No, you need to have grades for those 3 courses factored into your major GPA before you can join. You may join during the semester following completion of the 3rd course.
No, actually its not. What's listed on your transcript are your GPAs for the semester (SGPA), division (DGPA), and total average (TGPA). In other words, you need to do the math yourself to make sure you have a 3.3 GPA in the major. Find the grade and grade point chart in the general catalog (listed under academic regulations), assign the correct grade point to all the poli sci classes you have taken (A=4.0, A-=3.7, etc), and then divide the total by the number of poli sci classes you've taken. Thats is your GPA in the major.
Yes, applications are accepted throughout the year with two caveats. First, applications which come in between April and August are not processed until September because the chapter is inactive during that period. Second, applicants who apply after the certificates are sent for (usually in January or February) may not get their certificate from the national chapter until the following academic year. This is because if you join after the Fall semester you may have already missed being placed on the certificate order form. You will have also missed the faculty luncheon we host during the Fall semester.
Membership is open to all who qualify and is solicited through general announcements at the beginning of the school year. Announcements are made in 200-level classes and posted on the bulletin board outside the departmental office (Monteith 137). The department does not actively recruit particular students into the chapter since it is open to all who qualify. Some political science majors who qualify choose not to join because they don't want to pay $50. in dues. Membership is a nice thing to list on your resume, but it really is just restating what your transcript already reveals -- that you are a good student. J
All dues are deposited in the chapter's account at Student Union. The certificates from the national society are $30. a piece. The remaining $20. goes to an informal luncheon the chapter hosts for political science faculty during the Fall semester. It also covers the cost of your induction dinner usually held at the nearby restaurant during the Spring semester.
The answers to each of these questions varies tremendously from year to year. Precisely how active the chapter is depends on the enthusiasm and interest of its members. One dynamic that seems constant is that most students join when they are seniors, which means not only that they are already very busy, but also that membership roll-over is very high. It is not uncommon for the chapter to have 90% new members each year. In order to handle paperwork and financial issues, volunteers within the group are usually solicited. Volunteers are also solicited to shop and set up for the faculty luncheon in the Fall. Monthly meetings have sometimes proven to be useful venues for the exchange of information on graduate and law school applications and preparations. The level of activity and the nature of organizational responsibilities are really up to each year's members.