Dear Editor,
In response to Omair Qazi’s April 27 article titled ‘The Worth of Your Shiny Gold Star,’ NSCS would like to issue the following statement to show members and potential members the benefits of joining NSCS, and Qazi’s complete oversights and lack of ability to recognize opportunity.
In his article, Qazi attacks the national branch for allotting 2 percent of its total revenue to scholarships for its members. He compares it to Tau Beta Pi, of which he approves, which allocates 9 percent of its revenue to scholarship. In essence, Qazi is arguing over 7 percent. Not only does Qazi omit the fact that Tau Beta Pi has a higher membership fee, he conveniently omits the fact that NSCS provides members with many opportunities not offered by other honor societies.
Just this year alone, we have had two extraordinary scholars from UCSD win NSCS’s biggest opportunities: the Merit Scholar award (free ride for a year), and the opportunity to travel to Washington, D.C., to witness President Barack Obama’s inauguration, as well as the opportunity to meet him in person. Just being able to have these opportunities is well worth the $75 spent, wouldn’t you agree? In regard to the expensive national convention costs ‘mdash; we cannot deny the fact that they take a toll in our budgets, but it is a national convention; you have the opportunity to meet NSCS scholars from all over the country, in our nation’s beautiful capital. Many may think of this trip as a money sink, but networking is priceless. You never know who your future boss may be.
Not only that, NSCS provides an excellent discount on MCAT, LSAT or any other professional test preparation courses. Just by having the NSCS name on you, you can save hundreds ‘mdash; I repeat, hundreds’ ‘mdash;’ on these preparatory classes. Just by crunching the numbers, as it seems that previous article failed to do, a few hundred is much greater than the $75 that is paid.
For those of you who are members, and for those of you who have been invited and are considering joining, I hope you can see NSCS offers a wide range of opportunities and experiences. Being an active member will enable you to get involved with your community and meet fellow members, and will contribute to your overall development both as a student and as a member of society. The UCSD chapter of NSCS is thriving, and all of our officers look forward to meeting new members at induction in the fall.
If you have any further questions or concerns about joining or want to know more about our chapter, feel free to check out our Web site at nscsatucsd.com or email [email protected]. I am proud of our organization, and most of all, I am proud of all of you for making the decision to be part of NSCS.