Office of the Dean of the College

Phi Beta Kappa is a highly esteemed and historic academic honor society established in 1776 at the College of William and Mary in Virginia. As outlined in the national handbook, “ Phi Beta Kappa celebrates and advocates excellence in the liberal arts and sciences. Its campus chapters elect for induction the most outstanding arts and sciences students at America’s leading colleges and universities. The society sponsors activities to advance these studies—the humanities, the social sciences, and the natural sciences—in higher education and in society at large.”

The Lambda of Massachusetts Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa was established at Clark University in 1953. Every year a select group of seniors and juniors, who exemplify what the constitution of the United Chapters of Phi Beta Kappa describes as “ high scholarship in the Arts and Sciences and good character” are invited to join the Chapter. Selection is made on the basis of overall academic achievement, as well as breadth and depth of studies in the liberal arts. To be eligible, students must have studied a foreign language and have done course work in science and math that satisfies Clark’s perspective requirements for the program of Liberal Studies.

Elections are held early in the spring semester. A committee of faculty members who are members of PBK (the Committee on Undergraduate Elections or CUE) determines the final selections on the basis of the academic records of candidates and recommendations from the faculty at large. The induction ceremony is usually held the day before Commencement, at which time students are presented certificates of membership before an audience of friends and family. PBK “keys” and other items are presented at this time as well. Election to Phi Beta Kappa is an expression of the Chapter's admiration for a student's academic and intellectual achievement. It is an honor widely recognized as a sign of success and merit.

The Phi Beta Kappa key is the official emblem of the society. The original key adopted at the founding ceremony in 1776 was a square medal with the letters SP (for Societas Philosophiae) on one side and the Greek letters Phi, Beta, Kappa (roughly translated as “love of learning is the guide of life”) on the other. The pointing finger and three stars were meant to represent the young scholars’ ambition as well as the three principles of their newly established fraternity: friendship, morality, and learning.

Since its founding, Phi Beta Kappa has had a tremendous impact on the formation and the dissemination of the liberal arts in American education and culture. The William and Mary chapter was soon followed by two more in New England, Yale and Harvard; by 1883 there were 25 chapters. Today there are 276 chapters across the nation and membership is open to all students who qualify regardless of gender, race, or national origin.