National society of collegiate scholars

Parents Forum
61

<p>OK well you can feel skeptical if you so choose, but don’t sit here and badmouth an organization that many people have benefited from just because your belief is that its a scam, if you want to believe that fine, but keep it to yourself. It’s not your place to discourage other people from something they may benefit from, just because you don’t want to. </p>

<p>And the society was established in 2001, just like it says on the website in the logo on the top left corner so yes it has been around for 4 years. </p>

<p>Also, I don’t know if anyone on here has joined a sorority or fraternity ever in their life, but guess what, you pay ALOT MORE there,also YEARLY, and you mainly don’t get benefits from it other than maybe some hangovers, and a nice line on your resume. </p>

<p>But I don’t see you calling those scams. </p>

<p>That’s all.</p>

62

<p>It’s not a scam, but I think – like most organizations – different chapters are better than others. If your school’s national society is active, then it might be worth it for you to join, but if your school’s chapter is useless then you might as well find something else to spend $75 on. It’s not really fair to call it a “scam” though unless they’re being dishonest about what’s going on.</p>

63

<p>Well, if I were running a scam like this, I might put a little money into a couple of chapters at a couple of schools so I could make my organization look better. At all the other schools, I would just take the kids’ money. If a kid is at one of the schools where I spent the money, he might get some benefit out of it–but certainly not for his resume.</p>

64

<p>I honestly have no idea what this is really about. It may well could be like you’re saying; they have a few “active” chapters who are specifically cultivated to enhance their reputation. I don’t know, and I’ll probably never find out (neither of my children are involved or have even mentioned it). All I was trying to say is that – if you or your child is interested – you should check into it to see if it’s active, if people at your school really benefit from it, etc. $75 won’t break the bank but it’s still money and before you give it to a company/group you should do your due diligence.</p>

65

<p>I hate to break the news to everyone. I believe that this is kinda of a scam. I got invited to join this NCSL last year and I joined. I never made it full membership since, I did not perform a good research about what this organization does. I already belong to a great charitable organization, so that is on my resume. I am a graduate student, working full time in my field for many years and I still got one of these invites. My opinion, this will do nothing for me at all. Perhaps for younger students. I regret joining. I wish that I could get my $70 back.</p>

66

<p>so I’ve been reading these comments for the last year and finally decided to make an account and add my 2 cents. I reluctantly paid the $75 membership because of the scholarship benefits. Well after I joined I didn’t hear anything else for them. Sounds fishy huh? Yeah. I also found out that at my school the chapter is no longer active. When it was active it wasn’t all that. But anyway after I hadn’t heard anything from them for the rest of the semester, some time in the summer I was contacted to get the chapter up running again through being offered an Officer’s position. That didn’t go well because the other officers didn’t do their part. Well I decided to take charge and become president, since no one wanted to come back as officers. I chose 2 members to be officers. So hopefully we can make things happen.</p>

<p>Honestly, the national society of collegiate scholars does seem like a scam because they want the fee and insist that you join. Constant emails and mailings. It’s only worth joining if you participate. If you don’t ever plan on participating then don’t join, SIMPLE.</p>

<p>But the interesting fact many may not know. Some guy name Steve Loftin was having dinner and coined the NSCS. He wanted to have an honor society that targets first and second year students (I’m not sure why exactly). So with having only one semester of good grades under your belt and then being asked to join seems cool as a freshman right? I thought so. I thought I was cool. Once you join and pay the one time fee you’re a member for life even with bad future grades and no activity with the club.</p>

<p>I’m not on here to recruit people or encourage anyone to join. I’m merely contributing to the discussion. NSCS isn’t a scam but its not the coolest thing to be a part of. In my opinion I think NSCS is for first and second year students who tend to make good grades, need some leadership and community service experience to help move them onto bigger and better things.</p>

67

<p>MZGOOFY11, does the national organization provide funds to your chapter to get it up and running? As I suggest above, you might get more out of it if you can convince the people running the business that they should support your chapter.</p>

68

<p>yes the give us funds and I do believe the funds come from the New member induction fees.</p>

69

<p>Honors societies are not a scam. They’re largely useless, but there are benefits. They do provide networking, let you meet new people, gain leadership experience, do community service, and give you scholarship opportunities. However, for $75…it may not be worth it to you. All the benefits you get…you can get those from better organizations, and often for free. However, I am glad I joined two honor societies. NSCS…not so much, but I paid $65 for Alpha Lambda Delta and in return I have gotten a $250 scholarship from them, two free movie tickets, and a leadership position for relatively minimal effort.</p>

70

<p>I read through the whole thread and just wanted to say NSCS, at least at my college, is not a scam. It operates as a secondary higher honor society that can only be joined/qualified for by members of the very free Honors Institute which is recognized by the National Collegiate Honors Council. </p>

