Commencement Honors
Summa cum laude, magna cum laude and cum laude are the highest commencement honors that the university bestows for sustained excellence in scholarship. They are awarded to the top 10% of all students graduating in each college over the course of a year. Summa cum laude is awarded to students with a GPA equal to the highest two percent of all college graduates over the past three terms, magna cum laude to the next highest three percent and cum laude to the following five percent. To be eligible for this recognition, at least 60 semester hours must be earned at the university or at a program in which credit earned is counted as University of Maryland, College Park, resident credit (contact the Office of the Registrar to determine program eligibility). No more than 6 credits taken pass/fail or satisfactory/fail shall count toward the 60-hour minimum. No student with a grade-point average of less than 3.3 will be considered for a commencement honor. Because grades for a term generally are officially recorded after the term's graduation day, computation of the student's GPA will not include grades for courses taken during the student's final semester at the university. However, the hours taken during that semester will apply toward the 60-hour requirement.
Semester Academic Honors (Dean's List)
Semester Academic Honors (Dean's List) will be awarded to those students who complete, within any given semester (excluding winter and summer terms), 12 or more credits (excluding courses with grades of P and S) with a semester GPA of 3.5 or higher. This recognition will be noted on the student's academic record.
Election to Phi Beta Kappa
Organized in 1776, Phi Beta Kappa is the oldest and most widely respected academic honorary society in the United States. Invitation to membership is based on outstanding scholastic achievement in studies of the liberal arts and sciences. Student members are chosen entirely on the basis of academic excellence; neither extracurricular leadership nor service to the community is considered. Election is held twice a year, once in the fall and once in the spring semester.
The process for election to Phi Beta Kappa involves a review in November for those who graduated the previous August or those who will graduate in December, and a review in March for those graduating in May. A number of qualifying juniors are also considered during the same semester. The review is conducted by a select committee of faculty members representing the humanities, social sciences and natural sciences. The committee reviews transcripts of all juniors and seniors with qualifying grade point averages. Whether a student qualifies for membership in Phi Beta Kappa depends on the quality, depth and breadth of the student's record in liberal education courses. The final decision for election rests with the resident faculty members of Phi Beta Kappa. For more information on the requirements, please contact the Phi Beta Kappa Office at 405-8986.
