Tau Sigma

Spells Success for UW Transfer Students

By Terry Hill, Program Coordinator, First Year Programs

Successful UW transfer students are getting the recognition they deserve through Tau Sigma, the transfer student honor society. The University of Washington is one of about 32 universities across the country that has recently established Tau Sigma chapters. According to the Tau Sigma Constitution, Tau Sigma National Honor Society was created \”to recognize the academic achievements of students transferring to an institution of higher learning from another academic institution and to encourage and promote the students\’ involvement in the institution to which they have transferred.\” Membership eligibility is based on the following three requirements:

Must transfer from another academic institution with at least 45 credits.
Must be a full-time, matriculated student at the UW.
Must receive a GPA of 3.5 or greater during the first quarter attending UW.

Tau Sigma is a very new national organization, but is growing quite rapidly. The organization was born at Auburn University in 1999 and in 2001, the UW chapter was recognized as one of the first in the nation. Since that time there have been over 3600 members nationally, nearly 400 of which were UW students. Currently there are over 300 active members on the three UW campuses.

Tau Sigma has five goals as a national organization. The first goal is to address the current lack of recognition of outstanding academic achievement among transfer students. There is much talk about the challenges that transfer students face in making the transition at a new school. Often times the success stories are overlooked as university officials try to better understand why some students struggle with the transition. Tau Sigma is a reminder that many students have been adequately prepared by their former institutions and do just fine with the transition.

A second goal is to provide motivation for academic excellence of all incoming transfer students. Not everybody needs this motivation. However, many students benefit from the support as they adjust to the rigors of attending a four-year institution.

The third goal is to enhance the reputation of all transfer students. Tau Sigma is a reminder to all that academic success can be had and is being had by many, many transfer students. Nearly 500 of the 1,800 transfer student from Fall 2004 will become eligible for membership.

A fourth goal is to create community among transfer students at UW. Transfer students are often two years behind in developing social networks. Tau Sigma is creating a sense of community for students at their new institution and helping students make connections that may benefit them in the future.

A final goal is to promote student involvement of transfer students. At UW, Tau Sigma members have become involved in many leadership opportunities through the encouragement of the organization. Some members have gone on to become Peer Instructors for the Transfer and Returning Interest Group (TRIG) program. Some of them have also gone on to become volunteers on Transfer Thursdays in the Gateway Center in Mary Gates Hall. Students are finding ways to get involved and compliment their classroom education and experience.

The University of Washington\’s Tau Simga chapter is doing its part to create a more welcoming place for incoming transfer students coming to UW. Each quarter, Tau Sigma raffles off a $100 University Book Store Gift Certificate to its most active members. They are planning community service projects as well as creating intramural recreational teams for transfer students. Along with volunteering their knowledge and experience to prospective transfer students at Transfer Thursdays, they also hope to create an \”ambassadors\” program that will take Tau Sigma members to local community colleges to help address questions and encourage students to apply to UW. They also want to show future transfer students that there are people like them at UW who are ready to welcome them and recognize their accomplishments.

Tau Simga members and officers view themselves as advocates as well. They have created a student senate position and have also begun researching and educating administrators, staff, faculty, and other university students about the concerns, challenges, and benefits involved in beginning as transfer students at the University of Washington.

The greatest achievement of 2004 is that Jesse Blaisdell, former UW Chapter president and member, has become the inaugural top award recipient for the Tau Sigma National Scholarship. He will be receiving a $1,000 scholarship in January of 2005. This is a huge accomplishment for Jesse and something that the UW chapter is very proud of.

Tau Sigma is on the move! There is no doubt that you will be hearing more about this group in the years to come. You can learn more about this organization by visiting its website at http://students.washington.edu/tausigma/ or by emailing tausigma@u.washington.edu .

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