Award societies, as opposed to sororities and fraternities, honor students who have excelled in their academic careers. College students usually encounter two kinds of honor organizations:
- Open to all students are general societies.
- Societies for certain academic fields
National honor organizations are common among students who study arts and social sciences.
Reputable honor organizations have entrance requirements. For example, students may need a minimum GPA or be in the top 20% of their class.
Local chapters may add their criteria to the national honor society standards. Only students with at least 15 credits in psychology and a 3.5 GPA in their psych studies are eligible for admission to a psychological honor society.
Honor societies provide members exclusive scholarships, opportunities to develop their leadership and academic skills, mentoring opportunities, and networking contacts. The benefits of joining an honor society may outweigh the drawbacks for certain students.
3 Pros of Joining an Honor Society
Students’ reasons for joining honor societies And if you meet the criteria, should you think about joining? The following are the benefits of joining an honor society.
You Qualify for Scholarships
Numerous honor organizations only provide members scholarships. Members may be eligible for prizes, grants for travel, and other forms of financial assistance.
You could be eligible for the following scholarships by joining an honor society:
- Phi Theta Kappa: Members are eligible for undergraduate, transfer student, nursing, career tech, veteran, and $7,500 scholarships.
- Honor Society: This organization provides scholarships worth between $1,000 and $5,000. Scholarships honor leadership qualities, academic excellence, and volunteer work.
- Alpha Kappa Delta: This honor organization for sociology provides its members with prizes and travel funding, including a paper prize and a minority scholarship program.
- Pi Lambda Theta: This honor society for educators provides members with up to $2,000 in scholarships.
The chances of receiving a scholarship may be better than those for open scholarships since only members are eligible for these possibilities.
Honor Societies Offer Leadership Opportunities
A chapter’s officials are chosen to oversee meetings and activities. It is even simpler for members to volunteer their way up to an officer position in smaller, major-specific honor societies.
Depending on the honor society, chapters may be required to elect certain officers, such as a president, vice president, secretary, and treasurer. Additionally, chapters are free to designate their positions, such as outreach director or social media manager.
Your resume will be strengthened by these leadership roles while showcasing your dedication to academics.
Many Host Academic Conferences and Award Prizes
An academic honor society is a great way to gain academic experience if you’re considering graduate school.
Honor societies hold numerous regional and national conferences and may provide travel grants to help with costs. Many also hold academic competitions and give out paper prizes.
Participating in these activities can improve your academic performance and graduate applications.
3 Cons of Joining an Honor Society
Should you join an honor society if you get an invitation letter from them or fulfill the academic requirements? At times, declining the offer makes more sense. Here are some drawbacks of joining an honor society.
Honor Societies Typically Charge a Fee
It will cost you money to join an honor society.
Most national honor societies have a membership cost of at least $50 and sometimes more than $100. For instance, the Honor Society charges a minimum of $65 every six months.
Are the advantages of joining an honor society worth the cost of joining? For some pupils, the expense surpasses any advantages. Examine what you will get in return for the price before enrolling.
Your Chapter Might Not Do Much
Your honor society chapter will influence your experience on campus. Some chapters are highly active; they organize events, arrange fundraising activities, and have frequent meetings. However, certain chapters hardly exist.
An active chapter may be optional if you are just interested in joining an honor society to have a line on your resume or be eligible for scholarships. But before joining, make sure your college chapter is active if you’re interested in leadership, community service, and academic experience.
Some Honor Societies Are Scams
It’s simple enough to create a fictitious honor society, invite others, and collect membership fees. How, therefore, can you prevent being duped by phony honor societies?
First, see whether your school has a chapter office or a faculty coordinator. Honor organizations without a presence on campus sometimes come under the fraud umbrella. Go to the Association of College Honor Societies after that. It can be a hoax if the organization isn’t a member.
Should You Join a College Honor Society?
I learned about many of the advantages for students while serving as a faculty adviser to a collegiate honor society. Thanks to the organization, members of our honor society could speak at conferences, win awards, and get funding.
On the other side, Phi Beta Kappa offered to join as an undergraduate, but I needed to take advantage of many benefits of membership, such as lectures, networking opportunities, and scholarships.
In conclusion, you may benefit from college without joining an honor society. However, joining an honor society might be an excellent choice if you want to make friends with kids who share your major, apply for scholarships, or bolster your CV.
