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In the United States, an honor society is an organization of rank, the induction into which recognizes excellence among one's peers. There are numerous societies recognizing various fields and circumstances; the Order of the Arrow, for example, is the national honor society of the Boy Scouts of America. Chiefly, the term refers to scholastic honor societies, those which recognize students who excel academically or as leaders among their peers, often within a specific academic discipline.

Many honor societies invite students to become members based on the grade point averages of those students, either overall, or for classes taken within the discipline for which the honor society provides recognition. In cases where academic achievement would not be an appropriate criterion for membership, other standards are usually required for membership (such as completion of a particular ceremony or training program). In some cases, membership in an honor society is considered exclusive; a member of such an organization cannot join other honor societies representing the same field.

Many Fraternities and sororities are referred to by their membership or by non-members as honor societies, and vice-versa, though this is not always the case. Honor societies exist at the high school, collegiate/university, and postgraduate levels, although university honor societies are by far the most prevalent.

Important national and international honor societies based in or at schools include the following:

• American Sign Language Honor Society (ASL)
• Cum Laude Society (honor society for secondary educational institutions)
• French National Honor Society (or La Société Honoraire de Français) (French)
• [[German National Honor Society|German National Honor Society] (German)
• Eta Sigma Alpha (National Home School Honor Society)
• Eta Sigma Gamma (National Health Sciences Honor Society)
• Florida Student Association of Mathematics (Honor Society for mathematical scholars in Florida)
• International Scholars of Excellence Academic Honor Society (For US and International students & graduates)
• International Thespian Society (Theatre)
• Mu Alpha Theta ΜΑΘ (Mathematics)
• National Art Honor Society
• National Beta Club
• National Honor Society
• National Junior Honor Society
• Quill and Scroll (Journalism)
• Science National Honor Society (Science)
• National Chinese Honor Society (Chinese)
• Spanish National Honor Society (or Sociedad Honoraria Hispánica) (Spanish)
• Tri-M Music Honor Society (Music)
• The Honors Society

