<p>What are these secret clubs about? I couldn't find anything on Yale's website.</p>
<p>If you could find stuff out on Yale’s website, they wouldn’t be secret. Try wikipedia for a general overview.</p>
<p>Yes but wikipedia is also a bad explanation. </p>
<p>Here’s a current undergraduate’s explanation:</p>
<p>Secret societies are senior-only groups. Members gather a couple of times a week, typically for drinks and/or dinner. They often, but not always, talk about their upbringing, ambitions, etc. Recruits are “tapped” at the end of their junior year and often made to do ridiculous public stunts to get in. Some of these societies are “landed” and have “tombs” but others do not.</p>
<p>What are secret societies NOT?</p>
<p>They are NOT very visible at all on campus. Because only seniors participate, because they recruit minorities/artists/intellectuals/jocks/etc, and for a variety of other reasons, they also do not influence the social circles that exist before senior year. They are NOT like Princeton’s eating clubs because they don’t divide the student population.</p>
<p>Moreover, they are NOT devil-worshipping weirdos who “control the United States” with their impressive power. Mostly, they are just fraternal eating societies and networking tools. There is some argument to be made that society members hold positions of power, but that really is a function of the fact that “taps” are academically/extracurricularly at the TOP of Yale or already well-known more than anything else.</p>
<p>There is somewhat of an obsession w/ these organizations by outsiders. The reality is far less exciting.</p>
<p>"There is somewhat of an obsession w/ these organizations by outsiders. The reality is far less exciting. "</p>
<p>Ridiculously true!</p>
<p>Lol if that really is wiki than it’s one of the few wiki articles with factual errors. When I visited Yale a freshmen had me read articles form his syllabus book for the class “college: the best four years” and there were articles on the secret societies. To summarize it, while they used to be influential and whatnot at this point they have become entrenched in racial lines rather than merit (though whether it was ever by merit is highly questionable lol) so for example apparently in skulls and bones the korean association president always makes sure the next year will have an officer from th ekorean association etc. They sounded pretty laughable lol.
That said, while the secret societies sound pretty boring, the class “college:the best four years” sounded awesome!</p>
<p>The societies have nothing officially to do with Yale. They are certainly visible on campus - as buildings - but you likely won’t know who is in the more secretive ones (like Bones or Wolf’s Head). A few may open their doors for parties once in a blue moon.</p>
<p>really? I heard it’s pretty public knowledge who’s in which societies, it’s just that no one cares.
When Yale had a student call me, he tried to get me to come by telling me that someone from my school a few years ahead of me was in one lol.</p>
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<p>That about sums it up. I’m sure there are some who care, but for most students the secret societies are a non-issue.</p>