Honor Societies

UMUC students with superior academic records have the opportunity to join several national honor societies.

Honor Societies - Descriptions

Alpha Sigma Lambda - General (for adult students)

ASL is a nationally recognized honor society that celebrates the scholarship and leadership of adult students in higher education. Alpha Sigma Lambda membership is comprised of highly motivated adult students who are continuing their undergraduate education and managing the responsibilities of work and family while studying. To qualify for membership, a student must be pursuing a first bachelor's degree, have completed at least 30 credits at UMUC in courses graded A, B, C, D, or F, and maintained a GPA of 3.7 or higher in all UMUC courses. At least 15 credits, from UMUC or transferred, must be in courses outside the major.
How to join Alpha Sigma Lambda: Students are invited into Alpha Sigma Lambda. Please contact ASL@umuc.edu for more information.

Lambda Pi Eta - Communication Studies

Lambda Pi Eta is the honor society of the National Communication Association. The goals of the honor society are to recognize, foster, and reward outstanding scholastic achievement in communication studies; stimulate interest in the field of communication, promote and encourage professional development among communication students, and provide an opportunity to discuss and exchange ideas in the field of communication among students, faculty, and professionals. To be eligible, students must have earned at least 60 credits toward the bachelor's degree, including at least 12 credits in communication studies, with a GPA of 3.5 or higher both in communication studies and in overall coursework.
How to join Lambda Pi Eta: Please contact Commclub@umuc.edu for more information.

National Society of Collegiate Scholars - General

The National Society of Collegiate Scholars is an honor society recognizing students who have completed less then 60 credits towards a Bachelor's  or Associate's degree and have shown academic excellence. The honor society encourages students to participate in honor society, campus, and community events, and provides resources for students to focus on their professional and leadership development.

To be eligible, students must be seeking a first Associate's or Bachelor's degree. Students must have completed at least 12 credits at UMUC in courses graded A, B, C, D, or F and have a cumulative GPA of 3.4 or higher. In addition, students must have completed between 12 and 59 credits towards their degree.

How to join National Society of Collegiate Scholars: Students will be invited to join. Please contact umucnscs@umuc.edu for more information.

Phi Alpha Theta - History

Phi Alpha Theta is a nationally recognized honor society that brings together students and faculty who are interested in the field of history. Students do not have to major in history in order to be a member. To qualify for the honor society, students must attain a GPA of 3.5 or higher in at least 12 credits of UMUC History courses, and have an overall UMUC GPA of 3.4.
How to join Phi Alpha Theta: Students may contact Histclub@umuc.edu if they are interested in becoming a member.

Phi Kappa Phi

Phi Kappa Phi promotes the pursuit of excellence in all fields of higher education and recognizes outstanding achievement by students, faculty, and others through election to membership and through various awards for distinguished achievement. To qualify for membership in Phi Kappa Phi, seniors must have completed at least 90 credits toward the bachelor's degree, at least 45 credits of which must have been for UMUC courses carrying letter grades of A, B, C, D, or F, and the candidate's grade point average in UMUC courses must be in the top 10 percent of the previous UMUC graduating class. Juniors must have completed 56 credits of UMUC coursework in courses carrying letter grades of A, B, C, D, or F and the candidate's grade point average in UMUC courses must be 3.9 or higher.
How to join Phi Kappa Phi: Membership is by invitation. Students eligible for Phi Kappa Phi will receive an informational package regarding their nomination.

Phi Theta Kappa - Associate's Degree

Phi Theta Kappa is a national honor society for associate degree students. The UMUC Europe chapter has been chartered since the 1998-99 academic year. To be eligible for membership, students must have completed at least 45 credits toward their first Associate of Arts degree, including at least 30 credits with UMUC with a cumulative grade point average of 3.5. Students will be nominated by UMUC for Phi Theta Kappa twice each academic year, in September for November initiation and February for May initiation. Students eligible for Phi Theta Kappa will receive an informational package regarding their nomination.
How to join Phi Theta Kappa: Membership is by invitation. Students will receive a message regarding their nomination.

Pi Gamma Mu - Social Sciences

Pi Gamma Mu is the International Honor Society for the Social Sciences and recognizes outstanding scholarship in the social sciences at UMUC. Students interested in anthropology, criminal justice, economics, gerontology, history, political science, social psychology, sociology, and women's studies may qualify for membership. Membership is open to students in their last 60 hours of undergraduate work with at least 20 hours of social science credit. Invited students will have a grade point average in the upper 35 percent of their class.
How to join Pi Gamma Mu: Membership is by invitation. Students may contact marylandtheta@umuc.edu for more information.

Psi Chi - Psychology

Psi Chi is the national honor society in psychology, founded in 1929 for the purposes of encouraging, stimulating, and maintaining excellence in scholarship and advancing the science of psychology. Psi Chi is affiliated with both the American Psychological Association and the Association for Psychological Science. Qualified students must be invited to join. To qualify for membership, students must have a declared major or minor in psychology and have at least 45 credits completed toward a bachelor's degree. Students must have completed at least 9 credits of psychology courses and be in the top 35 percent of their class.
How to join Psi Chi: Membership is by invitation. For more information, please contact psichi@umuc.edu

Sigma Tau Delta - English

Sigma Tau Delta is the nationally recognized International English Honor Society. Its purpose is to provide opportunities to associate with students, alumni, and faculty members who have a common interest in writing and in English language and literature. Membership in Sigma Tau Delta is open to qualified UMUC students with a major in English. To be eligible, students must have earned at least 45 semester hours toward a bachelor's degree with an overall GPA of 3.5 or higher. At least 30 semester hours must have been earned at UMUC and must include 12 credits of English beyond ENGL 101 and 6 upper-level credits. Students must also have earned a GPA of 3.6 in English coursework at UMUC.
How to join Sigma Tau Delta: Students may contact Englclub@umuc.edu if they are interested in becoming a member.

Upsilon Pi Epsilon - Computing and Information Disciplines

The UMUC Chapter of Upsilon Pi Epsilon, the international honor society for the computing and information disciplines, is open to graduate and undergraduate students. To qualify for membership, undergraduate students must be pursuing a bachelor's degree with a major in the computing and information disciplines, and must have completed at least 45 credit hours. Students should have completed at least 30 credits at UMUC, including at least 15 credits in the computing and information disciplines. Additionally, he or she must have a grade point average of at least 3.5, with a grade point average of at least 3.5 in all computing and information systems coursework.

Last updated: 19 October 2010