Phi Beta Kappa honor society worth joining?

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spanamit

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So I just got invited to join this honor society: Phi Beta Kappa. It has a $75 initiation/joining fee.

For those who know about this society: is this something that is going to ever in my life help me (for residency, jobs etc), or is this pretty much a waste of money?

The society pamphlet claims it to be the "most prestigious honor society." But the funny thing is that pretty much every honor society junk I have ever received has made similar claims.
Members don't see this ad.
 
It's pretty much a waste of time.
 
Members don't see this ad :)
spanamit said:
So I just got invited to join this honor society: Phi Beta Kappa. It has a $75 initiation/joining fee.

For those who know about this society: is this something that is going to ever in my life help me (for residency, jobs etc), or is this pretty much a waste of money?

The society pamphlet claims it to be the "most prestigious honor society." But the funny thing is that pretty much every honor society junk I have ever received has made similar claims.
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Joining an honor society won't help you get into med school, unless you actually participate and do something as a member.
 
eikenhein said:
Joining an honor society won't help you get into med school, unless you actually participate and do something as a member.
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True but I've seen PBK on the CVs of so many distinguished faculty members that I'm pretty sure it must count for something...or at least add a nice little topping to an already kick@ss CV
 
These things are pretty weird, in my opinion. The important thing is that you got elected into the honor society. The only thing that paying the fee does is fund all the mail that PBK will send you throughout the years, trying to get you to buy PBK memorabilia, or journal subcriptions, etc. It also funds a few scholarships for PBK'ers. These are all noble things to fund, but it just seems weird that you'd have to pay to receive an honor, in my opinion.

I went ahead and paid the fee, though, because I was pretty proud of it, but it's up to you.

Regardless, it's an honor to be elected. Congratulations.
 
Some old school residency directors might be impressed. It definitely is the most prestigious and oldest honor society.
 
You cannot buy your way into Phi Beta Kappa. It is an academic honor that medical school note. Do it.
 
MDMAMA said:
You cannot buy your way into Phi Beta Kappa. It is an academic honor that medical school note. Do it.
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Oh, please. I think the OP's academic record would speak for itself, with or without PBK. Are you saying he is not worthy of PBK if he doesn't pay the money? It seems to me any sort of honor society that requires an initiation fee is just a money grab.
 
Just do it. The more Latin on your resume/CV, the better.
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Join it. Phi Beta Kappa is well respected in academic circles. It was founded in 1776 just before the Revolutionary War started. It definitely is worth $75 to put on your CV and resume. You are going to spend four or five thousand dollars applying to medical school. $75 is nothing. Also Peyton Manning is PBK, the only player in the NFL who is PBK.
 
pbk will give your CV a nice boost, but it's not going to do a damn thing for your medical school application. they get your transcript. they get to scrutinize each course grade. they look at the actual numbers and trends. the pbk stamp seems kinda pointless then.
 
searun said:
Join it. Phi Beta Kappa is well respected in academic circles. It was founded in 1776 just before the Revolutionary War started. It definitely is worth $75 to put on your CV and resume. You are going to spend four or five thousand dollars applying to medical school. $75 is nothing. Also Peyton Manning is PBK, the only player in the NFL who is PBK.
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I agree with searun. Although it is going to cost you $75 in the present, it will serve you well down the road. Remember too that Phi Beta Kappa is only given to the top 1-2% of undergraduates in the graduating senior class each year. Wouldn't you want that distinction? Honestly, denying this prestigious academic honor is like turning down an acceptance invitation to Harvard Medical School. That would just be unthinkable.
 
Your academic record may be evident on your med school application, but it won't be on your residency application or anything else down the road.

Many will see PBK and think "this guy did really well in college and is really smart."

I used to do private tutoring and I found it to be a useful tool for landing clients. A lot of rich people knew what it meant and wanted me to teach their kid.
 
What does being in PBK say that a good GPA doesn't?
 
lord_jeebus said:
Your academic record may be evident on your med school application, but it won't be on your residency application or anything else down the road.

Many will see PBK and think "this guy did really well in college and is really smart."

I used to do private tutoring and I found it to be a useful tool for landing clients. A lot of rich people knew what it meant and wanted me to teach their kid.
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I don't see how residency directors would care about undergrad scores. On the list of factors in consideration, that has to be pretty low on the list.
 
eikenhein said:
I don't see how residency directors would care about undergrad scores. On the list of factors in consideration, that has to be pretty low on the list.
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I heard "it seems you did very well in college at _____" more than once. It was not uncommon for PDs to want to talk about what I studied in college. I don't know how they would have known that I did well, except that PBK is listed on my CV somewhere. It does make a bit of an impression.

You're right that it's low on the list.
 
Cegar said:
It's pretty much a waste of time.
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Definitely not a waste of time. Every professor/faculty who I have told that I was elected into PBK have been extremely impressed. I can tell in their faces and facial expressions that this is no small deal. This society is 150% worth joining. It is the most respected honor societies in the academic world, and it is a permanent staple in your CV since it is a lifetime membership.
 
What does being in PBK say that a good GPA doesn't?
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Depending on your school and the election criteria, it can give an approximate class standing. For example, at a school with grade inflation (or without!), and with specific election criteria such as the top 3% of the graduating class, this can place you better than your GPA might. I'm told that being a member of PBK can help with grants and networking, but perhaps that is more for people who are very active in the society. Also, one typically doesn't write GPA on a CV 🙂

Personally, I thought it was worth it just to learn the silly secret handshake.
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:laugh::laugh::laugh:
 
To echo what everyone has pretty much said:

It is worth it. Member dues are just a downfall. Special dinners, invites, and the prestige of being recognized for hard work and perseverence are a few of the highlights. When you join you join a group of eliete members who share an uncommon record of acedemic achievement. Maybe Med schools might not recognize it, but it def. doesnt go unnoticed.
 
