When you’re a high school senior or junior looking for your dream college, there are a few things that you take into consideration: campus dining, location and academics. And, of course, nobody goes to a college without considering the iconic secret societies. College secret societies typically consist of gatherings during which select students develop lasting bonds, connection over moral beliefs, ancient traditions and mutual assistance.

You might have heard about the Bavarian Illuminati or the Freemasons, but we’re about to enlighten you about the societies you might encounter during your next four years at college. This guide will prepare you to stay aware of the existence of the mysterious phenomenon that are secret societies — and maybe, by the end, you will be ready to join one.

Below, we’ve gathered a list of some of the most iconic secret societies, so when you are ready for the college research process you can take the most important factor into account. If you choose to attend one of these schools, we will prepare you to get “tapped,” or chosen for membership by one of the societies. If you are applying to Cornell, don’t forget about the mysterious Quill and Dagger Society. When traveling to the University of Virginia for a college visit, keep an eye out for any one of their (at least) 20 societies. And forget about Penn State football, their Parmi Nous Society is much more important.

• UVA:
  • The 13 Society: (1905-)
    • Level of Secrecy: ★★★
    • Recruitment: 13 new students tapped each year, mainly from Eli Banana and T.I.L.K.A. societies
    • Requirements: Academic merit
    • Notable Alumni: Unknown
  • T.I.L.K.A. (1903-)
    • Level of Secrecy: ★★★
    • Recruitment: Tapped by current members
    • Requirements: Males only
    • Notable Alumni: Gilbert J. Sullivan (Director of UVA Alumni Association)
  • Z Society (1892-)
    • Level of Secrecy: ★★
    • Recruitment: Selected its members from the Eli Banana and T.I.L.K.A. societies; tapped by current members
    • Requirements: Unknown
    • Notable Alumni: George M. Cochran
  • Raven Society: (1904-)
    • Level of Secrecy: ★★★
    • Recruitment: Nominated by current members
    • Requirements: Based off of merit  
    • Notable Alumni: Edgar Allen Poe (American writer and poet)
  • The Seven Society: (1905-)
    • Level of Secrecy: ★★★★★
    • Recruitment: Tapped at location off grounds
    • Requirements: Upperclassmen only
    • Notable Alumni: Unknown
  • IMP Society: 1907
    • Level of Secrecy: ★★★
    • Recruitment: Invite only 
    • Requirements: Upperclassmen only 
    • Notable Alumni: Joe Harris (American basketball player)
  • Society of the Purple Shadows: 1913
    • Level of Secrecy: ★★★★
    • Recruitment: Leave notecards for freshmen
    • Requirements: Upperclassmen only  
    • Notable Alumni: Unknown
  • P.U.M.P.K.I.N.: 1895
    • Level of Secrecy: ★★★
    • Recruitment: Formal invitation
    • Requirements: Upperclassmen only 
    • Notable Alumni: Unknown
  • The Lantern Society: 1905
    • Level of Secrecy: ★★★
    • Recruitment: Unknown
    • Requirements: Females and upperclassmen only 
    • Notable Alumni: Unknown 
  • The 21 Society: 1905
    • Level of Secrecy: ★★★★★
    • Recruitment: 21 letters of invitations distributed on grounds
    • Requirements: Upperclassmen only 
    • Notable Alumni: Unknown 
  • A.N.G.E.L.S. Society: 1909
    • Level of Secrecy: ★★
    • Recruitment: Unknown
    • Requirements: Upperclassmen only
    • Notable Alumni: Unknown 

