Officer & Membership Policies

All student organizations must abide by the Undergraduate Regulations. Upon registration, organizations, their officers, and their members assume the responsibility to be aware of and abide by the Undergraduate Regulations.

A student who is believed to have violated University policy or state or federal law (including but not limited to hazing, sexual misconduct, or theft) in the course of working for or participating in the activities of an undergraduate organization may be brought before the Yale College Executive Committee or the University-Wide Committee on Sexual Misconduct (UWC), as appropriate, for possible disciplinary action and/or referred to appropriate civil authorities.

Student organizations must also operate in accordance with Yale policies on equal opportunity, which state, “Yale does not discriminate … against any individual on account of that individual’s sex, race, color, religion, age, disability, or national or ethnic origin; nor does Yale discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity or expression.”

As part of complying with the Yale policy on equal opportunity, each organization is responsible for making reasonable accommodations to assist students with disabilities who indicate that they wish to participate in the organization’s activities or attend one of its events. The University’s Office for Equal Opportunity Programs, 221 Whitney Avenue, and the director of the Resource Office on Disabilities, 35 Broadway (rear entrance), Room 222, are available to help organizations with these efforts.

Finally, undergraduate organizations must operate on a non-profit basis.

(updated for the 2024-2025 academic year)

Officers and advisers

  • Officers. Officers must be Yale College students currently enrolled for study in New Haven, in good academic standing and not on disciplinary probation. Only officers may act officially on behalf of an organization. Officers should be aware that they are financially and legally responsible for the organization during their term(s) of service; they can be held responsible by Yale, as well as by other entities, for any infractions committed by their organizations. Officers must be listed on their organization’s Yale Connect portal with up-to-date information, including term dates.

  • Advisers. To assist in providing continuity from year to year, organizations are encouraged to have a Yale staff or faculty member as an adviser. Organizations must keep their information about their advisers up to date on their Yale Connect portal.

Members

Officers are responsible for maintaining a complete, up-to-date roster of members on the Yale Connect portal for their student organization.

Membership Criteria:

  • Any student organization that receives university resources must be equally open to all undergraduates. Graduate and professional students, faculty, and staff of Yale University can be members of an undergraduate organization, as long as Yale College students constitute a majority of the membership.
  • Student organization membership ordinarily continues for the duration of a student’s time at Yale. Organizations may choose to have shorter durations (membership per semester or year, for example); this must be made clear to all prospective and current members. (See here for details on organization membership for students taking time away from enrollment.)
  • Membership may not be restricted based on personal characteristics, beliefs, or behaviors outside the organization’s core functions. This is true even for organizations which focus on a specific issue or identity. Membership may, however, be restricted to students who support the core goals of the student organization. For example, “Yale Women for Forest Preservation” must be open to people of all gender identities willing to work for the involvement of women in protecting forests.
  • Student organizations that require specific skills may restrict their membership through a structured audition process open to all undergraduates. The standards used to select members must be related to the needs of the organization, and public announcements about auditions or competitions should be made to ensure that interested students are informed about the opportunities to be considered for membership in the organization. The information must be outlined clearly in the organization’s constitution and must include a timeline of the process. The criteria must be skills based and operate in accordance with Yale’s non-discrimination policy.  

Membership management:

  • Student organizations may set membership expectations pertinent to their core functions; examples include regular attendance, fulfillment of assigned tasks, practice and preparation for organizational activities. These expectations should be documented in the organization’s constitution or bylaws.

  • Organization leaders are expected to provide feedback and clear guidance to any members who fail to meet organization expectations or who are obstructing the organization’s core functions. If, despite multiple interventions, the member continues to fall short of the student organization’s expectations, leaders may require the member to leave the organization. For example, members who miss too many meetings, fail to complete crucial tasks, or significantly disrupt rehearsals could be informed that their membership is in jeopardy; if the behavior persists, they could lose their membership.

    • ​Members may not be required to leave a student organization based on identities, beliefs, or behaviors outside the scope of the organization’s core functions. Misbehavior in other contexts is insufficient justification for removing someone’s membership.

    • If leaders are concerned that a student member has engaged in behavior that violates the Undergraduate Regulations or other university policies, the leaders should bring their concerns to the attention of their Student Organization Consultant or to a university official such as a dean, a Title IX Coordinator, or a Discrimination and Harassment Resource Coordinator. Student organizations may not conduct internal disciplinary processes to address these matters, nor may they ask a member to leave due to behaviors outside the scope of the organization’s core functions.