<p>The college’s Honors Institute requires the following for incoming HS seniors:

  • High school GPA of 3.4 (unweighted) or higher -or-
  • SAT combined score of 1160 or higher -or-
  • ACT combined score of 26 or higher -or-
  • Top 10% of graduating class with SAT combined score of a minmum 1050, or a minimum ACT composite score of 25, or CPT score of a minimum of 90 in writing and a minimum of 92 in reading -or- 12 hours dual enrollment with 3.8 GPA</p>

<p>or the following for current College Students:

  • Must be pursuing an Associate in Arts (A.A.) degree
  • Cumulative college level GPA of 3.3 or higher with a minimum of 6 semester hours and a maximum of 30 semester hours of college credit.</p>

<p>I qualified for the Honors Institute after a two rough semesters (1.9 GPA), dropping out, working for 6 years FT, going back part time, and repairing my GPA to the required 3.3 (Now currently 3.69, and climbing) After joining HI, at orientation and through HI friends I found out about NSCS and our chapters activities. Our’s in particular requires a 3.60 GPA. It’s generally seen as something you work towards if you don’t qualify right away. There’s a real and distinct club function to it with officers, board members, and committees. They do actually engage in separate activities, opportunities, and conferences. </p>

<p>Our advisers Dr. Lydia Lyons and Ms. Lauren Furry are also members of The National Collegiate Honors Council (NCHC) is a professional association that brings together Honors professionals and students from across the United States to share ideas and research. Dr. Lyons held the organization’s cumulative four-year Presidential leadership position from 2006 through 2010. The Southern Regional Honors Council (SRHC) conference convenes each spring bringing together Honors directors, professors, and students from the eleven southeastern states. Dr. Lyons was elected twice to the SRHC Executive Board and was elected as the Executive Secretary/Treasurer; this 3-year term placed HCC as the official headquarters for SRHC! Dr. Lyons was also the site chairperson for the SRHC 2000 Conference. Most recently, Ms. Lauren Furry was elected Vice President and will be organizing the 2012 Conference. Florida Collegiate Honors Council (FCHC) is an intercollegiate Honors program activity that acts as a forum for sharing information about and improving the quality of Honors programs in Florida. Dr. Lyons has been elected to all offices and, therefore, chaired the FCHC 2000 Conference. In addition, Ms. Furry has been elected to all offices and, therefore, chaired the FCHC 2008 conference.
[Hillsborough</a> Community College - Alumni](<a href=“http://hccfl.edu/honors/alumni.aspx]Hillsborough”>http://hccfl.edu/honors/alumni.aspx)
[Hillsborough</a> Community College - Universities and Colleges](<a href=“http://hccfl.edu/honors/universities-and-colleges.aspx]Hillsborough”>http://hccfl.edu/honors/universities-and-colleges.aspx)</p>

<p>These are women that have negotiated numerous successful transfers to a variety of colleges, including Ivies. I hardly think they would endorse a ‘scam’ organization so emphatically.</p>

<p>PS. My GPA just reached the 3.6 mark this past semester (I made dean’s list with a 4.0 for the semester) and I’m highly anticipating my invitation.</p>

<p>PPS…check the join date, few posts but I’ve been here for a quite a while.</p>

71

<p>Let’s return to post #29. According to this post the Executive Director of this society has “earned” a salary that exceeds the scholarships that have been delivered. Why are supporters of this organization sweeping that under the rug?</p>

72

<p>They are giving out basically less than 2% of the total income from dues to scholarship and I think even more glaring is that they spent 2.8 millions, more than half of their income, to do the mass mailing to entice people to join. That is what you are mostly paying for when you join, the next year mass mailing of the gold leaf stationary asking more people to join.</p>

