Are Honor Societies Still Relevant? Students Are Re-Evaluating a Longstanding Tradition

For generations, honor societies symbolized academic achievement: an invitation earned through performance and rewarded with a résumé line, a certificate, and a sense of distinction. But as higher education evolves and employer expectations shift, students are increasingly asking whether these organizations still provide meaningful value.

What was once considered an automatic “yes” has become a more careful calculation.

A Model Built for a Different Era

Traditional honor societies operated on a simple formula. Strong GPA plus invitation signaled excellence, and the prestige alone was assumed to offer advantage. But today’s students face rising costs, heavier work commitments, and a job market that prizes communication, adaptability, leadership, and problem-solving. Recognition alone no longer satisfies those realities.

“Students want evidence that something will actually help them,” said Dr. Tom C. Hogan, Professor of Practice in Human Resource Management at Penn State University. “Prestige alone is not enough anymore.”This shift is pushing honor societies to clarify, and in many cases modernize, the value they deliver.

What Students Say They Want Now

The students themselves describe this shift clearly.  Matthias Dempsey, a student at CSU East Bay, explained, “An honor society used to feel like a badge you earned. Now students want something they can describe in an interview, not just something to list on a résumé. If there is no real development or direction behind it, people hesitate.”

Students also emphasize how they want to engage. Many prefer asynchronous flexibility that fits jobs, commutes, and family obligations, while also valuing live online experiences that allow them to interact in real time. Increasingly, they describe wanting meaningful connections with peers and with employers, saying that supportive networks, exposure to professionals, and conversations about real career paths carry more weight than ceremonial events.

Recognition still matters, but students are looking for relevance, structure, connection, and outcomes.

How Some Societies Are Responding

A number of national organizations are reevaluating their models. One example is the Society for Collegiate Leadership and Achievement (SCLA), founded by Pat Sidhu, which brought in a new leadership team to rebuild the organization around the college-to-career transition. According to SCLA’s publicly available program overview, it positions itself as the one of the only national honor societies intentionally focused on college-to-career readiness, reflecting the broader expectations of modern students.

SCLA introduced a career readiness certification paired with digital badging. The organization integrated AI-supported pathways that personalize learning and assessments, helping students translate academic success into language they can use in interviews.

Its engagement model is also designed for modern learners, offering both live online sessions and asynchronous course experiences, allowing students to participate at their own pace or join real-time discussions and reflection activities. SCLA publishes a CEO speaker series featuring leaders such as Red Lobster President Damola Adamolekun, giving members exposure to industry insights and workplace expectations.

To support institutional alignment, SCLA works with two national advisory boards—one of higher education administrators and one of business executives and thought leaders—that provide feedback on programming, employer relevance, and student experience design.

These developments mirror a broader trend. Students increasingly research honor societies before joining, including the SCLA, often searching phrases such as “Is the SCLA legit” or “SCLA reviews.” This behavior is not unique to SCLA; it reflects how students now evaluate any organization, prioritizing transparency, accreditation, and proven outcomes over tradition.

The New Relevance Test

Honor societies that rely mainly on ceremonies and résumé lines are seeing hesitation from students who expect clearer value. The organizations that continue to resonate are those that connect recognition to career preparation and offer flexible experiences and networks that feel genuinely supportive.

As Dr. Hogan, member of the Senior National Advisory Board for SCLA, noted, “Students are not turning away from honor societies. They are turning toward the ones that prove their impact.”

That perspective is shared by Matthias, who also serves as chapter president of the SCLA chapter at CSU East Bay. After leading his campus’s recent certification and induction ceremony, he said students respond most to organizations that “make it clear how membership translates into real opportunities.” His experience reflects a growing expectation that honor societies must feel active, purposeful, and aligned with students’ futures.