saying you were at a private room party.
3) Be very wary of your reputation, if that sort of thing matters to you. Several people come to mind who were somewhat morally casual in their dealings with the opposite sex my freshman fall, and word spreads quickly, such that a lot of them are less successful in their endeavors now that everyone knows who they are. But at the same time, enjoy yourself, be reckless, go to houses you don't know anything about and meet people.
I don't particularly care about my reputation, so things are easier for me.
4) Don't be phony.
5) Learn the lingo. Grim, rage, brutal, hookup, scam, walk of shame, blither, pimp and the list goes on. We have a lot of stupid words that have distinct meanings at Dartmouth. You'll figure it out.
6) Learn to play pong. It is the most beautiful drinking game on this earth. I have played it more times than I can count and I have never gotten bored by it. Some games to learn: Two-cup, shrub, tree, ship, slam, STS, social, slob, shrob, sequoia, forest, etc. Every house has distinct rules. You'll learn which games you like better. A lot of fraternities prize their pong-playing ability, and will be happy to show you how to play, so take them up on it.
7) Don't let stereotypes be your guide. Every house has a stereotype. Some are unavoidable: the football house, the baseball house, the lacrosse house, and so on, but other houses have more subtle, prejudicial stereotypes, the nerd house, the freak house, the drug house, the meathead house, the sexual harasser house, and on and on. These stereotypes are perpetuated by every house trying to make every other house look bad and therefore make themselves look good. The vast majority of it has no basis.
8) For new '02 women, pay attention to the sororities. They are not as noticeable as fraternities your freshmen year, but come fall rush next year, a lot of you won't know the first thing about any of the houses and sorority rush is brutal.
9) Don't go to fraternities exclusively to drink. A lot of really cool stuff goes on at fraternities on floors above the basement, and there is actually quite a lot of intellectual spirit and discussion that will surprise you.
10) Enjoy the first year as much as you can. This is the only time you will be at Dartmouth when everyone will be inviting you into their houses to play pong, drink, enjoy yourself, and generally be a guest for free. Once you rush, you start paying for all the new freshmen to come drink at your house. Have a great time. It's truly a blast.
11) Lastly, never believe anything printed in The Dartmouth ... ever.
