HKN is the international honor society for electrical and computer engineers. Established by Maurice Carr in 1904 with the opening of the Alpha chapter at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, HKN has grown to over 200 chapters. Outstanding persons are elected to HKN primarily from the junior and senior classes of accredited undergraduate programs. Graduate students and distinguished professional engineers are also eligible. Students are chosen based on marked academic performance, personal character, service to the student body, and distinguished accomplishments. While one of its purposes certainly is the reward of scholarship, Eta Kappa Nu has a far broader purpose than merely to award a badge of distinction to scholars. As conceived by its founders and as carried forward by its members for more than two generations, another aim is to assist its members throughout their lives in becoming better professionals. HKN encourages members to improve the standards of the profession, the courses of instruction, and the institutions generally where its chapters are established.