FSL Guide 2026

UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY

FRATERNITY AND SORORITY LIFE

UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY FRATERNITY AND SORORITY LIFE Welcome, Wildcat! At the University of Kentucky, the opportunities for campus involvement are endless. The fraternity and sorority community affords members the ability to become involved both on and off campus through philanthropy, academics and leadership development – all while building intentional relationships.

Fraternity and Sorority Life (FSL) has been part of a long-standing tradition at the University of Kentucky since the first fraternity was established in 1893. By becoming a member of one of our recognized organizations, you are following in the footsteps of countless accomplished members who came before you. FSL is a part of the Dean of Students Office and works closely with other units in the Office for Student Success to create a positive social culture that supports and promotes academic success and well-being for all members of the fraternity and sorority community to be wildly successful during their time at UK.

GO CATS! ––– Council Presidents

FSL CORE VALUES Community: By joining an FSL organization, you have the opportunity to connect with a community not only in your chapter, but with more than 50 of our organizations. Research shows that fraternity and sorority members are three times more likely to return to the university for their second Fall Semester than those who are unaffiliated.

Academic Excellence: Our chapters place a great emphasis on members being students first. All groups have minimum standards for academic membership within the organization, such as GPA requirements and study hours. Councils and chapters provide opportunities for study tables, academic incentives and tutoring programs.

Civil Responsibility: Treating others with dignity, respect and acting responsibly are the expectations FSL has for students within the community. Membership development encourages students to make decisions that are productive and make a positive impact on their chapter, community and within the greater UK campus.

Member Wellness: As members of a fraternity or sorority, students have access to countless resources. Councils and chapters provide programming to connect students with campus and chapter partners who can support them with mental and physical health, finances, housing and more.

Order of Omega is a leadership honor society for the top 5% of fraternity and sorority life students.

Students are eligible to apply after their first year of membership in their organization. OOO provides service and leadership opportunities for students as well as access to scholarships.

Students receive a membership pin and cords for graduation.

ORDER OF OMEGA

FINANCIAL REQUIREMENTS Many of the resources provided to individual members of the fraternity and sorority community are made possible through the FSL Fee. This fee is assessed similarly to other student fees, such as lab fees, through the student’s online tuition bill each semester. The FSL Fee, which shows up as “Greek Fee,” is first assessed the semester in which a student joins and continues each semester of their membership. The FSL Fee is assessed to individual members in each council.

Joining a fraternity or sorority carries a financial commitment. This financial commitment covers the cost of participation in chapter activities, dues and fees to the inter/national organization and housing costs for groups with chapter facilities. The amount varies by chapter, and each organization will have different options for payment, including payment plans.

New members can expect to pay more for the first semester of membership because of national initiation fees and other one-time costs.

HAZING STATEMENT Fraternities and sororities were founded by students who came together to create a bond and support each other academically. Their goals were intellectual, social and moral growth. Fraternities and sororities at the University of Kentucky expect their members to strive for academic achievement, demonstrate responsible citizenship, show concern for the rights and needs of others and provide leadership by promoting respect for others. As such, hazing in any form will not be tolerated. All second-year members are required to participate in staff-facilitated hazing prevention education and new members are provided with information during FSL 101 in the semester they join.

The University of Kentucky defines hazing as any action or situation created by a member of the university community against another member of the university community for the purpose of affiliation with a group or organization that: (a) is negligent or reckless in nature; (b) is humiliating or endangers an individual; or (c) unreasonably interferes with scholastic or employment activities. If you feel you are being hazed or know of a hazing incident, report it immediately online at go.uky.edu/ReportHazingUK or call the Hazing Hotline at 859-257-8573.

UK sets standards for its student organizations to ensure they engage in responsible behavior that aligns with the Code of Student Conduct. Violations of these expectations can result in an organization receiving restorative action plans to educate members, repair the harm caused by the violation or restore trust within the campus community. This information can be found at go.uky.edu/StudentOrgConduct.