• National Technical Honor Society

• Alpha Beta Gamma, ΑΒΓ (Business at Two-Year Colleges)
• Alpha Chi, ΑΧ (All Academic Fields)
• Alpha Gamma Sigma, ΑΓΣ (California's community colleges, All Academic Fields)
• Alpha Delta Mu, ΑΔΜ (Social Work)
• Alpha Epsilon, ΑΕ (Agricultural, Food, and Biological Engineering)
• Alpha Epsilon Delta, ΑΕΔ (Premedicine)
• Alpha Epsilon Lambda,AEΛ (Graduate Students)
• Alpha Eta Mu Beta, ΑΗΜΒ (Biomedical Engineering)
• Alpha Kappa Delta, ΑΚΔ (Sociology)
• Alpha Kappa Mu, ΑΚΜ (All academic fields)
• Alpha Lambda Delta, ΑΛΔ (Freshman scholarship)
• Alpha Mu Gamma, ΑΜΓ (Foreign language)
• Alpha Nu Sigma, ΑΝΣ (Nuclear Engineering)
• Alpha Phi Sigma, ΑΦΣ (Criminal Justice)
• Alpha Pi Mu, ΑΠΜ (Industrial Engineering)
• Alpha Psi Omega, ΑΨΩ (Theatre)
• Alpha Sigma Mu, ΑΣΜ (Metallurgy and Materials Engineering)
• Alpha Sigma Lambda, ΑΣΛ (First in Scholarship and Leadership - Non-traditional students)
• Alpha Sigma Nu, ΑΣΝ (General scholarship at Jesuit institutions of higher education)
• Alpha Upsilon Alpha, ΑΥΑ (Reading and language arts)
• Arnold Air Society (primarily United States Air Force cadets)
• Beta Alpha Psi ΒΑΨ (accounting, finance and computer information system)
• Beta Beta Beta, ΒΒΒ - Biology
• Beta Gamma Sigma, ΒΓΣ (Business)
• Beta Kappa Chi, ΒΚΧ (Natural Sciences and Mathematics)
• Beta Phi Mu, ΒΦΜ (Library & Information Science and Information Technology)
• Blue Key Honor Society (Leadership)
• Chi Epsilon, ΧΕ (Civil Engineering)
• Chi Epsilon Pi, ΧΕΠ (Meteorology)
• Chi Sigma Iota, ΧΣΙ (Professional Counseling)
• Delta Epsilon Sigma, ΔΕΣ (General Scholarship at Colleges and Universities with a Catholic Tradition)
• Delta Epsilon Iota, ΔΕΙ - (Academics)
• Delta Epsilon Tau, ΔΕΤ - Distance Education and Training Council
• Delta Mu Delta, ΔΜΔ (Business Administration)
• Delta Phi Alpha, ΔΦΑ - German
• Delta Sigma Rho - Tau Kappa Alpha, ΔΣΡ-ΤΚΑ (Forensics)
• Delta Tau Alpha, ΔΤΑ (Agriculture)
• Epsilon Delta Pi,ΕΔΠ (Computer Information Systems & Computer Science)
• Epsilon Pi Tau, ΕΠΤ (Technology)
• Epsilon Tau Pi, ΕΤΠ (Brotherhood of Eagle Scouts)
• Eta Kappa Nu, ΗΚΝ (Electrical Engineering & Computer Engineering)
• Eta Sigma Phi, ΗΣΦ (Classics)
• Gamma Beta Phi, ΓΒΦ (Academics)
• Gamma Theta Upsilon, ΓΘΥ (Geography)
• Gamma Sigma Delta, ΓΣΔ (Agriculture)
• Golden Key International Honour Society (Academics)
• The Honors Society (Academics)
• Kappa Delta Pi ΚΔΠ (Education)
• Kappa Delta Epsilon Society ΚΔΕ [1] (Education)
• Kappa Gamma Pi ΚΓΠ (Leadership at Catholic colleges and universities)
• Kappa Kappa Psi, ΚΚΨ (College Bandmembers)
• Kappa Mu Epsilon, ΚΜΕ (Mathematics)
• Kappa Omicron Nu, ΚΟΕ (Human Sciences)
• Kappa Tau Alpha, ΚΤΑ (Journalism and Mass Communication)
• Kappa Theta Epsilon, ΚΘΕ (Co-Operative Education)
• Lambda Alpha, ΛΑ (Anthropology)
• Lambda Iota Tau, ΛΙΤ (Literature)
• Lambda pi eta, ΛΠΗ (Communication)
• Lambda Sigma, ΛΣ (Student Leadership, Scholarship and Service)
• Mortar Board (Leadership)
• Mu Alpha Theta ΜΑΘ (Mathematics)
• Mu Beta Psi, ΜΒΨ (Music)
• Mu Kappa Tau, ΜΚΤ (Marketing)
• National Residence Hall Honorary, NRHH (Residence Hall Leadership & Service)
• National Society of Collegiate Scholars, NSCS (Scholarship, Leadership & Service)
• Omega Chi Epsilon, ΟΧΕ (Chemical Engineering)
• Omega Rho, ΟΡ (Operations Research & Management Science)
• Omicron Delta Epsilon, ΟΔΕ (Economics)
• Omicron Delta Kappa, ΟΔΚ (Scholarship, Leadership and Service for juniors and seniors)
• Omicron Kappa Epsilon, ΟΚΕ - Dental Surgery
• The Order of Barristers - lawyers
• The Order of Omega (Service to the Greek letter fraternity and sorority system)
• Pershing Rifles (for outstanding student members of the United States armed forces)
• Phi Alpha Epsilon, ΦΑΕ (Architectural engineering)
• Phi Alpha Theta, ΦΑΘ (History)
• Phi Beta Kappa ΦΒΚ (undergraduate arts and sciences)
