Association of College Honor Societies
The Association of College Honor Societies is a predominantly American, voluntary association that serves a number of functions with respect to national collegiate and post-graduate honor societies. ACHS coordinates member organizations, facilitates communications between them, and provides both scholarships and an outlet for publication to members. ACHS member societies undergo periodic audits to validate their adherence to ACHS standards and their qualification for membership and ACHS certification.
ACHS was formed in 1925 to create a network of affiliated societies and promote high standards for scholarship and leadership on campus. The intention of the founding societies was to establish and maintain desirable standards for groups wishing to call themselves honor societies. These standards include criteria for membership, governance and chapter operation. Four organizations were represented at a preliminary meeting held on October 2, 1925. They were Alpha Omega Alpha, the Order of the Coif, Phi Beta Kappa, and Sigma Xi. The six founding organizations on December 30, 1925 were Alpha Omega Alpha, the Order of the Coif, Phi Beta Kappa, Phi Kappa Phi, Sigma Xi and Tau Beta Pi.
While ACHS certifies each of its members as legitimate, credible organizations, not all legitimate honor societies apply for membership in ACHS.
The honor society standards set by the Association of College Honor Societies are recognized by the U.S. government's Office of Personnel Management for entry into government employment at GS-7 Level: "Applicants can be considered eligible based on membership in one of the national scholastic honor societies listed... by the Association of College Honor Societies. Agencies considering eligibility based on any society not included in the following list must ensure that the honor society meets the minimum requirements of the Association of College Honor Societies."
List of member organizations
70 organizations are affiliated with the ACHS:| Society | Discipline | Founded | Joined ACHS | Processional colors |
| Alpha Beta Gamma | Business | Red and Gold Medallion on Red and Black Ribbon, Stole: Sapphire Blue with Emblem in Gold. Advisors different. | ||
| Alpha Chi | All Academic Fields | Honor Gold or Blue and Green | ||
| Alpha Epsilon | Agricultural, Food, and Biological Engineering | , 1970 | ||
| Alpha Epsilon Delta | Health | Red and Violet | ||
| Alpha Epsilon Rho | Electronic Media | Green and Gold | ||
| Alpha Eta Mu Beta | Biomedical Engineering | |||
| Alpha Iota Delta | Decision Sciences and Information Systems | Green and Gold | ||
| Alpha Kappa Delta | Sociology | Teal | ||
| Alpha Kappa Mu | All Academic Fields | Royal Blue and White | ||
| Alpha Lambda Delta | Freshman Scholarship | Red, Gold, and White | ||
| Alpha Phi Sigma | Criminal Justice | Blue and Gold | ||
| Alpha Pi Mu | Industrial Engineering | , | White Satin with Gold Logo | |
| Alpha Sigma Lambda | Continuing Education and Lifelong Learning | |||
| Alpha Sigma Mu | Metallurgy and Materials Engineering | Silver and Gold | ||
| Alpha Sigma Nu | General Scholarship - Jesuit Institutions of Higher Education | Gold Medallion on Maroon Ribbon | ||
| Beta Gamma Sigma | Business and Management | Gold Cord, Yale Blue Tassel, Gold Wrap and Yale Blue Cord, Gold Tassel, Yale Blue Wrap | ||
| Beta Kappa Chi | Natural Sciences and Mathematics | Royal Blue | ||
| Beta Phi Mu | Library & Information Studies and Information Technology | Purple and White | ||
| Chi Epsilon | Civil Engineering | Purple and White | ||
| Chi Sigma Iota | Professional Counseling | Blue and White | ||
| Delta Epsilon Sigma | General Scholarship in Colleges and Universities with a Catholic Tradition | Gold and Maroon | ||
| Delta Mu Delta | Business Administration | Purple and Gold | ||
| Delta Tau Alpha | Agriculture | Hunter Green and Harvest Gold | ||
| Epsilon Pi Phi | Emergency Management | |||
| Epsilon Pi Tau | Professions in Technology | Blue, Gold, and White | ||
| Gamma Theta Upsilon | Geography | Brown, Light Blue, and Gold | ||
| Kappa Mu Epsilon | Mathematics | |||
