UNC-Chapel Hill inducts 162 students into Phi Beta Kappa

Phi Beta Kappa, the nation’s oldest and most honored college honorary society, has inducted 162 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill students as new members.

Terrence E. Holt, a research associate professor in the UNC School of Medicine, gave the keynote address at the recent induction ceremony. New members each received a certificate and a Phi Beta Kappa key, the organization’s symbol.

Phi Beta Kappa membership is open to undergraduates in the College of Arts & Sciences and professional degree programs who meet stringent eligibility requirements.

A student who has completed 75 hours of coursework in the liberal arts and sciences with a GPA of 3.85 or better (on a 4-point scale) is eligible for membership. Also eligible is any student who has completed 105 hours of coursework in the liberal arts and sciences with a 3.75 GPA.

Grades earned at other universities are not considered. Less than 1% of all college students qualify.

Past and present Phi Beta Kappa members have included 17 American presidents, 41 U.S. Supreme Court justices, more than 140 Nobel Laureates and many artistic, intellectual and political leaders.

Phi Beta Kappa has 286 chapters across the country. UNC-Chapel Hill’s chapter, Alpha of North Carolina, was founded in 1904 and is the oldest of seven chapters in the state. Each year, Phi Beta Kappa chapters and alumni associations nationwide raise and distribute over $1 million in awards, scholarships and prizes benefiting high schools and college students.

UNC-Chapel Hill’s 2019-20 Phi Beta Kappa officers are students Michala Patterson, president; Gayathri Das, vice president; and Becca Sullenger, recording secretary. James L. Leloudis, professor of history, and the Peter T. Grauer Associate Dean for Honors Carolina and director of the James M. Johnston Center for Undergraduate Excellence, is chapter executive secretary and faculty advisor.

View a full list of the inductees on the UNC-Chapel Hill News website.