Mu Alpha Theta

What is the history of Mu Alpha Theta?

Mu Alpha Theta (ΜΑΘ) is the United States mathematics honor society for high school and two-year college students. In June 2015, it served over 108,000 student members in over 2,200 chapters in the United States and in 20 foreign countries. Its main goals are to inspire keen interest in mathematics, develop strong scholarship in the subject, and promote the enjoyment of mathematics in high school and two year college students. The name is a rough transliteration of math into Greek (Mu Alpha Theta).

What are the requirements to be in Mu Alpha Theta?

Membership, High School Chapter:

• Members must be high school students in grades 9 through 12.
• Members must be registered with Mu Alpha Theta at the school at which their permanent records reside.
• Members must have completed the equivalent of two years of college preparatory mathematics, including algebra and/or geometry, and have completed or are enrolled in a third year of college preparatory mathematics.
• On the 4-point grading scale, members must have at least a 3.0 math grade point average.

Membership, Two-year College Chapter:

• Two-year college students who were members of Mu Alpha Theta in high school are eligible for membership at their college. Their high school membership transfers and the students do not need to pay the membership fee again.
• If a student was not a member in high school, they must have taken at least one mathematics course at or above the College Algebra/Pre-calculus level in order to gain two-year college membership.
• On the 4-point grading scale, members must have at least a 3.0 math grade point average in courses at or above the College Algebra/Pre-calculus level.

What are the key benefits of being a member of Mu Alpha Theta? 

• Provides a method for schools to recognize and encourage students who enjoy and excel in mathematics.
• Organizes a national convention for students and teachers to participate in math-related events and interact with others from across the country.
• Rewards outstanding extracurricular achievement by offering special awards, scholarships, and grants to students and their faculty advisers.
• Provides mathematics competitions to participating members at their own school through the Log1 Contest, Rocket City Math League and the Mathematical Minutes Video Contest.

Based on the information, here is our review:

Our first observation is: that this society is open to both high school students and two-year college students, making it unique to other honor societies in that regard. 

Our second observation was: that this society organizes a national convention for students and teachers to participate in math-related events and interact with others from across the country.

Our third observation was: that the GPA requirements seem to be the same for high school students and two-year college students, though you would think they would adjust the grading scale based on the differing levels of difficulty.