It's like a sea of alphabet soup. NAFSA, NACAC, OACAC, ICEF, AIEA, AAIE, EAIE, EIEIO...the list goes on and on. (And of course we are kidding about that last one!) What is a new international admission, advising or services professional to do when encountering this vast array of professional organizations? While all of these organizations are reputable, educational, and professionally minded, it would behoove you to spend some time researching where your interests and skill set would be best met. It will be impossible (and cost prohibitive) to join every organization that exists. Yet with some research you will be able to discover which organizations will best advance your career and expose you to the most relevant research and professional discourse.
Joining professional organizations and participating in their regional and national conferences provides a means for engaging with higher education colleagues, exchanging ideas and learning cutting edge advances in recruitment practices. Membership also provides access to websites, professional literature and webinars. Whether you are new to the field or have decades of experience participating in professional organizations will be professionally and personally fulfilling.
If you are wondering where to start and how to get involved it's worthwhile to ask yourself (and your director) some questions. Think about the following things:
1. For what purpose am I interested in getting involved in a professional organization? Learning new skills? Teaching skills to others? Connecting with colleagues? Relationship building? Professional development? As you consider these various questions you'll begin to hone a list of appropriate organizations to join.
2. What professional organizations has your institution historically participated? You may realize that you have colleagues (either in your department or other related departments) who are already involved in some of these organizations. It might make sense to piggy-back on your colleagues' participation.
3. What are your key institutional goals and how could participating in a professional organization further those goals? Speak with your director or manager to gain a better sense of your institution's longterm goals. Understanding the goals and objectives of your department and institution will help you to gain clarity as you consider which organization(s) to join.
It can be intimidating and expensive to start your professional organization involvement at the national or international conferences. Regional or state meetings give you valuable hands on experience and can be much easier to navigate. The sheer volume of sessions, speakers and attendees at national conferences can be overwhelming for a new participant. Regular participation at state or regional meetings will provide ample professional enrichment and a great opportunity to network with colleagues.
All of the major professional organizations have terrific websites that are easy to navigate and extremely useful. A good starting point for involvement is to begin your research through the websites. You can learn of upcoming conferences, useful web-based learning programs, membership benefits, best practices and much more.
Seasoned veterans in the world of international recruitment and enrollment stress the importance of involvement in professional organizations. It's never too late to get involved so whether this is your first year or your tenth year in the field, consider joining and participating.
For further information about some of the larger professional organizations to which you might be interested in joining, click on the names of the organizations below. As always we welcome your feedback if we inadvertently missed an organization that you would recommend. Please share it with us and we'll be happy to add to this post. We are particularly interested in gaining insight about European and Australian professional organizations that you would recommend.
NAFSA (Association of International Educators)
NACAC (National Association for College Admission Counseling)
OACAC (Overseas Association for College Admission Counseling)
AIRC (American International Recruitment Council)
ICEF (International Consultants for Education and Fairs)
AIEA (Association of International Education Administrators)
AAIE (Association for the Advancement of International Education)
