Boston College (BC), for instance, currently has about 9,200 undergraduates and 230 registered student groups. Compared to Harvard’s one group per 26 students, BC has one per 40.

Even with its smaller group-to-student ratio, BC has taken action to curb the proliferation of groups on campus.

Two years ago, administrators called for a moratorium on all new student groups, according to Dean for Student Development Robert A. Sherwood.

Sherwood says the moratorium was well-received by most students, except for a small minority who were frustrated about being unable to start new groups.

BC has since replaced the moratorium with a more selective process similar to Harvard’s.

Currently, becoming an official BC group requires 20 members, a mission statement and a constitution.

To limit the number of short-lived groups, seniors are no longer permitted to found new student organizations.

The administration acts similarly to Harvard’s when it comes to granting the final approval.

“Once a group has gone that far through the new process, we’re likely to approve it,” Sherwood says.

At Tufts, the low-key process has spawned a worrisome number of short-term groups, says Assistant Director of Student Activities at Tufts, Edmund T. Cabellon.

There are 160 registered student groups for about 8,600 undergraduates and student groups must acquire 15 members before being granted temporary approval. In the last step of the process, a committee of students chooses to approve or reject the potential group. Although the school hasn’t taken any action, Cabellon says the process should be less liberal. He says the current system negatively impacts the few groups that could remain for the long-run.

“I think it limits the authenticity of organizations that could have a longer life span than their original founders,” Cabellon says. “But it’s a common challenge that happens at colleges across the country.”

Boston University (BU) currently has 411 student groups for a student body of about 17,000 undergraduates.

The university requires new groups to obtain five members before receiving the approval of the director of student activities.

Linda Keltner, executive secretary at BU’s Student Activities Office, said that, like Harvard, the university approves 20 to 30 new groups per semester. Many groups, she says, especially special interest groups with a narrow focus, tend to disappear after their founders graduate.