A college athletic conference. The Patriot League is comprised of the selective group of colleges and universities in Division 1 NCAA, outside of the Ivy League. The conference aslo boasts the second highest student-athlete graduation rate, again following the Ivy League.

The core members of the conference are American University, United States Military Academy (Army), Bucknell University, Colgate University, College of the Holy Cross, Lafayette College, Lehigh University, and the United States Navel Academy (Navy). These eight core members participate in all NCAA sports sponsered by the Patriot League, with the expection of Army and Navy who play an independent Football Bowl Subdivision schedule, while the other core members play in the Football Championship Subdivision. There are also three sport specific members of hte Patriot League who are referred to as "Patriot League associate members." Fordham University and Georgetown University for football, and MIT for women's rowing. Boston University and Loyola University Maryland will be joining the conference in all sports (neither school sponsers football) for the 2013-14 school year.