Psi Chi National Honors Society in Psychology

The mission of Psi Chi is to produce a well-educated, ethical, and socially responsible member committed to contributing to the science and profession of psychology and to society in general.

What Is Psi Chi?

    Psi Chi is the National Honor Society in Psychology, founded in 1929 for the purpose of promoting excellence in scholarship and advancing the science of psychology.  Membership is open to graduate and undergraduate students who are majoring or have a strong interest in psychology and meet the minimum eligibility qualifications.  Psi Chi is a member of the Association of College Honor Societies and is an affiliate of the American Psychological Association (APA) and the American Psychological Society (APS). Psi Chi's sister honor society is Psi Beta, the national honor society in psychology for community and junior colleges. 

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 What are the Benefits of being a Psi Chi Member? 

    Membership in Psi Chi is rewarding in that recognition of excellence leads to self-fulfillment and thus to self-realization. By recognizing that what you do does make a difference, you are stimulated to higher productivity. Accomplishments are enjoyed more when shared with others. Furthermore, the contacts made through Psi Chi will be valuable throughout your educational and professional careers. 

• Psi Chi provides national recognition for academic excellence in psychology, an honor which can be noted on employment applications, vitae, and résumés.  
• Psi Chi provides a sense of community with others in psychology and an identification with the discipline. 
• Psi Chi provides a local, regional, and national forum for obtaining information and developing perspectives about the field of psychology, learning about educational and career opportunities, and forming meaningful professional networks. 
• Psi Chi facilitates leadership development, interaction with other students who have similar interests and service to the department and institution sponsoring Psi Chi.  
• Psi Chi chapter activities provide students with valuable opportunities to develop one-on-one relationships with professors who can stimulate their interest in psychology, involve them in research projects, and write meaningful letters of recommendation for them. 
• Psi Chi encourages student research at the regional and national as well as local levels through undergraduate and graduate research award competitions and provides opportunities for students to present research and receive certificates recognizing their accomplishments at regional and national psychological association meetings. 
• Psi Chi sponsors outstanding programs at regional and national psychological association meetings. Members benefit not only from the programs, but also from the opportunity to meet leading psychologists and students from other chapters. 
• Psi Chi membership meets one of the requirements for entrance at the GS-7 level in numerous professional and technical occupations in the United States government.

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 What Are Psi Chi Qualifications?

     Students interested in Psi Chi are asked to fill out an application that can be obtained from the Psychology Pod on the 3rd floor of University Hall or from any current advisor or officer.  Students must have completed 9 semester hours (~3 classes) of psychology course work.  Transfer students must have 9 units in CSUSM psychology classes before they can apply.  Students must also have a GPA in the upper 35th percentile of their class and overall cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher.  Finally, students must have a minimum GPA of 3.0 in their psychology course work.  In addition to the above, graduate students must have a 3.5 GPA or higher.  If accepted, new members have a onetime fee of $45.00 for lifetime membership to the National Organization and CSUSM's chapter of Psi Chi.

Psi Chi @ Cal State San Marcos

Club Advisor

Dr. Elisa Grant-Vallone

Officers 2008-2009

2007-2008 Officers and Dr. Moss

Psi Chi Offers Awards/Grants 

    Psi Chi sponsors a wide variety of award competitions and grants each year.  Psi Chi annually sponsors national undergraduate and graduate research award competitions, as well as research awards for members submitting the best research for regional and national paper/poster sessions. Members are encouraged to begin research papers early to submit for presentation at local, state, regional, or national conventions. Chapters are encouraged to provide an opportunity for members to rehearse their papers before an audience prior to presenting them at a convention.  In addition, Psi Chi has recently launched new programs to fund student and faculty research. Psi Chi's total awards/grant program now provides $225,000 to members. http://www.psichi.org/awards/

Psi Chi Publication

     Psi Chi publishes a quarterly magazine, Eye on Psi Chi, which helps to unite Psi Chi members, informing them about Psi Chi, and recognizing their contributions and accomplishments. This magazine is available to members in the Psychology Pod on the 3rd floor of University Hall.  

Psi Chi: Orders and Money are

 Due: TBA

       Information about Psi Chi provided by National Psi Chi Honors Society.  Please visit the National Psi Chi Website at www.psichi.org for more information.

Page Last Revised on 10/14/2008