Senior societies are a type of collegiate student organization that recruits juniors and seniors.[1] Senior societies are associated with Dartmouth College, the University of Pennsylvania, and Yale University.[1][2] These societies can be activity-based, identity-based, school-based (departmental or academic field), or traditional.[1] Senior societies may be "landed", owning a building or tomb, or "non-landed".[3][4][5]
Baird's Manual of American College Fraternities (1883), notes that Phi Beta Kappa, founded at the College of William & Mary in 1776, was the first senior society.[6][a] At Dartmouth College, senior societies date back to 1783 with the founding of an organization called the Society of Social Friends.[7] Dartmouth currently had fourteen active senior societies.[7] Yale has more than forty active senior societies.[3] The oldest senior society at Yale is Skull and Bones, established in 1831, followed by Scroll and Key in 1841.[3] Other colleges have similar organizations but use different terminology. For example, there are Princeton University eating clubs and Harvard University final clubs.[8]
Senior societies tend to be exclusive, and members pay dues to belong.[9] Members are most often recruited by a process called "tapping".[2][7][4] Membership in each senior society tends to be small, averaging around fifteen active members.[5] Some senior societies are also secret societies, where the names of members are kept secret, while others are open and share their membership rolls.[7] Other senior societies are semi-secret, keeping member's names a secret until graduation.[7] Some senior societies also are considered honor societies.[9]
Following is an incomplete list of collegiate senior societies.
All additions to this list should have a Wikipedia article or a reliable source that verifies their existence. |
See also
editNotes
edit- ↑ Phi Beta Kappa is now considered to be an honor society.
- ↑ Created when women were first admitted to Yale University.
- ↑ Reformed from Key and Stone (local).
- ↑ Rumpus reported that DSG stands for "Drunk Senior Girls" but this is disputed by the organization's members.
- ↑ Originally formed as a literary society, Linonia was revived as a secret senior society in the 20th century.
References
edit- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Glatsky, Genevieve (September 22, 2016). "Inside Senior Societies". 34th Street. Retrieved 2025-03-18.
- 1 2 3 Wuu, Sydney (January 12, 2021). "Senior societies navigate challenges as winter tapping proceeds virtually". The Dartmouth. Retrieved 2025-03-23.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Gittler, Gittler; Hart, Chrissy (2017-02-24). "The choice is yours". Yale Daily News. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Pohly, Kaitlyn (2024-02-28). "Behind tomb doors: Yale's society tap process". Yale Daily News. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
- 1 2 3 4 Branch, Mark Alden (July 2014). "Open secrets". Yale Alumni Magazine. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
- ↑ Baird, Wm. Raimond, ed. (1883). "Miscellaneous - Senior Societies". American College Fraternities (2nd revised [known as the 3rd] ed.). New York: Frank Williams. pp. 195–196 – via HathiTrust.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Bauman, Gretchen (February 9, 2024). "Tapping, Tunnels and the Tomb: The Development of Dartmouth's Senior Societies". The Dartmouth. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
- 1 2 3 Courtney, Nadine Jolie (2016-08-09). "The Most Exclusive Student Clubs of the Ivy League". Town & Country. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
- 1 2 Orrson, Emily (April 20, 2011). "The Half of It: Senior societies shouldn't have to tap that". The Daily Pennsylvanian. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
- ↑ "100 Senior Honorary". Emory Advancement & Alumni Engagement. Retrieved 2026-02-01.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "Senior Societies | Greek Life and Societies". Dartmouth College. 2016-11-22. Retrieved 2025-03-23.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 "Senior Societies" (PDF). The Rumpus. 23 (4): 3–5. May 2016 – via Yale University.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 "List: 41 secret societies at Yale". Yale Alumni Magazine. July 2014. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
- ↑ The Johns Hopkins University. Hullabaloo. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins UP, 1893. Print.
- ↑ "Bell Senior Society". bellsociety.com. Retrieved 2025-03-18.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Baird, Wm. Raimond, ed. (1879). "Class Fraternities - Senior Societies - Beta Omega". American College Fraternities (1st ed.). Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott & Co. p. 150 – via HathiTrust.
- ↑ "Calliopean Society, Yale College, records". Yale University Archives. Retrieved 2026-04-14.
- ↑ Paterson, Jim (September 2006). "In the Finest Tradition". Johns Hopkins Magazine. Retrieved 2026-04-14.
- ↑ "Cap and Skull Senior Honor Society | getInvolved". Rutgers University. Retrieved 2026-04-14.
- ↑ Cheng, Chloe (April 14, 2016). "Carriage senior society brings together LGBTQ students and allies". The Daily Pennsylvanian. Retrieved 2025-03-19.
- 1 2 3 4 "Dartmouth's First Senior Society". Dartmouth College. Retrieved 2026-02-01.
- ↑ "About". Cipactli Lantinx Honor Society. Retrieved 2025-03-19.
- ↑ "Der Hexenkreis". The Cornell Daily Sun. February 26, 2025. p. 2. Archived from the original on April 4, 2026. Retrieved April 4, 2026.
- ↑ Reynolds, Nick (2017-08-29). "Secret Societies: A primer on the elite groups at Cornell University". Ithaca Times. Retrieved 2026-04-04.
- ↑ Maslia, Lily (2019-04-12). "The Best 10 Colleges for Secret Societies ⋆ College Magazine". College Magazine. Retrieved 2026-04-05.
