Get Involved
Student Organizations
Involvement in student organizations provides the opportunity to improve leadership skills and gain professional development outside of the classroom. Selected organizations are discussed below.
Student Association of Global Affairs (SAGA)
SAGA is an organization for the School of Global Studies master’s degree students. It is a university-recognized group intended to devise and implement activities that complement a student’s classroom life at OSU. The Association elects its own student officers and brings students together for scholarly as well as social purposes. Announcements of association meetings and activities are distributed to IS students through email and social media.
SAGA can also serve as a vehicle for representing graduate students to the faculty and administration and a forum for discussing common concerns. Questions, problems and recommended changes to the graduate program can be presented to the faculty through SAGA representatives.
Sigma Iota Rho (SIR)
Sigma Iota Rho is an honor society for undergraduate and graduate students in a program focusing in international studies. The purpose of the society is to promote and reward scholarship and service among students and practitioners of international studies, international affairs, and global studies and to foster integrity and creative performance in the conduct of world affairs.
In order for graduate students to qualify, students must meet the following criteria:
- Be attending a graduate program which focuses on international studies, including courses in relevant subject areas of anthropology, economics, foreign languages, geography, history, political science, and other related disciplines;
- completed one semester of graduate-level work in the aforementioned areas;
- attained a cumulative grade point average of 3.3 or higher in all courses, and a grade point average of at least 3.4 in international relations courses;
- must maintain full-time student status to be a voting member or hold an office.
There are opportunities through SIR to receive scholarships and travel grants for items like books, software, research funds, or travel to an academic conference. At OSU the society is housed in the School of Global Studies (204 Wes Watkins Center) with Dr. Jami Fullerton as the faculty adviser and Cara Eubanks as the co-adviser. Applications for membership are available at the beginning of each semester.
International Student Organization (ISO)
The International Student Organization is an organization for all international students at OSU. Their goal is to bring all the international students together as a single family and to share the diverse cultures from all over the world. They sponsor several events throughout the year. These include: International Olympics, an International Food and Dance Expo, a display in the Homecoming Parade, and an International Cultural Night variety show.
Phi Kappa Phi
Phi Kappa Phi, founded in 1897, is the oldest and largest interdisciplinary scholastic honor society in the United States, and a charter member of the Association of College Honor Societies. Phi Kappa Phi at OSU draws membership from all colleges within the university, and is a unifying force in education today. Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society recognizes superior collegiate scholarship by inviting the top 10 percent of senior and graduate students in each college to membership. Several SIS graduate students have been inducted into Phi Kappa Phi in recent years.
Phi Beta Delta
Phi Beta Delta is the first honor society dedicated to the recognition of scholarly achievement in international education, research and service. It was founded at California State University, Long Beach in 1986 and was established as an organization in 1987 with 38 chartered chapters. OSU’s chapter, Epsilon Upsilon, was chartered in 2004. Phi Beta Delta members include faculty, students, and administrators on university campuses, as well as distinguished individuals from around the world who share the commitment to international culture.
International Studies Association
ISA is a professional association whose purpose is to serve the needs and enhance the capacities of scholars, practitioners, and others without regard to nationality--having a professional interest in expanding, disseminating, and applying knowledge of interrelations among nations and peoples. For more information see: www.isanet.org.