Houston Community College’s chapter of The National Society of Collegiate Scholars is welcoming over 500 new members this semester.

NSCS is a member of the Association of College Honor Societies. Membership invitations are sent to first and second year college students of all disciplines based on having at least a 3.4  grade point average.

“NSCS is more than just a symbol of academic achievement. Membership gives students access to a number of amazing benefits including career and networking resources, scholarships, travel, and service projects both on campus and in the community,” says Stephen Loflin, NSCS Founder and Chief Executive Officer.

Lauren Mitchell is the new president of HCC’s NSCS chapter. She was inducted as a new member last fall. Mitchell is the chapter’s third president this school year, the first transferred this spring and the second appointed president recently stepped down.

“What NSCS does is it promotes well-rounded individuals who are academically orientated,” explained Mitchell, adding “You’re really networking with the right people when you join this club.”

The group hosts an induction ceremony once a year in late October for new members who joined both in the prior spring and that fall. Invitations will be sent to members closer to the date.

“It’s really something that’s good to have on your resume because this isn’t just an organization specific to community colleges,” notes Mitchell.  

There are NSCS chapters at all the big name universities in Texas. “Whenever you transfer, you can transfer your membership and you’re already in an organization at your new university. You can kind of start to grow roots at that new university,” Mitchell points out.

With their many scholarship opportunities totaling about $1 million in annual awards, Mitchell tells members, “No matter what, go for it. It can’t hurt you to apply.”

“A lot of scholarships are looking for members who are really involved, which for our specific chapter that has kind of been a challenge because HCC is spread out across one of the biggest cities in the United States. It’s very difficult for us to connect all the students at all the different campuses, which is my goal for the rest of the semester is to try to connect and unify the club.”

Some members have complained to Mitchell that there are not enough service opportunities at their campus or side of town. “I want to try and fix that,” says Mitchell.

“Coming up, there will be a scholarship where the officers nominate a specific member who has shown that they care and that they want to get involved.”

Her advice to students applying for the scholarships is, “Whenever you write an essay, you have to be able to convey your academic prowess, as well as your public service—a well-rounded character essentially.”

As for the club, Mitchell says that “My goal is to get more events for the members.” She says  she is always open to ideas and “fresh eyes on the club.”

NSCS.org also offers a program called Gifted Hire for members, which helps student build resumes and more. “It’s an online program that connects students to different businesses, and these businesses will specifically seek out NSCS members,” explained Mitchell, “it’s a great networking opportunity.”

Elisa Cardenas is one of the society’s new members.

“It does involve a lot of community efforts to uphold your membership, which I like because gives me more goals to work on,” says Cardenas, “When they offer workshops and seminars, I can position myself to realize what are my strengths and weakness and try to better them, which helps my upholds my grades and be a better student and a model for other people.”

Cardenas has already applied to seven NSCS scholarships. “They have a lot of scholarship opportunities, which encourages me jump in on the band-wagon to get those scholarships and it helps me to tell myself: keep going, don’t give up. Even if you don’t get this scholarship, look there is another one over here that they’re offering.”

With the induction ceremony next fall, Cardenas says she’s looking forward to “showing people like my friends that I made it this far.”
For more info, visit NSCS.org or Facebook.com/nscs.hcc