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Department of Criminal Justice Sciences

Alpha Phi Sigma

Undergraduate and graduate students who are majoring in Criminal Justice Sciences and who have excelled academically are encouraged to become members of the Chi Chapter of Alpha Phi Sigma.

Alpha Phi Sigma is the National Criminal Justice Honor Society. Meetings are held weekly throughout the year. New members are officially inducted into the honor society each spring during the departmental awards ceremony; however, eligible students may join and become involved at any time throughout the year. Drs. Ashley Farmer and Mijin Kim are the faculty advisors for the organization.

Members of Alpha Phi Sigma participate in a variety of service projects. Some past service projects include:

  • Adopting and cleaning Fell Park
  • Working with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
  • Law enforcement Torch Run
  • Sponsoring a child through the Boys and Girls Club of Bloomington
  • Volunteering at a local food pantry
  • Raising money for the Salvation Army

Members of Alpha Phi Sigma also participate in academic activities. Guest speakers are routinely invited to speak at meetings, and members often visit local criminal justice agencies. In the past, the honor society has co-sponsored the Annual CJS Career and Internship Fair as well as several department conferences.

Join now and enjoy these benefits:

  • Make contacts with professionals in the field
  • Build your résumé for internship and job placement
  • Get to know other students with similar interests
  • Become involved in the Criminal Justice Sciences Department

Member requirements:

CJS undergraduate students have two options for membership:

1) Students not yet meeting the full requirements for National Membership may alternately join as Local APS Members. The expectation is that students will eventually join the National APS chapter;
2) Students that meet the National Membership criteria may join the National APS chapter at the outset and do not need to join the Local APS chapter. See the applications for Local Membership and National Membership below.

Undergraduate Students Local Membership

  • Application
  • Criminal Justice Sciences Major
  • Cumulative GPA: 3.0 or higher
  • $10 local membership dues (personal check, cashier's check, or money order payable to Alpha Phi Sigma)

Undergraduate Students National Membership:

  • Application
  • Criminal Justice Sciences Major
  • Major GPA: 3.2 or higher
  • Cumulative GPA: 3.2 or higher and be in the highest 35% of their class ranking. If class rank is unavailable, students must have a GPA of at least 3.3
  • Completed three full-time semesters (or the equivalent)
  • $85 National membership dues (money order or cashier’s check payable to Alpha Phi Sigma)
  • Current Academic Progress Summary Report (available through My.IllinoisState)

Graduate Students:

  • Application
  • 4 completed classes
  • Minimum GPA of 3.4, or upper 25% of their class
  • $85 National membership dues (money order or cashier’s check payable to Alpha Phi Sigma)
  • Current Academic Progress Summary Report (available through My.IllinoisState)

To become a member of Alpha Phi Sigma, simply complete the appropriate membership form above (local membership application is a webform; national membership forms are PDFs and should be downloaded to your computer first, saved, filled out, and saved again) and email it to Dr. Farmer or Dr. Kim. Payments can be dropped off to Dr. Kim in SCH 414 or Dr. Farmer in SCH 422. Contact them first to make sure they'll be in when you want to drop it off!