<p>I think this is a pretty major deal for junior son but my family and circle of friends are like....what is Phi Beta Kappa? Seriously???</p>
<p>So, in general, big deal or not, folks?</p>
<p>Big deal. It’s the oldest honorary society in U.S.</p>
<p>Big deal. Congrats!</p>
<p>Big deal … but them I’m a sucker for “the most prestigious college honor society in the United States.”</p>
<p>Yep, big deal! Its counterpart for engineering is Tau Beta Pi, but hardly anyone knows what that is.</p>
<p>sax, was your son nominated as a junior? Major congrats! It is a big deal. Many people graduated from schools of business or engineering or others that aren’t eligible for PBK so they didn’t hear about it.
He (and by extension, you) deserve to be very proud.</p>
<p>Phi Beta Kappa is a VERY VERY big deal!!! A very big honor !!! Congratulations to your son!</p>
<p>Phi Beta Kappa as a junior is an especially big deal.</p>
<p>Genuine Big Deal. Many congratulations to your son!</p>
<p>Extremely big deal, and as a junior!!</p>
<p>Congratulations!</p>
<p>Well thanks, gang. I was beginning to think I was missing something. I actually had to convince him he needed to follow through with final paperwork as he has never been interested in awards of any kind. I’m pretty excited though. He will be inducted in May.</p>
<p>Congratulations!
When I received the designation decades ago, I signed up for a lifetime membership. The price was not that much higher than the annual membership. For ALL these years, they have followed my every move faithfully – probably 4 or 5 moves. Anyway, I could have done without the lifetime membership, but I do include Phi Beta Kappa on my resume. It means that his college participates in Phi Beta Kappa (most competitive colleges do for liberal arts degrees), and that his gpa is in the top 10%. At least, that is what it meant decades ago.</p>
<p>Thanks for sharing burb parent. I figure it’ll help with grad school choices if anything.</p>
<p>Big deal, my key is still special to me.</p>
<p>Me too. Sentimental - I love my little key. I read somewhere recently that as you get older and more experienced, anything you did when you were an 18-22 year old falls to the wayside in your credentials, but that being able to list Phi Beta Kappa lets you always show and be proud of the fact that way back when you were in college, you were a really good student. </p>
<p>At my college, it was particularly cool to be inducted as a junior. I think six of us were, and during senior year, I remember we sometimes “represented” Phi Beta Kappa at events and we were asked to help in the holistic review of credentials of classmates under consideration, to help choose those to be inducted as seniors. This made us feel very special, scholarly and grown up. :D</p>
<p>I still have my key on a necklace that I wear in times of stress. Kind of a touch-stone that I used to have brain cells and may still have them.
sax, your son may not want to wear it as a necklace (insert that google-eye thing that people know how to do here) but its well worth the price . Don’t let him ignore it.</p>
<p>hahahah…It’ll never come out of the box dragonmom. I do know he will never list it on his resume. Funny kid…but he might put it on grad school apps.</p>
<p>If it’s still like it was, he will need to respond that he wants to be “inductuted”; most colleges will let the kid ignore that May dinner ceremony but some might want him to show up.</p>
<p>I think the paperworks done and the $$ paid… … there are just some things I wish I could have a hand in. This kid drives me crazy. Thanks for the heads up.</p>
<p>I remember that a few years back there was an article in the PBK newsletter discussing the perception that the societal prestige of the honor has diminished in recent years. There seems to be much less name recognition among the general population, which may stem from and/or result in fewer references in literature and the media. When I was in high school, I certainly knew exactly what PBK was. Many high schoolers today don’t have a clue, and probably those in the generations a few years older don’t either. The proliferation of honor societies in recent years, some of which are more bought than earned, has no doubt contributed to this. But for those who know, it’s definitely a big deal! Congratulations!!!</p>