Membership applications let you review who joins your chapter. When you require an application, people request to join instead of joining instantly, and you approve or decline each request0 with or without a set of application questions.
About membership applications
Every chapter has a membership setting that controls how people join. You choose this setting from your chapter settings under Membership, where a short line reminds you that you are choosing how users can join your chapter. You can pick from these options:
| Membership option | What it means |
|---|---|
| Open | Anyone can join the chapter instantly. |
| Invite Only | Only invited users can join. |
| Application Required | Users must submit an application to join, and you approve each one. |
| Application Required (Anonymous Allowed) | The same as Application Required, but users can apply without logging in first. |
When you choose Application Required or Application Required (Anonymous Allowed), people no longer join with one click. Instead, they see a Request to Join button on your chapter page and their request waits for your review.
The two application options are settings behind the member-facing "Request to Join" experience. "Request to Join" is what applicants see; "Application required" is what you select as an organizer.
Choose how people join your chapter
To require an application before someone can join:
- Open your chapter settings and find the Membership section.
- Select Application Required, or select Application Required (Anonymous Allowed) if you want people to apply without logging in first.
- Save your settings.
After you select an application option, a helper message points you to configure your application survey in the Members area.
| Tip: Choose Application Required (Anonymous Allowed) when you want to reach people who do not yet have an account — for example, when you promote your chapter to a new audience. Everyone else can use the standard Application Required option. |
Build your application form
Your application form is called the Application Survey. Use it to customize the questions shown to users when they apply to join your chapter. To set it up:
- Go to the Application Survey for your chapter in the Members area.
- Add the questions you want applicants to answer.
- Save the survey.
You do not have to add any questions. If you save the survey with no questions, applicants can request to join without filling out a form, and you still approve each request. When the survey is empty, Bevy shows you a reminder that confirms this.
An empty application form still requires your approval. The difference is only whether applicants answer questions-not whether you review them. An applicant who submits a form with the questions clicks Apply; an applicant to a chapter with questions clicks Requests to Join.
Review and approve applications
Manage requests from the Applications page for your chapter, where you review and manage chapter membership applications. To work through your requests:
- Open the Applications page. By default it shows your pending applications.
- Review each applicant. If your form has questions, you see each person’s answers in the table.
- Approve or decline each request:
- To approve, choose Accept. The applicant becomes a chapter member and you see a confirmation that the application was accepted.
- To decline, choose Decline. You can add review notes before you confirm, and you see a confirmation that the application was declined.
- To see requests you have already handled, turn on Show processed applications. This view also shows the review notes you added.
To export your applications, select Download CSV on the Applications page.
Accepting or declining a request takes effect right away. If two organizers review the same list at the same time and one of them acts first, the other sees a message that the application was already processed and the list refreshes.
What applicants experience
When your chapter requires an application, here is what a member sees, in order:
- On your chapter page, the join button reads Request to Join (or Apply when your form has questions), instead of joining instantly.
- After they submit, the button changes to Application Pending while they wait for your review.
- Once you accept the request, the person becomes a member of your chapter.