In the spring semester, Grinnell College's Phi Beta Kappa chapter, Beta of Iowa, selects high-achieving third-year and senior students from among the candidates for election. All candidates for election as members-in-course shall meet successfully the following requirements of their academic course of study:

• Foreign language. Completion of a course at or beyond the third-semesterlevel of a modern foreign language, or the second-semester level of a classical language, or college-level placement at a level beyond such study of a modern or classical language, or proficiency beyond such level as demonstrated by the candidate's educational history, e.g. years of education in a non-English-speaking country.
• Mathematics. Completion of the course Mathematics 124 or 131, or a Mathematics course for which Mathematics 124 or 131 is a prerequisite.
• General distribution. At least 12 semester credits of study in the divisions of humanities, science, and social studies as defined at Grinnell College,with no more than eight divisional credits counted to come from any one academic department, and completion of at least one science course with a laboratory experience. A letter grade will be required in courses used to satisfy distribution requirements for election to Phi Beta Kappa, except for courses only offered "S/D/F".

Courses accepted as transfer credits by the Office of the Registrar may be used to satisfy distribution requirements, even though no letter grade appears on the student's transcript for these courses. In any case, only courses designated to one of the three academic divisions by the Office of the Registrar will count toward the distribution requirements. For courses cross-listed in two or more divisions (such as Mathematics 115/SST 115), the student should ensure that the course is designated to the desired division on his or her transcript.

Advanced Placement (AP) and transfer credits may be used to satisfy any eligibility requirement, provided that the Office of the Registrar has determined them to be equivalent to the relevant courses at Grinnell. A maximum of 4 AP credits may be used to satisfy the distribution requirement in each division. The student is responsible for ensuring that the appropriate credits are listed on his or her transcript.

Transcripts will be evaluated after the three-week add-drop period for spring semester courses. Courses that are in progress will count toward the eligibility requirements. Except for courses only offered "S/D/F," these courses must be taken for a letter grade if they are to satisfy distribution requirements. Before the induction ceremony each year, the chapter may verify the eligibility of students to be elected by requesting that the Office of the Registrar notify the chapter if a student has withdrawn from courses needed to satisfy eligibility requirements. The chapter initiates the consideration of third-years and seniors for membership without action by the students. Students will be notified by the chapter if they are to be offered membership in Phi Beta Kappa.

Students who want to earn secondary teacher licensure must apply for admittance to the Department of Education no later than the end of the student's fifth semester.

Requirements for licensure in secondary education are usually different than the requirements for the major, so students should discuss these requirements with education department members as soon as they have determined their major. In addition to the course requirements in the major and in education, students must take courses in all divisions of the College. Grinnell has a ninth semester program in which student teaching is completed the semester following graduation. This program is strongly recommended by the Department of Education, but with careful planning students can complete the program in four years. Applications for admittance to the program may be obtained from any education department member.