Honor Societies
Honor societies are national organizations that celebrate the scholarship and leadership of students in specific fields of study. As a member, you'll have the opportunity to enrich the UMUC community, attend regional and national conferences, and meet scholars and leaders from other universities.
Select an Honor Society below for a full description and membership information:
- Alpha Sigma Lambda—General (undergraduate)
- Lambda Pi Eta—Communication Studies
- National Society of Collegiate Scholars—General (undergraduate)
- Phi Alpha Theta—History
- Pi Gamma Mu—Social Sciences
- Phi Kappa Phi—General
- Psi Chi—Psychology
- Sigma Phi Omega—Gerontology
- Sigma Tau Delta—English
- Upsilon Pi Epsilon—Computing
Membership is an honor and privilege that can enhance your academic and professional stature. Certain academic criteria apply.
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: 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 30 credits at UMUC and 12 credits in communication studies, with a GPA of 3.5 or higher both in communication studies and in overall coursework.
How to join: 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 than 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 toward their degree.
How to join: 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 semester hours of UMUC History courses, and have an overall UMUC GPA of 3.4.
How to join: Students may contact histclub@umuc.edu if they are interested in becoming a member.
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: Membership is by invitation. Students may contact marylandtheta@umuc.edu for more information.
Phi Kappa Phi - General
As the oldest and most selective of the nation's honor societies, Phi Kappa Phi promotes the pursuit of excellence in all fields of higher education. It recognizes the outstanding achievements of students, faculty, and others through election to membership and through awards for distinguished scholarly achievement. For more information, please visit http://polaris.umuc.edu/phikappaphi/.
Graduate Requirements: To qualify, graduate students must be in the final session of their degree coursework and in the upper 10 percent of their graduating class.
Undergraduate Requirements: To qualify, undergraduate candidates must have completed at least 90 credits toward the bachelor's degree, at least 45 of which must have been for UMUC courses carrying letter grades A, B, C, D, or F. The candidate's GPA in UMUC courses must be in the top 10 percent of the previous UMUC graduating class.
How to join: Students will be invited to join.
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 have to have a declared major or minor in psychology, and have at least 45 credits completed towards a bachelor's degree. Students must have completed at least 9 credits of psychology courses. Additionally, students must be in the top 35 percent of their class.
For more information, please contact psichi@umuc.edu
Sigma Phi Omega—Gerontology
Sigma Phi Omega (SPO) is a national academic honor and professional society in gerontology. SPO was established in 1980 to recognize excellence among students studying gerontology and aging and to recognize the outstanding service of professionals who work with or on behalf of older persons. The society provides a much-needed link between educators, practitioners and administrators in various settings where older persons are served. SPO seeks to promote scholarship, professionalism, friendship and services to older persons and to recognize exemplary attainment in gerontology/aging studies and related fields.
Student membership in SPO is open to undergraduate students majoring or minoring in Gerontology and Aging Services (GERO/GERA), Social Science majors focusing on Gerontology and students in related fields with an interest in aging. Students must be in at least their second term of enrollment at UMUC, have completed a minimum of 12 credits hours, and have a cumulative GPA of at least 3.3.
How to join: For more information about joining UMUC's chapter of Sigma Phi Omega, Upsilon Chi, contact spo@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 semester hours of English beyond ENGL 101 and 6 semester hours of upper-level credit. Students must also have earned a GPA of 3.6 in English coursework at UMUC.
How to join: Students may contact englclub@umuc.edu if they are interested in becoming a member.
Upsilon Pi Epsilon—Computing
Upsilon Pi Epsilon is the International Honor Society for the Computing and Information Disciplines. Formed in 1967, the purpose of Upsilon Pi Epsilon is to promote the computing and information sciences and to encourage the enhancement of knowledge in the field. Upsilon Pi Epsilon is open to both undergraduate and graduate students who are pursuing a degree in the computing and information disciplines.
Graduate eligibility requirements: Membership is open to graduate students pursuing a MS in Information Technology with one of the following specializations: Database Systems Technology, Information Assurance, Informatics, Software Engineering or Telecommunications Management. Students must have completed at least 18 credits towards their degree at UMUC, with a cumulative GPA of a 3.5 or higher.
Undergraduate eligibility requirements: Membership is open to students majoring in one of the computing disciplines. Students must have completed at least 45 credit hours towards their degree, including 30 or more credits at UMUC (in graded coursework) and at least 15 credits from the Computer Information Systems and Technology department. Students need to have a cumulative GPA of a 3.5 or higher and a GPA of 3.5 or higher in all coursework taken from the Computer Information Systems and Technology department.
How to join: Students who are eligible to join the chapter are sent invitations in the fall or spring semesters. Please e-mail upe@umuc.edu for more information.
