First UK-based official chapter of Psi Chi launches at Richmond, The American International University in London

Richmond, The American International University in London, is proud to announce that the Psychology Department at the University and the Richmond Psychology Association have established the first UK-based official chapter of Psi Chi, the International Honor Society in Psychology, which aims to encourage excellence in scholarship and advance the science of psychology.

An induction ceremony was held recently at the University’s Kensington campus to officially announce Richmond’s membership.

Psi Chi, which was founded in 1929, has grown over the past 90 years into one of the largest and most successful ‘honor’ societies in the world with over 1197 chapters located at college and university campuses throughout the US as well as in Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Barbados, Egypt, the US Virgin Islands, Turkey and Puerto Rico.

Dr Ira Konstantinou, Professor of Psychology at Richmond said, “We’re delighted to have been awarded membership of this organisation, which is one of the most prestigious member organisations in the world. It underlines our outstanding reputation internationally as experts in psychology education.  Psychology is one of the most popular programmes at Richmond and we’re incredibly proud of our highly respected and talented faculty and students.

“It’s even more special as Richmond, The American International University in London, is the only university or organisation in the UK to have official membership of Psi Chi, providing all of our Psychology students with a unique opportunity to benefit, from helping obtain psychology-related careers to networking, providing online resources to research opportunities.” 

Richmond offers a BA degree in Psychology, which is accredited by the British Psychological Society (BPS) and enables students to explore the fascinating world of human behaviour as they learn about memory, language, creativity, personality, social interaction and brain processes and the reasons for psychological differences between people.   A new initiative for 2019 at Richmond is an MSc in Psychology (subject to validation), a Conversion programme for students who wish to pursue a career in psychology, who have not studied the discipline for their undergraduate degree, or for professionals who would like a career change.

More than three-quarters of a million lifetime members have joined Psi Chi.  Many of the Society’s members have gone on to distinguished careers in psychology, including several presidents of the American Psychological Association (APA) and the American Psychological Society (APS), numerous US and international award winners, and various other renowned research psychologists, authors, professors, and practitioners.

Psi Chi operates on a chapter system, and the faculty advisor of the new London chapter is Dr Ira Konstantinou, Professor of Psychology at Richmond.  Charter members of the London chapter are: Fadila Farag, Caitlin Farrell, Tobias Haglof, Christian Schumacher, Alessandra Baratelli, Shannon McCann, Elena Falcone, Simi Kaur, Algirdas Midveris, and Farrah Portas Sanchez. There are 13 more eligible candidates being processed to attain charter membership, making up a total of 23 internationally-recognised Psychology students at Richmond.

The international organisation bestows several regional and Society research awards, sponsors diverse programmes at US regional and national psychological association conventions (including lectures, workshops, panel discussions, and information exchanges), and publishes the Psi Chi Journal of Psychological Research (formerly the Psi Chi Journal of Undergraduate Research). In addition, Psi Chi’s Society service projects illustrate the Society’s commitment to its mission of “student excellence, reflected in scholarly and professional growth within psychology and the ability to impact society positively.”