• Yale 
  • Ancient eight consortium
    • Skull & Bones (1832-):
      • Level of Secrecy: ★★ 
      • Recruitment: Chooses 15 new members every spring on tap day
      • Requirements: Seniors only
      • Notable Alumni: William Howard Taft (27th U.S. President), George H.W. Bush (41st U.S. President)
    • Scroll and Key (1842-)
      • Level of Secrecy: ★★ 
      • Recruitment: Offered to 15 rising seniors who have “achieved in any field, academic, extracurricular, or personal” on tap day
      • Requirements: Seniors only
      • Notable Alumni: Cyrus Vance Sr. (U.S. Secretary of State), Mark Twain honorary (American writer and humorist)
    • Wolf’s Head (1883-)
      • Level of Secrecy: ★★★
      • Recruitment: Chooses 16 new members every spring on tap day
      • Requirements: Seniors only
      • Notable Alumni: Leigh Bardugo (Six of Crows Author), Phillip W. Pillsbury (Chairman of Pillsbury Company)
    • Elihu (1903-)
      • Level of Secrecy: ★ 
      • Recruitment: Allows all juniors to interview for membership, tapped upon acceptance on tap day
      • Requirements: Seniors only
      • Notable Alumni: Edward Stevens (Physician and diplomat)
    • Book and Snake (1863-)
      • Level of Secrecy: ★★
      • Recruitment: Recruits 8 men and 8 women every tap day, first Yale secret society to admit minorities and women
      • Requirements: Seniors only
      • Notable Alumni: Bill Nelson (Attorney and former U.S. State Senator), Henry Ford II (Former CEO of Ford)
    • Berzelius (1848-)
      • Level of Secrecy: ★★★
      • Recruitment: Recruits rising seniors on tap day
      • Requirements: Seniors only
      • Notable Alumni: Bradford Dillman (American actor and author), William W. Scranton (Lawyer and former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations)
    • St. Elmo (1889-)
      • Level of Secrecy: ★
      • Recruitment: Selects 12 members, likely on tap day
      • Requirements: Seniors only
      • Notable Alumni: Ron DeSantis (Governor of Florida), J.P. Morgan (American financier and investment banker)
    • Mace and Chain
      • Level of Secrecy: ★★★
      • Recruitment: Offers 15 rising seniors a place on tap day
      • Requirements: Seniors only
      • Notable Alumni: Unknown
• Cornell – Anna
  • Quill and Dagger Society (1883-)
    • Level of Secrecy: ★★★★
    • Recruitment: Recruits students who have shown leadership, character, and dedication to service in the spring of their junior year or fall of the senior year
    • Requirements: Upperclassmen only
    • Notable Alumni: E.B. White (Charlotte’s Web Author), Ruth Bader Ginsberg honorary (Supreme Court Justice)
  • Sphinx Head (1890-)
    • Level of Secrecy: ★★★
    • Recruitment: Recognizes Cornell senior men and women who have demonstrated respectable strength of character on top of dedication to leadership and service at Cornell University, fewer than 40 each year
    • Requirements: Seniors only
    • Notable Alumni: Richmond H. Shreve (Architect, led construction of Empire State Building), Dick Schaap (American sportswriter and broadcaster)

• Washington and Lee University
  • Cadaver Society (1957-)
    • Level of secrecy: ★★★★
    • Recruitment: No public information available
    • Requirements: Believed to consist of upperclassmen, pre-med students, or athletic team and fraternity leaders
    • Notable Alumni: Unknown
• College of William and Mary
  • Flat Hat Club (1750-)
    • Level of Secrecy: ★★
    • Recruitment: New members are selected and invited by current members
    • Requirements: Men only
    • Notable Alumni: Thomas Jefferson (3rd U.S. President)
• NYU
  • Eucleian Society (1832-1940, 2017-)
    • Level of Secrecy: ★★★
    • Recruitment: A questionnaire emailed to recruits
    • Requirements: Not publicly available, but members are typically interested in literature and humanities
    • Notable Alumni: Unknown
  • The Red Dragon Society (1898-)
    • Level of Secrecy: ★★★
    • Recruitment: Selection process is kept secret, but students are inducted through a tapping ceremony
    • Requirements: Upperclassmen only
    • Notable Alumni: Henry Noble MacCracken (American academic), William Henry Draper Jr. (Army officer and former U.S. Under Secretary of the Army)
• University of North Carolina 
  • Order of Gimghoul (1889-)
    • Level of Secrecy: ★★★
    • Recruitment: Formal invitation
    • Requirements: Male upperclassmen and faculty only
    • Notable Alumni: George Watts Hill (American philanthropist)
• Rutgers
  • Cap and Skull (1900-)
    • Level of Secrecy: ★★
    • Recruitment: Tapping ceremony; students were tapped on the shoulder and told they were selected
    • Requirements: Seniors only
    • Notable Alumni: Charles Molnar (Inventor of the personal computer), Stanley Normal Cohen (Pioneer of gene splicing)
• Dartmouth
  • The Sphinx (1885-)
    • Level of secrecy: ★★★
    • Recruitment: Tap 24 members of the junior class during Winter Carnival Weekend 
    • Requirements: Men only
    • Notable Alumni: Unknown
• Penn State 
  • Parmi Nous (1908-)
    • Level of secrecy: ★★★★
    • Recruitment: Tapping system, selected by current members
    • Requirements: Students with at least 2.2 GPA
    • Notable Alumni: Wally Richardson (American football player)
  • Lions Paw (1908-)
    • Level of secrecy: ★★
    • Recruitment: Unanimous vote by previous members
    • Requirements: Student leaders only
    • Notable Alumni: Unknown
  • Skull and Bones (1912-)
    • Level of secrecy: ★★★ 
    • Recruitment: Selected by current members in the spring and fall of each year
    • Requirements: Seniors and second semester juniors
    • Notable Alumni: Raymond Shafer honorary (Former Pennsylvania Governor)

• UC Berkeley
  • Order of the Golden Bear (1900-)
    • ★
    • Recruitment: Must be nominated by a current member
    • Requirements: Must have at least a sophomore standing
    • Notable Alumni: Robert McNamara (Former U.S. Secretary of Defense), John A. McCone (Former U.S. Director of Central Intelligence)