| Kappa Omicron Nu | Human Sciences | Burgundy and Cream, Medallion: Gold/Burgundy w/ Burgundy Ribbon | ||
| Kappa Tau Alpha | Journalism and Mass Communication | Blue and Gold | ||
| Lambda Pi Eta | Communication | Red, White, and Gold | ||
| Lambda Sigma | Student Leadership, Scholarship and Service | Blue and Gold | ||
| Mortar Board | Scholarship, Leadership and Service | Gold and Silver tassel w/Mortar Board Fob, stole: Gold with Logo, medallion: White Ribbon with Logo | ||
| Mu Kappa Tau | Marketing | Navy | ||
| National Society of Collegiate Scholars | Scholarship, Leadership & Service | Burgundy and Gold | ||
| Omega Chi Epsilon | Chemical Engineering | Spring 1931 | Maroon and White | |
| Omega Rho | Operations Research & Management Science | , 1986 | Blue and Red | |
| Omicron Delta Epsilon | Economics | Blue and Gold | ||
| Phi Alpha | Social Work | |||
| Phi Alpha Theta | History | |||
| Phi Beta Delta | International Scholars | |||
| Phi Eta Sigma | Freshman | |||
| Phi Lambda Sigma | Pharmacy | |||
| Phi Sigma | Biological Sciences, All Pure and Applied Fields | Yellow, Green, and White | ||
| Phi Sigma Iota | Foreign Languages, Linguistics, Literatures, ESL, & Cultures | Purple and White | ||
| Phi Sigma Tau | Philosophy | White and Purple | ||
| Phi Upsilon Omicron | Family and Consumer Sciences | Yellow, White, and Purple | ||
| Pi Delta Phi | French | Blue, White, and Red | ||
| Pi Gamma Mu | Social Sciences | Royal Blue and White | ||
| Pi Kappa Lambda | Music | |||
| Pi Omega Pi | Business Education | Silver, Royal Blue, and Gold | ||
| Pi Sigma Alpha | Political Science | Red, White, and Black | ||
| Pi Tau Sigma | Mechanical Engineering | Murray and Azure | ||
| Pi Theta Epsilon | Occupational Therapy | Navy and Gold | ||
| Psi Beta | Psychology at Two-Year Colleges | Royal Blue and Gold | ||
| Psi Chi | Psychology | Navy and Platinum with Navy and Platinum Tassels | ||
| Rho Chi | Pharmacy | Royal Purple and White | ||
| Scabbard and Blade, National Society of | Reserve Officer Training Corps | Fall 1904 | ||
| Sigma Beta Delta | Business, Management, and Administration | Hunter Green and Gold | ||
| Sigma Delta Pi | Spanish | Red and Yellow Gold | ||
| Sigma Lambda Alpha | Landscape Architecture | , 1986 | Gold and Green | |
| Sigma Lambda Chi | Construction Management Technology | Green and Gold, stole: Silver with Logo, medallion: Green & Gold on Green & White Ribbon | ||
| Sigma Pi Sigma | Physics | 1945 | Forest Green and Ivory | |
| Sigma Tau Delta | English | Cardinal and Black | ||
| Sigma Theta Tau | Nursing | Orchid and White | ||
| Tau Alpha Pi | Engineering Technology | Green and Gold | ||
| Tau Beta Pi | Engineering | Orange and White, stole: White with Orange Bent | ||
| Tau Sigma Delta | Architecture and Allied Arts | |||
| Theta Alpha Kappa | Religious Studies / Theology | Fall 1976 | , 1986 | Scarlet |
| Upsilon Pi Epsilon | Computing and Information Disciplines | Maroon and White, stole: White with Gold ΥΠΕ Logo | ||
| Xi Sigma Pi | Forestry |
;Notes
Former members
Former members of the Association of College Honor Societies:| Society | Discipline | Founded | Joined ACHS | Left ACHS |
| Alpha Delta Mu | Social Work | Fall 1976 | , 1986 | Terminated |
| Alpha Omega Alpha | Medical | - | ||
| Delta Phi Delta | Art | 1961 | - | |
| Delta Sigma Rho-Tau Kappa Alpha | Forensics | -ΤΚΑ ; -ΔΣΡ | ||
| Eta Kappa Nu | Electrical and Computer Engineering | |||
| Golden Key | General | resigned | ||
| Iota Sigma Pi | Women in the sciences, especially chemistry | or 1902 | - | |
| Kappa Delta Pi | Education | |||
| Lambda Iota Tau | Literature of all Languages | |||
| National Collegiate Players/Pi Epsilon Delta | Theatre Honors | - | ||
| Omicron Nu | Human Sciences | , readmitted 1968 | ||
| Omicron Delta Kappa | Leadership & Scholarship | |||
| Order of the Coif | Law | - | ||
| Phi Beta Kappa | Liberal Arts | Resigned | ||
| Phi Kappa Phi | All Fields | - | ||
| Pi Alpha Alpha | Public Affairs and Administration | , 1984 | ||
| Sigma Gamma Tau | Aerospace Engineering | - | ||
| Sigma Tau | Engineering | - | ||
| Sigma Xi | Scientific Research |
;Notes