DEI is a co-ed Professional academic honor society

Honor society

In the United States, an honor society is a rank organization that recognizes excellence among peers. Numerous societies recognize various fields and circumstances. The Order of the Arrow, for example, is the national honor society of the Boy Scouts of America...

. The Delta Epsilon Iota Honor Society was founded on December 7, 1994 at the University of Georgia

University of Georgia

The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...

. It is currently headquartered in Atlanta

Atlanta, Georgia

Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...

, Georgia

Georgia (U.S. state)

Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...

. DEI was founded to recognize those students who go beyond the minimal requirements and to increase awareness of on campus career centers to students.

Mission

The mission of the organization is to encourage students to excel academically, educate students on career development issues, and promote the principles of Dedication

Dedication

Dedication is the act of consecrating an altar, temple, church or other sacred building. It also refers to the inscription of books or other artifacts when these are specifically addressed or presented to a particular person. This practice, which once was used to gain the patronage and support of...

, Enthusiasm

Enthusiasm

Enthusiasm originally meant inspiration or possession by a divine afflatus or by the presence of a god. Johnson's Dictionary, the first comprehensive dictionary of the English language, defines enthusiasm as "a vain belief of private revelation; a vain confidence of divine favour or...

, and Initiative

Initiative

In political science, an initiative is a means by which a petition signed by a certain minimum number of registered voters can force a public vote...

 in all aspects of campus life.

History

The Society was founded in 1994 by Andrew J. Bond, Associate Director of the University of Georgia Career Center, and Richard M. Drye, a student at the University of Georgia. Despite the many great services offered by the Career Center, the top students seemed to have limited interaction. Andrew and Rich decided to team up to start an organization

Organization

An organization is a social group which distributes tasks for a collective goal. The word itself is derived from the Greek word organon, itself derived from the better-known word ergon - as we know `organ` - and it means a compartment for a particular job.There are a variety of legal types of...

 that would solve this problem.

In 1999, The Career Center at the University of Michigan

University of Michigan

The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...

 ( Ann Arbor ) wanted to start the organization on their campus and helped develop the “chapter” model which is still in use today. Once the model was perfected, the organization could quickly and easily be replicated at colleges and universities around the country

Country

A country is a region legally identified as a distinct entity in political geography. A country may be an independent sovereign state or one that is occupied by another state, as a non-sovereign or formerly sovereign political division, or a geographic region associated with a previously...

.

Membership

Both undergraduate and graduate students are invited to become candidates of Delta Epsilon Iota based on their academic qualifications. Undergraduates are required to have a minimum of 30 semester hours with at least a 3.3/4.0 GPA at an accredited university. Eligible students should be invited by their local chapter.