FAQ

Here are some possible questions that other chapters around have received. Check them out!

Q: My parent(s)/ guardian just got their bachelor's degree. I'm in a bachelor's program now, and when I entered college, I was a first-generation student. Does this mean I'm no longer eligible for initiation?

A: No, understand it does not! Since you started your college journey as a first-gen student, your experience has been that of a first-gen student. Therefore, as long as you meet the other criteria for initiation, you are eligible to be inducted into Alpha Alpha Alpha at Canisius College.

Q: Why is the GPA requirement for graduate students higher than it is for undergraduate students?

A: First and foremost, keep in mind that Alpha Alpha Alpha is an honor society, not a club. Typically many honor societies utterly disregard graduate students! A 3.00 GPA is required in most graduate programs for "good standing." If we set a 3.00 as the minimal GPA for admission for graduate students, then every student in good standing would be eligible for induction – and it would no longer be an honor. As a result, we chose 3.5, which is greater than the 3.2 required for students, but we wanted far above "good standing," just as a 3.2 is far over "good standing" for undergraduates.

Q: My parent(s)/ guardian just got their bachelor's degree. I'm in a bachelor's program now, and when I entered college, I was a first-generation student. Does this mean I'm no longer eligible for initiation?

A: No, understand it does not! Since you started your college journey as a first-gen student, your experience has been that of a first-gen student. Therefore, as long as you meet the other criteria for initiation, you are eligible to be inducted into Alpha Alpha Alpha at Canisius College.

Q: Is there a minimum GPA I must maintain to keep my membership?

A: No; once inducted, always a member, even if your GPA slips.

Q: Why is the GPA requirement for graduate students higher than it is for undergraduate students?

A: First and foremost, keep in mind that Alpha Alpha Alpha is an honor society, not a club. Typically many honor societies utterly disregard graduate students! A 3.00 GPA is required in most graduate programs for "good standing." If we set a 3.00 as the minimal GPA for admission for graduate students, then every student in good standing would be eligible for induction – and it would no longer be an honor. As a result, we chose 3.5, which is greater than the 3.2 required for students, but we wanted far above "good standing," just as a 3.2 is far over "good standing" for undergraduates.

Q: My parent(s)/ guardian earned a bachelor's degree in another country. But I'm first-generation in America. Can I be inducted?

A: This is an excellent question without a clear answer. If your institution defines first-generation (as some do) as meaning that your parents did not receive a bachelor's degree in the United States, then you can be inducted. However, if your institution does not have such a definition, the national officers do allow for some flexibility here. Not all foreign degrees are "equal" in this way. A degree from Canada is very similar, for example, to that in the US, in terms of the college experience. So that might mean that you, the student, don't really have a typical first-gen college experience. But for parents who earned their bachelor's in other countries less like the American system, their experience might have been so different that your journey really is that of a first-generation student. Rather than trying to parse out which countries belong on which list, the national office allows the individual chapters to make this determination, as long as they do so with consistency.

Q: I graduated before my school had a chapter. Is it possible for me to be inducted as an alumnus/a?

A: Yes, if you were a first-generation college graduate, please contact the chapter adviser(s) about being inducted as an alum.

Q: Is there a GPA requirement for faculty/staff, alumni, and honorary inductees?

A: No, it is more important than the non-student inductees were first-generation students or (for honorary members) are advocates and mentors for first-generation students and have a link to the school.

Q: My parent(s)/ guardian graduated with an honorary degree. Is it possible for me to be a first-generation?

A: Yes, You can be a first-generation college graduate, even if they are not recognized to be of the same status as substantive degrees gained through the usual academic processes of courses because the original research, even when the recipient has exhibited the same adequate level of academic scholarship as the substantive.