- ↑ Walsh, Sean Collins (2011-02-15). "In Focus: Inside Deru". The Daily Northwestern. Retrieved 2025-03-23.
- ↑ Yiin, Wesley (2014-04-15). "Society lands on Chapel Street". Yale Daily News. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
- ↑ "DVS - Emory Senior Society". Emory Giving. Retrieved 2026-02-01.
- ↑ "About". Friars Senior Society. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
- ↑ Garcia, Andres (February 24, 2021). "Two students form senior society open only to College students". The Daily Pennsylvanian. Retrieved 2025-03-19.
- ↑ Garcia, Andres (February 24, 2021). "Two students form senior society open only to College students". The Daily Pennsylvanian. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
- 1 2 O'Daly, Britton (2017-04-18). "Two societies added to Society Initiative". Yale Daily News. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
- ↑ "Iron Key Society (Purdue University)". Purdue University. Retrieved February 1, 2026.
- ↑ Holman, Heather (2000-04-06). "Society works for student body". Purdue Exponent. Retrieved 2026-02-01.
- ↑ Johnson, Greg (March 23, 2017). "Film society preps Penn seniors for careers in entertainment". Penn Today. University of Pennsylvania. Retrieved 2025-03-19.
- ↑ "The Lion's Paw Senior Society". The Lion's Paw Senior Society. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
- ↑ "Honors Societies". University of Missouri–Columbia Department of Religious Studies. Archived from the original on 2008-05-18. Retrieved 2008-05-10.
- 1 2 "Nacoms & Sachems". Columbia Spectator. 12 February 1952. p. 2. Retrieved April 14, 2026.
- ↑ "History". onyx. Retrieved 2025-03-19.
- ↑ About Oracle Archived 2012-07-28 at the Wayback Machine Oracle Senior Honor Society
- ↑ Osiris Senior Society Archived April 7, 2014, at the Wayback Machine
- ↑ Garfinkel, Simson (December 23, 2024). "MIT's (mostly) secret society". MIT Technology Review. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
- ↑ "Owl and Key | Utonian Yearbooks". University of Utah Digital Library. p. 252. Retrieved 2026-04-14.
- ↑ "Owl and Wand Society, 1874". Wesleyan University Special Collections & Archives. Retrieved September 8, 2025.
- ↑ "History – Palaeopitus Senior Society". Dartmouth College. Retrieved 2025-03-23.
- ↑ Jarrett, W. H. "The Pithotomy Club: R.I.P.". Proceedings (Baylor University Medical Center). vol. 24, no. 1 (January 2011):35-41. doi: 10.1080/08998280.2011.11928680. PMID: 21307975; PMCID: PMC3012288.
- ↑ "Phrygian Society". Dartmouth Libraries Archives & Manuscripts. Retrieved 2025-09-15.
- ↑ "Secret Societies 2015". Rumpus. June 2015. Retrieved 2025-04-10 – via Scribd.
- ↑ "Pundits, Yale University, records". Yale University Archives. Retrieved 2026-04-14.
- 1 2 3 Underwood, Tina (2023-05-01). "Legacy honor societies combine ranks, elect new members". Furman University. Retrieved 2026-01-21.
- ↑ "An honor of the highest accord". Furman University. 2017-03-27. Retrieved 2026-01-21.
- ↑ "A Peek Into the World of Collegiate Secret Societies". CollegeXpress. March 28, 2025. Retrieved 2026-02-01.
- ↑ Gil, Bella; Choudhary, Sabrina (2020-04-13). "CAS' Red Dragon Society Emerges From the Shadows". Washington Square News. Retrieved 2026-04-14.
- ↑ Victor, Jon (2015-10-08). "Seven new senior societies established". Yale Daily News. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
- ↑ Creekmore, Betsey B. "Scarabbean Society". Volopedia. University of Tennessee Libraries. Retrieved 2026-04-14.
- ↑ The Johns Hopkins University. Hullabaloo. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins UP, 1895. Print.
- ↑ Wu, Allison (October 22, 2018). "Penn has a new senior society for Jewish students: Shamash". The Daily Pennsylvanian. Retrieved 2025-03-19.
- ↑ "Shamash Senior Society". Shamash Senior Society. Archived from the original on 2018-09-21. Retrieved 2018-09-21.
- ↑ "Pre 1950s · DCI 201: Secret Societies · Washington and Lee University Library Digital Exhibits". specialcollections.omeka.wlu.edu. Retrieved 2026-04-14.
- ↑ Dowd, Katie (2021-06-11). "The Bay Area secret society 'tomb' hiding in plain sight". SFGATE. Retrieved 2026-04-14.
- ↑ "Sphinx Head Society". Cornell University. Retrieved 2026-04-14.
- ↑ "History". Sphinx Senior Society. Retrieved 2026-02-01.
- ↑ "History". Tejas Club. Retrieved 2026-04-14.
- ↑ "Collection: Torch Honor Society, Yale University, records". Archives at Yale. Retrieved 2023-07-04.
- ↑ "The Vulcans: A Reflective and Critical History of the College of Engineering's Secret Society". University of Michigan Library. 2022. Retrieved February 1, 2026.
- ↑ "Secret societies get social: WIPS' Pinterest". The Yale Herald. April 11, 2013. Retrieved 2025-03-24 – via UWire.