Incoming first year, don't know if I should rush

i was also on the fence in my first year and didn't go through formal recruitment that first semester, but i ended up joining later and have really liked my experience so far! a major pro is that i have a built-in family here, i go to the girls in my sorority for so much (they've helped a lot with school because the uoft registrars aren't super helpful tbh), and i do feel like the girls actually care about each other at the end of the day. i've also met a lot of people through greeklife and there's a lot of events throughout the year that you might not be able to experience otherwise! from what i've seen, the sororities are fairly invested in their philanthropy, and some offer volunteering opportunities outside of their events (i would defo suggest you check out uoft panhel for each of the sororities' philanthropies)

some cons, esp the ones from your post are that there can be petty drama sometimes. again it depends on the sorority (not that there's ones that are drama-free and vice versa, it really varies) and everyone has a different experience. when you're in such close proximity with so many people it's kind of inevitable, but i would say its definitely avoidable. a con is the costs, which can be hefty but does cover all of the events etc which makes it worth it for me. another con is the mandatory meetings and there's some mandatory events you have to attend (eg. recruitment) which can be kinda time consuming if you're super busy

in terms of frat parties, i would say it doesn't make a significant difference. there are a lot of other reasons to join— if that's your main one, that's okay, but a sorority isn't the only way to go to frat parties and isn't really a main reason to join

my biggest piece of advice is to just look at the uoft panhel's website and instagram and see whether you think it's for you, or go through formal recruitment to get a feel of all the houses. best of luck!