Name: Aubree Lemons
Major: Marketing
Graduation Year: 2013
Hometown: Norfolk, MA
HC: Tell us a little bit about Mu Kappa Tau.
AL: Mu Kappa Tau is a Marketing National Honor Society. In order to be eligible for membership, you must be a junior or a senior, marketing major, with a cumulative GPA of a 3.25 or higher. Being a part of this organization gives you access to scholarships, job and internship opportunities, and a million other awesome things. Plus, you get to wear pretty blue honor cords at graduation!!
HC: What motivated you to want to start this honors society?
AL: I was invited to join the Sociology National Honor Society at Bryant Alpha Kappa Delta, for my minor. I asked my marketing professor at the time, Dr. Quigley, if any honor society existed for Marketing. He referred me to the Chair of the Marketing Department, Dr. Demoranville for more information. She said there was no such honor society here, but encouraged me to look into starting one. It all took off from there!
HC: What kind of planning went into starting the Bryant chapter?
AL: The planning for this organization at the Bryant University Level was a bit confusing. I first thought that I needed to go through the Center of Student Involvement and Student Senate, but since this organization is exclusive, we would not be able to receive any funds from the school. So then I tried to partner MKT with the Bryant Marketing Association, but that again did not work. Eventually, a fellow student told me that all National Honor Societies are run by the individual academic departments. From there, it was just a matter of getting the professors of the Marketing Department on-board. They seem enthusiastic about this opportunity! The process to actually bring MKT to Bryant was a breeze compared to all that! We needed to have two professors write letters of support, ten students sign a petition, write a chapter constitution, get a $50 check from the Marketing department, and we were good to go!
HC: How can students benefit from being a member and what are the requirements?
AL: The requirements to being an MKT member are being a junior or senior marketing major with a cumulative GPA of a 3.25 or higher. There are a ton of great benefits to being a member. First, MKT is the only Marketing National Honor Society that is recognized by the Association of Collegiate Honor Societies; so it’s a definite resume booster! Students pay one fee and they are a lifetime member, no additional fees, and access to MKT services are always open to members. When students sign up, they receive a membership certificate, gold pin to wear at graduations and professional events, and a sticker for their car! MKT also has annual networking events that members are invited to attend. MKT offers students scholarships, essay competition, website publishing opportunities, and a quarterly email newsletter. Finally, MKT has a job board where employers and MKT members post job opportunities first to this organization, then open it up to the public. Very cool if students are looking for jobs and internships. It’s actually very similar to the BCC from the Amica Center!
HC: Any final remarks?
AL: Yes! I would like to thank Raquel Cordeiro, Laura Wrightson, members of the Bryant Marketing Association, and Professors Quigley, Demoranville, and Zdravkovic for all of their help in getting this started. I would also like to thank Susie Bloomquist who works at the National Headquarters of MKT; she has been wonderful, helpful, and patient with us through all the trials and tribulations! I couldn’t have done it without them!