National society of collegiate scholars

[thumper1]

Frame the letter. Pitch the rest of the "stuff". DS was "invited" to join National Society of Collegiate Scholars after his WORST term in college...not even close to dean's list material. This is junk mail.

[mes11668]

I will freely admit that I just stumbled onto this discussion thread while Googling my Society's name. I did just join this forum to post this message.

However, I will also openly honestly say that I am the President of the National Society of Leadership & Success (NSLS/Sigma Alpha Pi) and a member of the National Leadership Council (NLC) for the National Society of Collegiate Scholars (NSCS) at California State University Northridge. I'm also a member of Golden Key, although I didn't see it mentioned here.

NO, I DO NOT GET PAID FOR EITHER POSITION. I have been a Secretary, IT Coordinator/Webmaster, VP of Communications, and VP of Public Relations for all of these Societies, and I never was paid a cent. Being an officer of a campus club is not something people should expect payment for. It is a volunteer opportunity that allows someone to demonstrate their leadership potential.

The invitation system works as such: once someone makes a qualifying grade ONCE, their name is put on a list. The length of the list varies from school to school; at some it is 1000 people, at others it is only 300. The list also changes depending on how the school grades (the GPA scale), whether it's quarterly or semesterly, and how the Admissions/Records office chooses to distribute that list to honor societies like those mentioned above.

It is possible that you can do outstanding in one semester, horrible in the next, and still get an invitation. Chances are, the invitation reflects the outstanding semester, because the honor society has yet to receive any kind of notice about the horrible grades. And why would they? They only receive lists of names of people who meet a MINIMUM GPA requirement; if you were on it once and then not again, the invitation still gets sent out for that one time.

They will send follow-up letters, but nine times out of ten, you can ignore the "deadline." Honor Societies function on PARTICIPATION, which means the more members a university chapter has, the better. Not only does it receive more funding from the school, but it can do more for the community. If you ever get a letter and your "invitation code" has expired, call the Membership line. Someone will almost always be able to assist you.

The lifetime fee is an investment. I can't begin to calculate all the amazing things I've been able to do (and that I have learned) because of the Societies I'm in. For example, in just a few weeks I'll be traveling to Washington D.C. for the first time, for free, to network with students from around the nation, listen to some top speakers, participate in great workshops, and be a Big Sister to a kid in need in the capitol.

For NSLS specifically, I get access to some of the nation's top speakers and authors; events that would normally cost $200+ just to get a seat are covered by that one-time fee. I get access to personalized recommendation letters, thousands of dollars in scholarships (if, of course, I apply for them, the same way you have to for any other scholarship), a job bank ONLY for members, one-on-one success coaches, and much more.

I have met loads of friends, traveled, become active on my campus and my community, and learned so much.

These Societies are NOT a scam and I highly recommend you do more thorough research before writing them off.

National Society of Collegiate Scholars - nscs.org
National Society of Leadership & Success - societyleadership.org

[nursingstudent7]

For everyone out there wondering about this program. I am a new member. It is a bit different from other honor societies since you do actually have to participate in activities to achieve membership. I can also attest that as a college student about to graduate and job hunting, I have had companies call to confirm my membership. For what its worth individually, I think it is a good program and helpful in many ways. I have not applied pr received any scholarships, am not an officer, and can also say that officers do not get paid. It is strictly volunteer, which I also believe teaches kids something today that is missing in our society.

[SDMomof3]

Again with this -- notice again that the only ones who support this organization are first-time posters !!

[mes11668]

Of course we're first time posters. As I mentioned in my post, I only posted here because I found this discussion thread when I was doing a Google search for my Society. What does that have to do with anything?

If you want to find more "proof" of my non-Society related internet activity, there's loads of it online. Heck, I'll point you at my Facebook, at my friends in the Society and fellow classmates, at my networking contacts that I've met because of it.

Not all of us knew about College Confidential through any other method than stumbling across it when looking for info about our Society. And again, as I've said before, I encourage people to properly do their research rather than just taking the word of a few posters in a forum as the end-all, be-all Word.

It's pretty biased and unfair not to look into the Societies as they are on the campuses you're looking at, or at least contact those of us that are involved in it and will freely attest to it not being a scam. Like I said, I don't get paid for all the hard work and time I put into it, but if my word's not good enough, it's not impossible to find one of the over 80,000 or so other members from around the country.

