Psi Chi is the international honor society in psychology. Psi Chi's mission is to encourage excellence in scholarship and to foster the advancement of psychological science. Membership is open to graduate and undergraduate students who are making the study of psychology one of their major interests and who meet the minimum qualifications.* 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). Psi Chi functions as a federation of chapters located at more than 800 senior colleges and universities in the United States. A National Council, composed of psychologists who are Psi Chi members and who are elected by the chapters, guides the affairs of the organization and sets policy with the approval of the chapters.

*Qualifications for Psi Chi at Eastern include declaring a major or minor in Psychology, at least 12 credits of coursework in Psychology (including PSY 227 for majors), a 3.5 GPA in Psychology, and a 3.0 Overall GPA.

Each semester, students who qualify for membership in Psi Chi will receive an invitation to join. Students must return their application with $65.00 ($55.00 lifetime membership fee and a $10.00 lifetime chapter membership fee) to Dr. Lee. Checks and money orders should be made out to "ECSU Psi Chi." New members will be formally inducted in a ceremony carried out in the Spring of every year. 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.

Psi Chi serves two major goals: one immediate and visibly rewarding to the individual member, the other slower and more difficult to accomplish, but offering greater rewards in the long run. The first of these is the Society's obligation to provide academic recognition to its inductees through their 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. For example, the chapters make active attempts to nourish and stimulate professional growth through programs designed to augment and enhance the regular curriculum and to provide practical experience and fellowship through affiliation with the chapter.

In addition, the national organization provides programs to help achieve these goals, including national and regional conventions held annually in conjunction with the psychological associations, research award competitions, and certificate recognition programs. Also, the Society publishes a quarterly Psi Chi Newsletter which helps to unite and inform the members and to recognize their contributions and accomplishments.

The intrinsic value of membership is rewarding to the achiever in that recognition of excellence leads to self-fulfillment and thus to self-realization. By recognizing that what you do does make a difference, you are stimulated to higher productivity. Accomplishments are enjoyed more when shared with others. Furthermore, the contacts made through Psi Chi will be valuable throughout your educational and professional careers.

Concrete advantages of membership:

• The distinction of belonging to a nationally recognized honor society.
• The ability to purchase Honors cords to be worn at graduation with regalia to identify members of Psi Chi.
• Membership certificate and card which provide 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 the leaders in their field, and meeting Psi Chi members of other chapters who 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.