All eleven eating clubs on Prospect Ave. are known for their distinctive communities. As sophomores find their fit in terms of the eating and social community they choose to join for their final two years on campus, they must weigh out different aspects of each club that give them their identity. Interested in diversity? Look no further than Cap and Gown, where seniors report the most racial diversity of all the clubs. If your main concern is booze, Tiger Inn is the place.
These clubs have historically been a large part of Princeton’s social scene, with approximately three-quarters of Princeton seniors reporting they have paid dues to at least one eating club during their undergraduate career. With bicker season concluded and hundreds of sophomores settling into their new clubs, the Daily Princetonian broke down the senior respondents aggregated from the 2022, 2023, and 2024 senior surveys, looking at the most interesting trends on the Street. Every club had a sample size of at least 45 students, with five clubs having a sample size of at least 150 over the three years.
According to the past three senior surveys, 76.7 percent of seniors reported having paid dues to at least one eating club during their time at Princeton.
Across all 3 years, sixteen percent of respondents report being first-generation college students. Cloister Inn and non-club students had the highest percentage of first-generation college students, at 22.92 percent and 26.43 percent, respectively.
In contrast, Cannon Dial Elm Club and Tiger Inn had the lowest percentages, with 7.94 percent and 7.69 percent, respectively. Overall, sign-in clubs — Colonial, Cloister, Quadrangle, Terrace, and Charter — had slightly higher percentages of first-generation students compared to bicker clubs, including Cannon, Cap and Gown, Cottage, Ivy, Tiger Inn, and Tower.
Cottage and Ivy Clubs had the highest percentage of members who reported a household income above $500k, with 29.17 percent and 26.92 percent, respectively.
Overall, 18.6 percent of students who never joined an eating club reported having a household income below $40k, the highest percentage of any category analyzed. Among the eating clubs, Terrace and Quadrangle had the highest percentages of members who reported having a household income below $40K, with 16.56 percent and 16.15 percent, respectively.
71.32 percent of respondents who have been members of Colonial Club identified themselves as Asian. Cottage Club and Tiger Inn had the highest percentage of members who identified as white, with 77.36 percent and 74.44 percent, respectively.
Politically, 43.36 percent of Terrace members identified as leftists/socialists, closely followed by Quadrangle Club, with 32.43 percent of members. Cottage Club and Cloister Inn had the highest percentages of members identifying as very conservative, with 11.11 percent and 7.41 percent, respectively. Out of the respondents from Cap and Gown Club that reported leaning towards one specific side, around 96 percent leaned left.
Terrace and Quadrangle clubs had the highest percentage of LGTBQIA+ identifying members. In comparison, Cannon, Cottage, and Tiger Inn had the lowest percentages.
44.9 percent of students who never joined an eating club had not had sex. Among eating clubs, Colonial (33.8 percent) and Quadrangle (33.3 percent) had the lowest percentage of respondent members who haven’t had sex. In contrast, Cap and Gown (93.4 percent) and Ivy Club (93.5 percent) had the highest percentage of members who reported having had sex.
Students who did not join an eating club reported the lowest average drinking frequency (2.42 on a 7-point scale), with approximately 27.6 percent reporting they have never consumed alcohol in a non-religious context, significantly lower than any club-affiliated group, suggesting that club membership may correlate with higher alcohol consumption.
Terrace and Ivy Club members reported the highest levels of marijuana use, with average scores of 2.99 and 2.67 on a 7-point scale, where a score of 3 corresponds to using marijuana “once a month.” In contrast, Colonial Club members reported the lowest frequency of marijuana use.
It is commonly said that there is a club for everyone on the Street. As class sizes expand and new classes join the eating club system, will Princeton’s eating club communities continue to evolve, or will their identities remain?
Danna Duarte is a staff Data writer for the ‘Prince.’
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com
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