Psi Chi

About Psi Chi

Psi Chi is the National Honor Society in Psychology, founded in 1929.  Membership is open to graduate and undergraduate men and women who are making the study of psychology one of their major interests and who meet the minimum requirements.  The Qualifications are 1) completion of at least 3 semesters of the college course, 2) completion of 9 semester hours of psychology, 3) registration for major or minor standing in psychology, 4) undergraduates who are elected to Psi Chi must have an overall cumulative GPA of 3.00 and rank in the upper 35% of their class in general scholarship and minimum GPA in psychology courses of 3.50, 5) for graduate students, an average grade of "B" or better in all graduate courses, including psychology, 6) high standards of personal behavior, 7) two-thirds affirmative vote of those present at a regular meeting of the chapter.

Psi Chi is a member of the Association of College Honor Societies (ACHS) and is an affiliate of the American Psychological Association (APA) and the American Psychological Society (APS).

What are the goals of Psi Chi?

The purpose of Psi Chi shall be to encourage, stimulate, and maintain excellence in scholarship of the individual members in all fields, particularly in psychology, and to advance the science of psychology.

Psi Chi serves two major goals.  The first of these is the Society's obligation to provide academic recognition to its inductees by the mere fact of membership.

The second goal is the obligation of each of the Society's local chapters to nurture the spark of that accomplishment by offering a climate congenial to its creative development.

The national organization provides programs to nourish and stimulate students professional growth.  These programs include national and regional conventions, research award competitions, certificate recognition programs, national and regional chapter awards, and national service projects.

Unfortunately, our Psi Chi chapter at North Dakota State University has not been very active in the last few years.  Please contact your co-presidents with ideas for Psi Chi activities.

What are the benefits of Psi Chi?

The intrinsic value of membership is rewarding to the achiever in that recognition of excellence leads to self-fulfillment and thus to self-realization.  Furthermore, the contacts made through Psi Chi will be valuable throughout your educational and professional careers.

Concrete advantages of membership include:

• The documents - a membership certificate and card which give tangible evidence of membership.
   
• The references provided throughout one's lifetime (this service alone is worth the investment).
   
• The experience gained by working with Psi Chi is excellent for building up a resume; it is difficult to attain that first managerial and creative experience.
   
• Psi Chi is a springboard for professional growth.  Opportunities are made available to the members for promoting their research, receiving national and international recognition, meeting and interacting with leaders in their field, and meeting Psi Chi members of other chapters who also will be future leaders.
   
• The United States government recognizes membership in Psi Chi as meeting one of the requirements for entrance at the GS-7 level in the Federal service.

The Ultimate test of the value of any membership organization lies in the accomplishments of its members.  In each year of Psi Chi's history, more and more members have undertaken graduate studies.  Now over 70 years old, Psi Chi is well represented in the professional ranks of all the behavioral sciences.  The membership directories of the American Psychological Association and the American Psychological Society are studded with the names of Psi Chi members, both active and alumni.  This is only one example demonstrating that the Society's purposes are being fulfilled.

How do I join Psi Chi?

Students become members by joining the chapter at the school where they are enrolled. Psi Chi chapters are operated by student officers and faculty advisors.  Together they select and induct the members and carry out the goals of the Society.

All chapters register their inductees at the Psi Chi National office, where the membership records are preserved for reference purposes.

At North Dakota State University, if you are eligible for membership (based on your GPA), you will be invited to join Psi Chi in a letter sent out in the spring.  Induction of new members occurs in April of each year.