On the Office of Student Conduct website, if an organization’s Conduct Status is listed as Revocation of Registered Student Organization Status, this is not a recognized student organization by the University of Kentucky. We encourage students interested in joining a chapter not to join an organization with this status, as they are not supported by the university policies, resources and FSL recruitment processes as of the date listed on the website..

Please review THE CODE OF STUDENT CONDUCT ALCOHOL STATEMENT

go.uky.edu/StudentConduct

The University of Kentucky fraternity and sorority community opposes the misuse of alcohol and maintains that all chapters, all individual members and all guests must abide by state, local and university laws and regulations. Guidelines for social events involving alcohol are established by the University of Kentucky and prohibit students from possessing alcoholic beverages in the houses and on chapter premises. All chapters work to educate and foster a better understanding of social responsibility and alcohol education for their members.

ACADEMIC REQUIREMENTS Individuals interested in participating in recruitment or intake must be enrolled fulltime (12 credit hours) in a degree-seeking program at the University of Kentucky at the time of joining the organization. Each chapter requires a minimum grade point average for joining. The Interfraternity Council is the only council with a minimum academic requirement for participation in recruitment.

SERVICE REQUIREMENTS Being a member of a fraternity or sorority involves giving back to the local community as well as to each chapter’s national philanthropy. Every chapter has its own service requirements for individual members that may range from completing individual service hours to attending chapter philanthropic events. Participating in these service events provides members with opportunities to get involved in the community and learn the importance of giving back to others.

HOUSING REQUIREMENTS Over half of the Interfraternity Council and all Panhellenic Council chapters have a chapter facility. Living in a fraternity or sorority house is a great transition from living in a residence hall because it has many of the same benefits, plus the opportunity to live with fraternity brothers or sorority sisters. Chapter house living usually includes sharing a room with at least one chapter member and access to meals Monday through Friday. Residents also have the convenience of living in the hub of many chapter activities. If a chapter has housing, members are likely to be required to live in the house for at least two semesters. Most fraternity or sorority housing corporations operate much like a landlord and must have all available spots occupied with a signed contract—and possibly a deposit. Most chapters have a house director who lives in an apartment within the house to provide security, as well as supervise meal plans, maintenance and housekeeping.

All chapter housing is different, so this is a great topic to discuss with each organization.

kentuckyifc.com/recruitment

INTERFRATERNITY COUNCIL

The Interfraternity Council (IFC) is the governing body for recognized men’s fraternities at the University of Kentucky.

IFC works with member chapters to coordinate programs and activities that benefit the members, as well as advocates for the needs of fraternities at the University of Kentucky.

Alpha Gamma Rho Alpha Sigma Phi Beta Theta Pi Beta Upsilon Chi Chi Psi Delta Chi*

Delta Sigma Phi Delta Tau Delta Kappa Sigma Lambda Chi Alpha Phi Kappa Psi Phi Kappa Tau

Phi Sigma Kappa Pi Kappa Alpha Pi Kappa Phi Sigma Alpha Epsilon Sigma Chi Sigma Nu

Sigma Pi Theta Chi Triangle Zeta Beta Tau

INTERFRATERNITY COUNCIL RECRUITMENT

*Establishing Fall 2026

Students interested in joining an IFC fraternity must be enrolled full-time (12 credit hours) in a degree-seeking program at the University of Kentucky, as well as meet the academic requirement of either a 2.7 high school GPA (on a 4.0 unweighted scale) for new students or a 2.7 college GPA for returning and transfer students. Additionally, students must attend the IFC Brotherhood Orientation Recruitment Information Sessions hosted before IFC formal recruitment. There is a $60 registration fee for all students interested in IFC Recruitment.

kentuckynphc.com

NATIONAL PAN-HELLENIC COUNCIL

The National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) is the coordinating body of nine historically Black fraternities and sororities at the University of Kentucky. NPHC organizations were established during the early 1900s and were created to promote leadership, service, scholarship and fellowship among the community. Today, these organizations continue to embrace the ideals of unity, achievement and service to the community.