[JustAMomOf4]

My daughter joined Sigma Alpha Pi at her school this fall. She had to be recommended by a teacher and have a certain gpa. I would not call it a scam.
This is a school sponsored organization at her school and the members are required to actively participate. I checked it out online and here is a list of colleges with chapters:
Society of Leadership and Success

[jerzgrlmom]

Like some students, a girl I know went off to an OOS college and quickly got caught up in all the social aspects of school. Result: she failed most of her freshman classes and her father made her return home (to attend the local community college). Shortly after arriving home, she received one of these NSCS letters which she laughingly showed her father as "proof" that she wasn't all bad: she was an "honors student". So, there appears to be a problem with the standards of candidates to this group. While it may be selective at YOUR college, obviously it's not consistently selective. Perhaps they based her invite on HS stats but certainly not freshman yr grades.

Regardless. I don't doubt that this group CAN offer a positive experience and on some campuses, it MAY be the best or only opportunity. At my kids' colleges, there are more than enough groups for everyone wanting service and leadership opportunities so there's no need to pay for the opportunity. Perhaps that's not the case everywhere or perhaps kids LIKE this organization and ARE WILLING to pay to be a part of it (similar to Gold Key and/or other groups). I simply don't think it's an "honor" to be part of it or that students will miss out by declining.

Since NSCS offers entry after just one year, it offers EARLY opportunities to become involved in the community and school. I believe posters who say that there are members who work hard, contribute their time and energies and get something out of it. Volunteering is certainly a worthwhile experience and if I joined this group, devoted MY time and $, especially if I advanced to a leadership position, OF COURSE, I would defend my group.

This group is unusual in that they offer entry to kids who just finished their freshman year. The pessimist will say they are casting a wide net (and biggest catch $ wise). What happens to all those students who get this "honor" then do poorly over the next 3 yrs? Do they still list this "honor" on their resume? If students choose NOT to pay the fee, are there kids ignorant enough to list NSCS invitee on their resume? I hope not. Sort of like all those leadership conferences (and People to People, WHo's Who...) that all 3 of my kids (and someone's cat I believe) were selected for throughout middle school and HS. Unknowingly, these kids would show their ignorance to a potential employer/grad school admission office. Their website also lists affiliations with groups such as Teach for America, implying that NSCS members will be sought out because of their inclusion in NSCS. BUT my DD didn't belong to NSCS and she had Teach for America emailing and calling her weekly all spring and they still send her emails now 6 months after graduation. I'm sure it was because she was graduating with Highest Honors and perhaps Teach for America asked the college for a list of top students. So I don't think paying to be a member of NSCS necessarily gives you advantages listed by NSCS. I think being a top student at college is what provides these opportunities.

But there are some benefits to being part of this group or ANY similar group. The optimist will say the group involves students early on who show promise and are dedicated. The group provides an opportunity for these students to expand their personal development, through service and leadership. Maybe they provide speakers or workshops to their members as part of that fee. Perhaps this group could also work as a support system to help kids maintain high grades, just by associating with and motivating each other. But one has to always keep in mind that there is a cost for this NSCS opportunity that doesn't exist with other groups offering similar opportunities.

There are MANY ways for students to explore and expand one's education in positive ways. I think members mistakenly believe the "honor" of being part of NSCS sets them apart in some way so they are willing to pay to participate. Their involvement in service MAY very well set them apart from their peers and they should be proud of those efforts. But there are lots of other groups providing volunteer experiences on college campuses (and they DON"T require you to join within a specified time limit nor pay a fee for this wonderful experience). So, it's not an honor per se JUST to be a part of NSCS. If you make the most of the opportunities, then your EFFORTS may make you stand out. But YOU would deserve that honor, not the group.

I also noticed that many defenders of this group also list several other honor societies they belong to. I think it could hurt one's credibility to include a whole list of these "honor" societies on their resume - because how active can one be in multiple groups? Too many honor societies may give the impression that one simply wanted to say they were in the group. Employers already see your GPA and usually the appropriate designation (Highest Honors, High Honors, Honors, etc depending on your college's criteria) so being part of Honor Society simply based on GPA doesn't say anything new. But listing volunteer and leadership experience would enhance your resume so if you do list these groups, make sure you have your involvement listed as well.

Apparently College Confidential isn't the only group questioning NSCS.
National Society of Collegiate Scholars

[wis75]

All of the "free" activities were paid for by you and others who joined- does EVERY member get such a great return on their financial investment? There are plenty of other college activities to participate in to show prospective employers and grad depts your worth that don't require the money and dubious "honor" status.