Applications for AKD membership are accepted by the Sociology Department during the spring semester of each academic year. Detailed instructions on the application procedures are sent to all Sociology majors at least two weeks before the application deadline.

Check out the following:

2023 Alpha Kappa Delta Inductees: 

Savanna Capdevil

Ashley Buckley

Amelia Mead

Baoling Lin

Aidan Deitz

James Earl

Sarah Motayne 

Amani Moses

Brief History

Alpha Kappa Delta had its specific beginning in the fall of 1920 in the department of sociology, University of Southern California, when the departmental chairman, Dr. Emory S. Bogardus, proposed to the graduate students the formation of a society in which the students might become acquainted with each other's research projects and where they might meet informally with the whole staff of the department for suggestions and criticisms. Consequently, on November 21, 1920, a group of 14 persons composed of the faculty and graduate students of the department of sociology organized the first chapter of Alpha Kappa Delta for the purpose of interchange of ideas concerning sociological projects.

Membership in the group was limited to undergraduate and graduate students having high scholarship and to those doing research work. In fact, in the local group Phi Beta Kappa standards were approximated for membership.

In 1921, Dr. Bogardus, acting on the belief that the best students in sociology in other universities might be interested in a similar organization, sent letters to faculty members in a selected group of institutions. The University of Wisconsin was the first to respond. Northwestern University and the University of Kansas followed.

The name, Alpha Kappa Delta, was devised by Dr. Bogardus and adopted by the chapter members of the University of Southern California chapter. It represents the first letters of three Greek words: namely, anthropon (mankind), katamanthaneion (to investigate thoroughly or to conduct research). The name, therefore, implies social research for the purpose of service. An appropriate symbol of the Society, the Alpha Kappa Delta key, was designed by Dr. Melvin J. Vincent, one of the charter members of the Alpha chapter of California.

Description & Purpose

Alpha Kappa Delta, founded in 1920, is the International Sociology Honor Society. AKD is a "non-secret, democratic, international society of scholars dedicated to the ideal of Anthropon Katamanthanein Diakonesian or 'To investigate humanity for the purpose of service." The purpose of AKD is to "promote an interest in the study of sociology, research of social problems, and such other social and intellectual activities as will lead to improvement in the human condition.

At Syracuse University, AKD functions within the Sociology Club, an organization dedicated to promoting interaction among sociology majors, minors, and others interested in sociology. Activities include intellectual, service, and social programs to enrich the educational experience of students studying in the sociology department. The Sociology Club is open to all members of the university community who are interested in studying, creating and applying sociological knowledge. Class standing and minimum grade point average are not criteria for membership in the Sociology Club.

Applying to the Alpha Kappa Delta: Beta Chapter of New York

The Beta Chapter of AKD is governed by and subject to the articles spelled out in the most recent official AKD Handbook.

Undergraduates may apply for membership in the Sociology Honor Society, Beta Chapter of AKD, if they have fulfilled the following requirements:

1. Must be an officially declared sociology major.

2. Must have junior standing by standards of the host institution.

3. Must have attained a 3.0 grade point average in sociology and a 3.3 overall GPA.

4. Must have completed at least 12 hours of sociology at Syracuse University prior to initiation.

Graduate students may also apply for membership in the Sociology Honor Society, Beta Chapter of AKD, if they have fulfilled the following requirements:

1. Must have completed one full semester in sociology at Syracuse University prior to initiation.

2. Must have attained at least a 3.3 grade point average.

3. Must be matriculated in a program of study leading toward a graduate degree in sociology at the host institution.

Lifetime membership to AKD requires a $50 initiation fee, $30 of which will be paid as a gift from the Department of Sociology. This fee includes the first year subscription to the AKD scholarly journal, Sociological Inquiry.