Joining an honor society, in most cases, is not required of college students. However, there are still so many benefits of joining a society like NSCS. If we had to describe the benefits of honors societies in one sentence, we’d say that they round out and complete the college experience. Thankfully, we have a little more space than that, and so this article will discuss the key benefits college students enjoy when they join an honors society like NSCS.
Mentorship Opportunities
College students meet professors and administrators every day. While students can absolutely learn a lot from these educators, it can also he helpful for students to interact with and learn from professionals in other fields. Through their experiences in an honors society, college students can meet alumni who are working in various industries. They may develop mentor-mentee relationships with some of these alumni. Over the years, they can turn to these mentors for help making decisions and shaping their careers. If a student wants to work in the legal field, for example, they can interact with other honors alumni in the legal field.
Exposure to Other Viewpoints
Honors society membership gives students a chance to interact with students in other majors. Especially at larger universities, students may really only interact with others in their major when they attend classes. At honor society events, on the other hand, business majors, science majors, humanities majors, and others all come together and work together. Students are exposed to other perspectives and come to understand the value of those perspectives.
Internship Opportunities
Internships are often the launch point for careers. A student might later get a job at the company where they intern. Or, they may make connections through their internship that later help them find a job with a different company. Finding internship opportunities is not always easy these days, though. Honor societies like NSCS open the door to internships that are not available to other students. One internship, facilitated by an honors society, can transform a student’s entire college experince and their path once they graduate.
Scholarship Opportunities
College can be expensive. There are plenty of scholarships out there that can help defray the cost, but like internships, they are not always easy to find. NSCS and other honor societies typically offer scholarships specifically for their members. Additionally, membership in an honors society can really make a student stand out among other applicants when they apply for scholarships. An honor society member comes off as someone who is confident, dedicated, and hard-working — that’s the type of student who often wins scholarships.
A Lasting Network
Honor societies don’t just benefit a student while they are in college. They continue to benefit students after they graduate. The fellow students and mentors a student meets in their honors society will remain an active network for the student as they continue along their career path. The student can later leverage that network when they want to find a new job, transition into a new career field, or pursue other new opportunities. One day, the student can start serving as a mentor and helping out other members!
Joining an honors society is a smart choice for many students. It can help round out their college experience in both academic and extracurricular ways. From internships, to mentorship, to scholarships, there are so many ways an honors society helps shape a student for the better.