• Phi Beta Delta ΦΒΔ (International Scholars)
• Phi Eta Sigma, ΦΗΣ (Freshman scholarship)
• Phi Kappa Alpha, ΦΚΑ (Leadership)
• Phi Kappa Phi, ΦΚΦ (All Academic Fields)
• Phi Lambda Upsilon, ΦΛΥ (Pure and Applied Chemistry)
• Phi Rho Pi, (Forensics; Speech Community College)
• Phi Sigma, ΦΣ (Biological Sciences, All Pure and Applied Fields)
• Phi Sigma Iota, ΦΣΙ (Foreign Languages, Linguistics, Literatures, ESL, & Cultures)
• Phi Sigma Pi, ΦΣΠ (general scholarship)
• Phi Sigma Tau, ΦΣΤ (Philosophy)
• Phi Theta Kappa, ΦΘΚ (All academic fields at community and junior colleges)
• Phi Upsilon Omicron, ΦΥΟ (Family and Consumer Sciences)
• Pi Alpha Alpha, ΠΑΑ (Public Affairs and Administration)
• Pi Alpha Xi ΠΑΞ (Horticulture)
• Pi Delta Phi, ΠΔΦ (French)
• Pi Epsilon, ΠΕ(The National Environmental Sciences Honor Society)
• Pi Epsilon Tau, ΠΕΤ (Petroleum Engineering)
• Pi Gamma Mu, ΠΓΜ (Social Sciences) - the International Honor Society in the Social Sciences
• Pi Kappa Delta, ΠΚΔ (Forensics)
• Pi Kappa Lambda, ΠΚΛ (Music)
• Pi Lambda Theta ΠΛΘ (Education)
• Pi Mu Epsilon, ΠΜΕ (Mathematics)
• Pi Nu Epsilon, ΠΝΕ (Music)
• Pi Omega Pi, ΠΩΠ (Business Education)
• Pi Sigma Alpha, ΠΣΑ (Political Science)
• Pi Tau Sigma, ΠΤΣ (Mechanical Engineering)
• Pi Theta Epsilon, ΠΘΕ (Occupational Therapy)
• Psi Beta, ΨΒ (Psychology at Two-Year Colleges)
• Psi Chi, ΨΧ (Psychology)
• Rho Chi, ΡΧ (Pharmacy)
• Scabbard and Blade, The National Society of (Military Honor Society, all services ROTC) cadets and midshipmen
• Semper Fi Society (United States Marine Corps cadets)
• Sigma Alpha Pi, ΣΑΠ (Leadership)
• Sigma Beta Delta, ΣΒΔ (Business, Management, and Administration)
• Sigma Delta Pi, ΣΔΠ (Spanish)
• Sigma Gamma Epsilon,ΣΓΕ (Geology, Earth Sciences)
• Sigma Gamma Tau, ΣΓΤ (Aerospace Engineering)
• Sigma Iota Rho, ΣΙΡ (International Studies)
• Sigma Kappa Delta, ΣΚΔ (English at community and junior colleges)
• Sigma Lambda Alpha, ΣΛΑ (Landscape Architecture)
• Sigma Lambda Chi, ΣΛΧ (Construction Management Technology)
• Sigma Pi Kappa, ΣΠΚ (Historic Preservation)
• Sigma Pi Sigma, ΣΠΣ (Physics)
• Sigma Tau Chi, ΣΤΧ (Technical communication)
• Sigma Tau Delta, ΣΤΔ (English)
• Sigma Theta Tau, ΣΘΤ (Nursing)
• Sigma Xi, ΣΞ (General science research)
• Sigma Zeta, ΣΖ (Natural Sciences and Mathematics)
• Tau Alpha Pi, ΤΑΠ (Engineering Technology)
• Tau Beta Pi, ΤΒΠ (Engineering)
• Tau Beta Sigma, ΤΒΣ (coed sorority of college band members)
• Tau Sigma, ΤΣ (transfer students)
• Tau Sigma Delta, ΤΣΔ (Architecture)
• Theta Chi Beta, ΘΧΒ (Religious Studies)
• Theta Alpha Kappa, ΘΑΚ (Religious Studies/Philosophy)
• Upsilon Phi Delta, YΦΔ (Health Administration)
• Upsilon Pi Epsilon, ΥΠΕ (Computing Sciences/Computer engineering)
• Upsilon Pi Epsilon Delta, ΥΠΕΔ (Computing Sciences/Computer engineering)
• Xi Sigma Pi, ΞΣΠ (forestry)

• Alpha Omega Alpha ΑΩΑ (Medicine)
• Durlacher (Podiatry)
• Order of the Coif (Law)
• Pi Delta (Podiatry)
• Pi Epsilon ΠΕ (The National Environmental Sciences Honor Society)
• Sigma Sigma Phi ΣΣΦ (Osteopathic Medicine)
• Upsilon Phi Delta, YΦΔ (Health Administration)

Some universities have their own independent, open honor societies, which are not affiliated with any national or international organization. Such organizations typically recognize students who have succeeded academically irrespective of their field of study. These include:

• Cap and Skull at Rutgers University
• Florida Blue Key at University of Florida
• Iron Arrow Honor Society at the University of Miami
• Order of the Torch at Florida International University
• HGH Senior Honor Society at Brenau University
• Boulder Society at the University of Vermont
• Lion's Paw, Parmi Nous at the Pennsylvania University
• Skull and Bones at the Pennsylvania University and Yale University
• Mask and Wig at the University of Pennsylvania

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