Thanks for the advice guys! I talked to my parents and my dad recognized it. So I guess I am going to go ahead and join.
 
is 75 dollars really that much too people?

I dont want to sound like a douche, but you pay a lot more for a lot less (ie dont you have to pay 100+ dollars to some schools).
 
Wylde said:
is 75 dollars really that much too people?

I dont want to sound like a douche, but you pay a lot more for a lot less (ie dont you have to pay 100+ dollars to some schools).
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You are correct that the medical school application process is quite expensive, and so PBK cost in minute in comparison. However, the point of the thread wasn't to ask if PBK is going to help me with med school admissions, cuz I have already been accepted to med schools like Hopkins. The point of the post was to see if the $75 is a good investment for the future, i.e. residency apps. And based on what Lord Jeebus had to say (who already had his residency interviews) it sounds like PBK is worth the investment.
 
Cegar said:
I have to do something to combat these goons who think PBK is actually worth something because it was started in 1776.
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I honestly do not understand why you think Phi Beta Kappa is not a big deal. So I guess you would reject an acceptance letter from Harvard, refuse to take a 1600 on the SAT if you got one? Why would you take something like that for granted? This is insane to take something like this for granted. It would be an ungrateful thing to do if you are to think like this. It reminds me of people who have such a talent and then do nothing with it. It is one thing if you cannot do anything if you are not capable, but it is definitely an abominable circumstance if you did nothing and yet let your gifts and talents rot and waste away. To this effect, this could be extrapolated to the Edmund Burke quote that "All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing." The point of this post is that if given the award, we should accept it as a recognition of academic excellence and then to use it later on down the line to make a difference in the lives of others. As future physicians, this can only help us, not hurt us if a patient sees among our credentials Phi Beta Kappa.
 
Did you just compare PBK to getting into Harvard? Seriously?

Seriously?
 
Just concentrate on getting AOA...and move on, it will do much more for you in your career then PBK will.

AOA is the only Honors society I will ever consider joining.
 
LadyWolverine said:
Actually, the letters "Phi Beta Kappa" are Greek.

🙂
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=) Yup. PBK is actually America's first FRATERNITY, it had just evolved into an honor society. Why do you think fraternity scene is also called Greek life? We use Greek letters!
 
Cegar said:
I have to do something to combat these goons who think PBK is actually worth something because it was started in 1776.
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You sound like the girl who didn't get invited to the High School Prom. Yeah, you did not want to go anyway, we get it.
 
LadyWolverine said:
Actually, the letters "Phi Beta Kappa" are Greek.

🙂
Click to expand...


Yikes... my bad... make that "the more classical languages the better." I guess that's an argument against joining PBK: they'll let in schmoes like me who forget which language the letters Phi, Beta and Kappa come from. How'd I get into med school again??? 😉
 
searun said:
You sound like the girl who didn't get invited to the High School Prom. Yeah, you did not want to go anyway, we get it.
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Your analogy is a little flimsy.
 
Cegar said:
It's about as impressive as listing your undergrad GPA on a CV too.
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I guess if you are elected to PBK, then most likely you can also list:
Summa cum laude (highest honors), or,
Magna cum laude (high honors)
 
AOA is an excellent honor for a med student and certainly more relevant that PBK. But, as several medical students, including myself, have pointed out, PBK can confer some advantages down the road because it is recognized and respected in the academic and medical world. It certainly is worth $75. Geez, my bar tab on Friday night usually exceeds $75.
 
I was wondering if undergraduates are eligible to be invited to AOA. I haven't seen this honor society mentioned by my pre-med advisor other than AED for pre-meds.
 
pride4jc727 said:
I was wondering if undergraduates are eligible to be invited to AOA. I haven't seen this honor society mentioned by my pre-med advisor other than AED for pre-meds.
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No. A lot of people in my class had no idea what it was when we started med school -- definitely NOT a premed thing. It's for jr and sr med students, some residents, and some faculty (I think) can be inducted.
 
I'm curious, if some honor societies are worth joining and some are not, where should we draw the line?

I considered Phi Kappa Phi and Tau Beta Pi worth joining but passed on Golden Key. Now, I've been invited to join Alpha Eta Mu Beta (Biomedical Engineering Honor Society), which I have never heard of (and their website is pretty bad) but is supported by a number of my faculty members and fellow students. Do you guys think this is worth joining? (I'm probably going to join regardless because one of my best friends is the vice prez :laugh:)
 
Do it for your parents. They wiped your nasty butt when you were a baby. The Phi Beta Kappa induction ceremony and banquet usually occurs on the same day as commencement. So your parents get a great meal, get to attend a ceremony where everyone says how smart you, you give them the Phi Beta Kappa key and certificate, and then everyone heads off to commencement. It makes your parents feel like they did a good job with you, your father's chest swells up with pride, and your parents pay the $75, not you, so please, I do not want to hear about the $75 anymore.

So go to the banquet at your college or university, get your Phi Beta Kappa key and certificate for framing, give them to your parents, who are so damn proud of you, graduate and get on with your life.

Give the folks a break. Your parents love this ****.

Searun
 
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