SORORITIES Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc.

FRATERNITIES Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Inc.

NPHC organizations recruit new members through a process called membership intake. This process is organized by each chapter individually. This includes selecting candidates and educating them about the organization, which leads to initiation and results in full membership. Chapters work with their inter/national organizations to schedule membership intake when it best suits their membership needs, which may not be every semester.

Students interested in joining any of the NPHC organizations are required to attend NPHC 101 once an academic semester, which is held at the beginning of the fall and spring semester.

uksorority.com

PANHELLENIC COUNCIL

The Panhellenic Council is the governing body for the 14 National Panhellenic Conference sororities at the University of Kentucky.

Panhellenic’s main goals are to create community-wide standards and relationships through leadership opportunities and educational and social programming, as well as oversee fall primary recruitment.

Alpha Chi Omega Alpha Delta Pi Alpha Gamma Delta Alpha Phi Chi Omega

Delta Delta Delta Delta Gamma Delta Zeta Gamma Phi Beta Kappa Alpha Theta

Kappa Delta Kappa Kappa Gamma Phi Mu Pi Beta Phi

Primary recruitment in 2026 will be hosted on the first two weekends of the academic year. A mandatory orientation session for women participating will be held on the Sunday before classes start; the session time will depend upon their recruitment counselor group.

PRIMARY RECRUITMENT SCHEDULE • Sunday, August 23

• Saturday, August 29 and Sunday, August 30 • Friday, September 4 and Saturday, September 5 • Sunday, September 6 • Monday, September 7

PNM Orientation/Open House Rounds Philanthropy Round Sisterhood Round Preference Round Bid Day

Primary recruitment participants must be enrolled full-time (12 credit hours) undergraduate students in a degreeseeking program at the University of Kentucky for the Fall 2026 semester.

PANHELLENIC RECRUITMENT

kentuckyugc.com

UNITED GREEK COUNCIL

The United Greek Council (UGC) at the University of Kentucky is the governing council for special-interest and culturally-based fraternities and sororities and is the fastest growing council at the University of Kentucky. The main focus of UGC is to support a welcoming community by creating a culture of respect and empowerment for its organizations.

SPECIAL INTEREST

Kappa Beta Gamma Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Phi Sigma Rho

Sigma Alpha Sigma Alpha Iota Sigma Phi Lambda

CULTURALLY BASED

Delta Phi Lambda Sorority, Inc. Sigma Lambda Beta International Fraternity, Inc. Sigma Lambda Gamma National Sorority, Inc.

Fraternities and sororities within the United Greek Council individually coordinate their recruitment and intake opportunities by chapter.

Special interest groups have a recruitment week, whereas culturally-based groups do membership intake. This process is organized by each chapter individually and includes a selection of candidates, education about the organization, initiation and full membership.

Another way to join the community would be to start an interest group, which is a group of students who come together to create a new fraternity or sorority experience not already offered at the University of Kentucky. Our fine arts organizations, Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia and Sigma Alpha Iota, offer dual membership, which can allow students to be affiliated in fraternities and sororities in another FSL Council.

Fraternity and Sorority Life Office 406 Administration Drive 101 Frazee Hall Lexington, KY 40506-0027 859-257-3151

CONNECT WITH US! @ukyfsl @ukyfsl

UK FRATERNITY AND SORORITY LIFE GO.UKY.EDU/FSL

fsl@uky.edu go.uky.edu/FSL

FALL 2026 EVENTS August 2 at 11:59 p.m. ET Panhellenic Recruitment Primary Registration Closes August 19 - 23 K Week August 21 FSL’s Rock The Block August 22 Interfraternity Council Festival National Pan-Hellenic Council Welcome United Greek Council Fall Kickoff August 22 - September 12 Interfraternity Council Recruitment August 23 - September 7 Panhellenic Recruitment October 9 NPHC Homecoming Step Show An Equal Opportunity University