Phi Beta Kappa

Zeta Chapter of Illinois

In Self-trust all the virtues are comprehended.  Free should the scholar be—free and brave.

--Ralph Waldo Emerson: The American Scholar, 1837

Membership

Each year, its 255 chapters invite fewer than 15,000 students, from among several million now enrolled in the nation’s colleges and universities, to share the unique distinction of membership in the Society.  Those who accept that much-coveted invitation are then asked to attend an initiation ceremony (portions of which date back to the days of the American Revolution).

The ceremony traditionally makes the beginning of a lifelong relationship between members and the Society, but many of the benefits are immediate.  Members are entitled to receive the national newsletter, The Key Reporter, which reports on Phi Beta Kappa programs at local and national levels.  At present, that publication is mailed to all 430,000 members for whom the Society has a current address. There are now Phi Beta Kappa Associations in 50 communities across the nation which hold regular meetings to encourage friendship among members and to pursue the Society’s commitment to academic excellence. 

Criteria for Membership

Invitations to membership are extended solely at the discretion of the individual chapters. Members are elected from candidates for degrees in the liberal arts and sciences, usually from the upper tenth of the graduating class. In addition to an outstanding record of academic achievement, the stipulations for eligibility adopted by the triennial Council in 1952 require that candidates have done at least three-quarters of their work in an area of the liberal arts and sciences as well as have a demonstrated knowledge of mathematics and a foreign language. Students whose principal study is in applied or professional work are not eligible.

Candidates are not asked to apply for membership; the initiative for election remains with the chapter. Students interested in Phi Beta Kappa are encouraged to contact the chapter officers early in their academic careers for guidance on requirements and curriculum. Generally, election to membership occurs at the completion of undergraduate study. A very few chapters at universities with doctoral programs in the liberal arts and sciences also elect graduate student members.

*Courtesy of http://www.pbk.org

Chapter Officers

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