Tau Beta Pi

[yoconman]

Hey everyone, just got the invite to the Tau Beta Pi branch of UT austin.  I'm debating whether I should join or not, and was hoping to get some advice from people who did it.  A couple of my friends were invited also, so I think I would fit in.  However, I was wondering if anyone thinks it's worth it for applications (to be honest, I've heard that the people in are pretentious engineers).  I don't really want to spend time doing the semester process of joining if it just ends up being like the IEEE branch at UT, which is a bunch of socially awkward EE's.

[AxyC]

Hey everyone, just got the invite to the Tau Beta Pi branch of UT austin.  I'm debating whether I should join or not, and was hoping to get some advice from people who did it.  A couple of my friends were invited also, so I think I would fit in.  However, I was wondering if anyone thinks it's worth it for applications (to be honest, I've heard that the people in are pretentious engineers).  I don't really want to spend time doing the semester process of joining if it just ends up being like the IEEE branch at UT, which is a bunch of socially awkward EE's.

 

Hi yoconman! First, congratulations on getting an invite.

 

For someone asking about joining TBP, you seem rather negative about who you assume to be involved in the organization ("pretentious engineers"). TBP is the best-respected engineering honor society in the US, and being a part of it is a stamp of approval and endorsement from a very well-known organization. The people of Tau Beta Pi also meet a standard that the society calls "exemplary character," and they commonly end up in high positions in industry, academia, etc because of great leadership skills. It's also an amazing networking opportunity and it's also a way to become involved in leadership positions on campus. 

 

Having the name TBP on your resume will be worth more if you become involved and active in the society. If you think you'll be elected to a better known organization (i.e. Phi Beta Kappa, the oldest greek-letter honor society for liberal arts/sciences), then maybe don't join TBP. It's up to you I guess? Let me know if you have specific questions, or you can always ask members or officers of the Texas Alpha chapter at your home university for specifics.

 

(Source: I am a TBP chapter president and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa as junior standing and I am going to venture that these affiliations and activities probably helped my application a lot -- see signature below. Through being a TBP officer, I was able to attend multiple conferences and meet motivated leaders in other undergrad engineering programs as well as professional engineers in industry/academia. I think what I'm trying to say here is that if you just join and are a member, you will not benefit as much from it as if you get fully involved and experience everything that is offered by the society.)

[tuckbro]

Tau Beta Pi is the premier nationally respected engineering honor society. I am privileged to be a member and also received a merit scholarship from them, which I definitely appreciate.

I would recommend accepting such an invitation.

[yoconman]

Thanks for the responses!  Sorry I was condescending about it's members in my first post.  On account of the positive feedback, I think I'll join, or at least go to a couple of the meetings.