The only way to become a member of Psi Chi, the International Honor Society in Psychology, is by joining through the chapter on your own campus. But what if your campus doesn’t have a chapter? Regardless of whether you are a student or a faculty member, you can start the process of bringing a chapter to your university.
Requirements
The first step is to determine whether your campus meets basic requirements. These are:
- Your university is accredited.
- Your university offers a bachelor’s and/or graduate degree in psychology.
- All psychology degrees require coursework in research methods and statistics.
- Your university and department have working websites that make information available to the public.
- There is a psychology club or similar student group that has been in place and active for at least one year.
- There are at least eight eligible students who can submit information with the application.
- Your department has at least two full-time psychology faculty members who have earned a doctorate in psychology.
Membership Interest
The second step is generating interest among psychology students (both undergraduate and graduate) and faculty. Let them know what Psi Chi is and why they should want to support a chapter and become lifetime members. Psi Chi’s website has lots of information about its mission, purpose, constitution, benefits, awards, grants, the Psi Chi Journal of Psychological Research, Eye on Psi Chi digital magazine, merchandise, society history, Psi Chi sessions at conventions and much more.
Faculty and Student Support
The next step is meeting with two groups of people to ask for their support — the psychology department faculty and psychology club students. Even though only one person serves as the chapter’s main faculty advisor, all of the faculty can be crucial to supporting the activities of a thriving and active chapter. Because Psi Chi membership lasts a lifetime, there may be faculty or students in your department who are already members. They can provide valuable experience that will help with both the application and getting a new chapter up and running. Although the students select their faculty advisor, it is wise to consult with the department’s faculty and chair to find the best person for the job. The faculty advisor needs to be selected early because it is that person who fills out the application. A faculty member who has been a chapter officer or faculty advisor elsewhere can be a great option.
The student group also needs to be familiar with Psi Chi and support its members’ joining. Most campuses have a psychology club or similar group that coordinates activities with the chapter — rather than competing with it. For example, undergraduates are not eligible to join Psi Chi until they are in their fourth semester of college, but freshmen and first-semester sophomores can typically join the psychology club right away. Some clubs focus on presentations and activities to help members obtain a job after the bachelor’s degree, while the Psi Chi chapter focuses on getting into graduate school. On other campuses, however, Psi Chi and the psychology club do almost everything together (only Psi Chi members may vote on chapter business, participate in induction, or serve as officers).
Apply
After gaining student and faculty support, it is time for the new faculty advisor to start the application process. The faculty advisor requests a username and password, which are required to access the online application. After the faculty advisor has received a username and password to access the online application, students can assist with collecting required information. There are several forms (Excel or PDF) that need to be downloaded, completed, and then uploaded to the online form.
Only the chapter application fee ($150) is required up front. Individual member fees, currently $55, should not be collected until after your chapter application has been approved by Psi Chi’s board of directors.
Once approved, the department has one year to induct its charter members. It is best to plan the new chapter’s installation and first induction ceremony tentatively until receiving notification that the application has been approved. That ceremony is a great opportunity to invite the department faculty and chair, college dean, parents and family to celebrate the new members’ academic accomplishments and recognition.
About the Author
Martha S. Zlokovich, PhD, joined Psi Chi in 2008 as its second executive director, leaving Southeast Missouri State University after teaching there for 17 years. This move, however, was not her first involvement with Psi Chi. She has served as chapter advisor since 1993, was the Midwestern region vice president (1998-2000) and was national president of Psi Chi (2003-04). At Southeast, Zlokovich taught child development, adolescent development, life span development, advanced child psychology and introductory psychology for majors. She also served as chair of the department. Her research interests focus on student study habits, study beliefs and persistence to graduation as well as adolescent and young adult contraception and sexuality. She earned her MS and PhD in developmental psychology from the University of Florida and BA in psychology from UCLA.
In 1996, Southeast’s chapter won the Ruth Hubbard Cousins Chapter Award, and several chapter members have won Psi Chi Regional Research Awards at the Midwestern Psychological Association meeting and/or had their research published in Psi Chi's journal.