Upsilon Pi Epsilon

Upsilon Pi Epsilon (UPE) is an honorary society established to recognize outstanding talent and promote high scholarship and professionalism in the Computing Sciences. UPE is the first and remains the only international honor society for the Computing Sciences, and is recognized by ACM and IEEE Computer Societies. Membership in UPE is extended through invitation to students and faculty in Computer Science and Computer Engineering who display outstanding scholarship and professionalism.

The Alpha Mississippi Chapter of Upsilon Pi Epsilon was established at Mississippi State University on April 29, 1974. Membership in UPE is open to Juniors and Seniors in Computer Science and Computer Engineering with outstanding academic standing.

Information about membership eligibility can be found in Bylaw VIII of the Bylaws of the UPE chapter.

Membership Requirements

The general requirements for membership in UPE are summarized in the UPE Constitution.  It should be noted that prospective student members are judged primarily on their academic records.  In addition, the candidate for UPE membership must be pursuing an appropriate degree in the Computing and Information Disciplines.  Chapters have the option to have more restrictive requirements, but must not specify grades and units completed that are lower than those specified in the UPE Constitution.  Complete details of these requirements are specified in Article IX, Section 3 of the Constitution. A brief summary of these requirements is listed below.

Eligibility of UPE Member Candidates

Undergraduate Students.

To be eligible for election to membership, undergraduate students must rank in the upper 35% of the class and shall have attained a general scholarship rating, in all college work thus far completed, of not less than 3.0/4.0 grade-points provided (1.) that candidates in any particular academic level who satisfy the requirements of Article VIII, Section 2, (2.) that the candidate shall have completed at least 45 (Forty Five) semester hours of college work including fifteen (15) semester hours or twenty-three (23) quarter hours in the basic courses in the Computing and Information Disciplines to be eligible under this Section. The Chapter shall have the right to set any limit above this minimum attainment as a basis for eligibility.

Undergraduate transfer students.

Undergraduate upper-division students transferring to the Chapter location from another institution shall have been in residence at least one year at the Chapter location at the time they are considered for election unless they transfer at the beginning of their senior year, in which case they may be considered for election after one semester (or two quarters) of residence. In such cases the scholarship rating shall be computed on the basis of only those courses of college grade, which shall include some basic courses in the Computing and Information Disciplines taken at the institution where the Chapter is located, and the minimum scholarship rating shall be 3.0/4.0 grade points provided, however, that the candidate shall have completed at least fifteen (15) semester hours or twenty-three (23) quarter hours in the basic courses in the Computing and Information Disciplines to be eligible under this section. The Chapter may set any limit above this minimum as a basis for eligibility. In case the undergraduate transfer came from an institution where there is a Chapter of Upsilon Pi Epsilon inquiry should be made of the Chapter as to the reason for his/her failure of election to membership at that institution. (See Bylaw VII, Section 5)

Graduate Students.

In order to be eligible for election such graduate students must rank in the upper 35% of the class and shall have been in graduate residence at the current institution at least one semester (or two quarters) and shall have completed at least one-half of the number of semester-hours of graduate work normally required for the master's degree, with a scholarship rating of at least 3.5/4.0. (The foregoing shall constitute the basis of computation, irrespective of the graduate degree sought by the candidate.) A student in the process of completing the above requirements may be elected to membership in the second semester or third quarter providing the Chapter Committee on Eligibility shall have reasonable assurance from the candidate's instructors and research director that his/her scholastic standing is above the minimum requirements of UPE. The Chapter shall have the right to set any limit above this minimum as a basis for determining eligibility. The scholarship record may be supplemented by information from the candidate's director of research as to the quality of his performance, if such research is already in progress. A student who was invited to join UPE as an undergraduate may be re-invited as a first semester graduate student if his undergraduate scholarship rating was at least 3.5/4.0.