Eligibility to join Phi Beta Kappa
Membership in the National Society of Phi Beta Kappa is by invitation only and it is offered by the student's undergraduate institution's chapter of PBK. The UIC Chapter is designated as Iota of Illinois and it is composed of faculty and staff of UIC who were elected to Phi Beta Kappa by their respective undergraduate institutions. Each Spring Term, our chapter members review the transcripts of juniors and seniors who have attained grade point averages of 3.75 or above, and those students also demonstrating academic success in advanced level coursework beyond their major covering mathematics, the physical sciences, the social sciences, the humanities, and language are sent an invitation to join the Society.
Membership is invitation-only and contingent upon fulfillment of minimum requirements.
Stipulation 1.
Eligible students shall be candidates for a bachelor’s degree. The student's record shall include coursework in the liberal arts and sciences equivalent to at least three-quarters of the credits ordinarily required for a bachelor's degree in these fields (e.g., not less than 90 semester hours of work if 120 hours are normally required for such a degree). The liberal arts and sciences encompass the traditional disciplines of the natural sciences, mathematics, social sciences, and humanities. Select courses in other programs of study may be included only if they unambiguously embody the liberal arts and sciences.
Because Phi Beta Kappa honors excellence in the liberal arts and sciences, applied or pre-professional coursework shall not be considered in determining eligibility. This stipulation excludes professionally focused courses and courses devoted to the acquisition of practical skills.
Stipulation 2.
Weight shall be given to the breadth and depth of study in liberal arts and sciences, taking into account the number, variety, and level of courses taken outside the requirements of the major, and the proportion of the candidate's overall program those courses constitute. Consideration shall also be given to the number of elective courses taken above the introductory, or general education, level.
Membership is invitation-only and contingent upon fulfillment of minimum requirements.
Stipulation 1.
Eligible students shall be candidates for a bachelor’s degree. The student's record shall include coursework in the liberal arts and sciences equivalent to at least three-quarters of the credits ordinarily required for a bachelor's degree in these fields (e.g., not less than 90 semester hours of work if 120 hours are normally required for such a degree). The liberal arts and sciences encompass the traditional disciplines of the natural sciences, mathematics, social sciences, and humanities. Select courses in other programs of study may be included only if they unambiguously embody the liberal arts and sciences.
Because Phi Beta Kappa honors excellence in the liberal arts and sciences, applied or pre-professional coursework shall not be considered in determining eligibility. This stipulation excludes professionally focused courses and courses devoted to the acquisition of practical skills.
Stipulation 2.
Weight shall be given to the breadth and depth of study in liberal arts and sciences, taking into account the number, variety, and level of courses taken outside the requirements of the major, and the proportion of the candidate's overall program those courses constitute. Consideration shall also be given to the number of elective courses taken above the introductory, or general education, level.