Physics and Biophysics Clubs and Honors Societies

USD's Society of Physics Students (SPS) is a vibrant and active club designed for any student interested in the wonders of physics. SPS members gather for organizational meetings and social activities, host K-12 outreach events, attend scientific conferences, design t-shirts and masks, and much more! Our SPS chapter and members have won several national awards over the past few years including the Blake Lily Award for Outreach and Diversity in Physics, the Outstanding Undergraduate Research Award, the Outstanding Chapter Award, and the Notable Chapter Award.

Organization Contact

The CBL Physics Identity Program (PIP) at USD supports and helps build a strong community of physics and biophysics majors. This program provides students the opportunity to build their physics identity through professional development interactive events, networking opportunities with professionals in physics and biophysics, social physics book club discussions, coffee hours and outreach efforts. Learn more.

Organization Contact

Mortar Board is a national honor society for college seniors that was founded in 1918 and chartered on the USD campus in the fall of 2000. The society recognizes in its members the qualities of scholastic achievement, outstanding leadership and dedicated service to the university and the community. There are over 200 active chapters of Mortar Board at colleges throughout the country. To be eligible for membership, students must have junior standing in the spring semester with an overall grade point average that places them in the top 35 percent of their class. Moreover, students must have participated and excelled in leadership and service activities during their college years. Admission to Mortar Board at USD is highly competitive and is restricted to approximately 30 students each year. Mortar Board members have the opportunity to apply for local and national Mortar Board scholarships and fellowships to be used for graduate study.

Organization Contact

Phi Beta Kappa is the oldest and most prestigious academic honor society in the United States, Phi Beta Kappa was established in 1776 and has evolved to become the nation's leading advocate for the liberal arts and sciences at the undergraduate level. The society's distinctive emblem, the golden key, is widely recognized as a symbol of academic achievement. USD received its Phi Beta Kappa charter in 2003 and is one of only 270 chapters nationwide. To be eligible for membership, students must be majoring in an area of the liberal arts or sciences, hold senior standing and have attained a GPA that places them in the top 10 percent of their class. Additional criteria for selection include intellectual integrity, tolerance and a broad range of intellectual interests. Each spring a campus committee composed of Phi Beta Kappa faculty invites a select group of students to become members in the Society. Students who accept the invitation are then initiated into the Phi Beta Kappa Society in a formal ceremony.

Organization Contact

Sigma Pi Sigma exists to honor outstanding scholarship in physics, to encourage interest in physics among students at all levels, to promote service to all, to provide for a fellowship of persons who have excelled in physics and to help them in their professional development.

Organization Contact