73

<p>I’m like a few others here. I simply found this forum on google. And while this doesn’t concern the NSCS, it does concern the National Society of Leadership and Success.
I recently received a letter in the mail that I’d been nominated for membership. Thing is, I know exactly WHY I was nominated.
In March, I was getting ready for an anime convention in Georgia, and trying my cosplay (costume) for a mafia South Italy (from Hetalia), and I went to get food while wearing it. I just happened to find a small notebook outside of the Honors building on campus, someone’s class notes. So I went into the building to turn it in. When I got to the top floor and turned it in to the main office, I just so happened to notice a woman setting up a table in one of the rooms. She noticed me, and noticed my cosplay, then asked me what it was. So I explained it to her, that I was cosplaying from a series that parodies world history and politics, using personified countries. I also told her about the panel I was running at the convention, specifically an educational history panel that I’m trying to run at multiple conventions. We ended up talking for over an hour and a half about history, culture, politics, religion, and foreign language, and she finally asked me what my major was.
I’m a Global Studies major, and a German major, also working on a minor in Russian Studies. I want to work as a diplomat, historical tour guide, or anything involving international politics, history, or culture. I’m especially interested in Russo-German relations. And I study abroad, I have study abroad planned for 2 more summers and one academic year and have already completed one summer of study abroad.
I told her all this, and she paused for a moment, then asked me to follow her. We went to her office and as it turns out, she’s the secretary for not only the honors committee at my college, but an officer of the National Society for Leadership and Success. Our campus apparently has a very active chapter and she thought I’d be a good member. She handed me her card as well as some information, then we continued our conversation until I needed to leave so I could eat.
Thing is, my current GPA is a 2.49. I told her it was low, but she said they could likely work around it. I’ve had a lot of difficulty, and throughout my entire freshman year my grades suffered because I suffered from dysphoria… Specifically I suffer from gender dysphoria. Since then, I’ve started transitioning from female to male. Being able to be a member of something that could give me an edge during and after college, is a really big deal. I have to stand out achievement-wise more so than most, simply because I’m transgendered.<br>
I’m much more stable after coming out, and I feel I can keep up with and appreciate life more. I’ve got confidence I didn’t have before, so I know I can bring my GPA up.
I think this could be worth a one time fee. MY biggest concern would be if it could help me to get an internship I’m really wanting. I really want to get one of the U.S. student internships offered at the Bundestag (German Parliament). If the officers could help me get that internship, I’m more than willing to spend the money and work towards the requirements.</p>

74

<p>I just wanted to put in my own honest feedback.</p>

<p>I am the current President of my university’s chapter of NSCS and I am extremely dissatisfied and frustrated with the org.</p>

<p>We gain around 150 new members a year, meaning NSCS makes over $10,000 off of us a year. The Officer’s Board receives $1 for each member every semester, so about $300-$500. We’re lucky to see a grand a year, and almost all of that money goes directly into planning and prep for the Induction Ceremony.</p>

<p>According to the online site, there are over 200 schools with NSCS chapters. Meaning they make over 2.5 million dollars a year off of new members. A year. They only hand out $250k a year in scholarships, and I’m going to estimate another $200-300k for chapter funds. So, we’re at barely half a mil. Where is all of this money going?</p>

<p>Beyond that, the society has very little… sense of direction. Meaning that we are given some events we ought to hold (I.e. the Induction Ceremony, Integrity Week, an assembly at a local middle school promoting college, and March to Campus). But beyond that, it’s sort of like “here’s your funding, now do something with it.” </p>

<p>That being said, there are schools that have managed to do some great things with their chapters, but I do not consider their success to be a result of the national office’s guidance. In fact the communication between national and local offices is frustratingly minimal, and I always get the feeling that they are more interested in boasting about their more prolific chapters than helping still growing chapters (like mine) achieve success.</p>

75

<p>Berber, I would suggest contacting the organization and telling them that you want more money or you will close down the chapter. If you are one of the more active chapters, I’ll bet they will find some “grant” that you are eligible for. As noted above, they need some active chapters in order to keep going.</p>

<p>Alternatively, shut the chapter down and start your own college-based organization.</p>

76

<p>They are very slow about and “forgetful” about money. We weren’t even funded until our second year, and even then they tried to deny us repayment for lack of funds the first year. We are only in our third year and not nearly at the level of some other schools.</p>

<p>But the money is not my biggest concern, it’s the fact that our org doesn’t seem to have a clear cut goal beyond member retention. What it becomes is almost completely at the hands of each individual chapter.</p>

<p>My vice president and I have already discussed possibly shutting our chapter down if we are unable to pass it along to new management.</p>

77

<p>I got a few letters from them this year. I am pretty sure they are a scam. </p>

<p>Well not really a scam, they just aren’t that prestigious. I think it is just a way to get money from the students that wish they could be in the higher honors societies but don’t have the grades. This gives them a fall back that they can put on resumes and feel good about. Where in reality its not a big deal</p>

78

<p>I’ve been a member of NSCS for 2 years now, and I truly believe that everyone is responsible for their experience with the organization. Nobody is required to get involved with their chapter, but in doing so I have had some of the best experiences in college so far. I attended the Convention in Puerto Rico this summer, and I gained many valuable leadership skills from it. NSCS provides many opportunities to its members, it’s just a matter of taking advantage of them. There are so many scholarships, discounts, service, and leadership opportunities available for you to take advantage of.
I love that NSCS seeks to recognize high-achieving first and second-year students because there are very few honor societies out there that do so. I have benefitted in countless ways from joining NSCS and becoming involved in my chapter!
As for National Office Communication, I have never had a problem reaching them when I need help with something, and I disagree that the communication is minimal.
I would encourage anyone who decides to join NSCS to become actively involved in order to truly benefit from becoming a member.</p>

79

<p>Another first time poster! Drink!</p>

80

<p>^^^lolol^^^</p>