Requirements for Membership
- The student must be a candidate for a liberal arts degree (BA, BS, or BLS) with a liberal arts and science major (art, biology, chemistry, classics, economics, English, French, geology, German, history, mathematics, music philosophy, physics, political science, psychology, religion, sociology-anthropology, Spanish, or theatre). At least three-fourths of the work required for a degree must be in liberal arts and sciences.
- A minimum of one-half of the work required for graduation must be completed at Millsaps.
- One course in mathematics, calculus or above, and one course in a foreign language at the intermediate level or above for those students entering 1999 and after. For students entering prior to 1997 the requirement is one course in mathematics and two courses in a foreign language--or one course at the intermediate level or above of a foreign language.
- A minimum grade point average of 3.7 based on seven or more semesters of work. Grades in courses for applied or professional work are not counted in computing GPA for Phi Beta Kappa purposes.
- Transfer students must meet the GPA requirement both on work done at Millsaps and on their college work as a whole.
- No more than ten percent of the liberal arts and sciences graduates may be elected to Phi Beta Kappa from a graduating class. The requirements above are only the minimum requirements for eligibility and do not necessarily guarantee election to membership. The limitation of electing no more than ten percent of a graduating class necessarily implies that more stringent criteria will have to be applied if the number of candidates who meet the minimum requirements exceeds that percentage in any year.
- With the help of the Office of Records and the Dean of Students, a committee of the chapter goes through student transcripts of prospective graduates in the spring, recalculating GPA where necessary, and determines the pool of students who meet the minimum requirements. Records and the committee calculate the number that would represent no more than 10% of the likely liberal arts and sciences graduates. The chapter meets in the spring semester and considers the pool of eligible candidates ranked by GPA but without other identifying characteristics (i.e., no name or major is indicated) and determines those who will be invited to become members. An initiation ceremony for new members followed by a chapter banquet is held in April of each year.
