The following associations/sections are the best of the best for study abroad professionals.

NAFSA: Association of International Educators (Section Education Abroad) - NAFSA is the mother of all International Education professionals, including Study Abroad. This is by far the biggest networking organization available to study abroad professionals. In addition to being staple for it foundation workshops and training opportunities, NAFSA offers a wealth of publications and resources which are available from the website. If you can only join and be a part of one organization, then NAFSA should be it.

Forum on Education Abroad - ForumEA was born by a focused group of NAFSA members in 2001. This organization has worked very hard to establish standards of good practice in the field of Education Abroad. They have a clear academic focus on quality, curicula, and assessment. The Forum’s work has come a long way a short period of time and the Department of Justice/Federal Trade Commission have designated the Forum a Standards Development Organization (SDO) for the field.

AIEA: Association of International Education Administrators - AIEA was formed in 1982. It is primarily composd of visionary leaders interested in advancing the international focus of higher education. They provide a nice conference (usually held in Washington DC) primarily geared towards Directors and Deans, and they focus heavily on Chief International Officers. They also provide workshops at NAFSA conferences and have a voice in international legislative issues.

CIEE: The Council on International Educational Exchange - CIEE is the leading non-governmental international education organization in the United States which provides programs that allow high school and university students and educators to study and teach abroad. If I were describe them in my own words, I'd say they are the biggest "third party provider" who has taken their work above and beyond program administration. They offer a nice conference for international education professionals, as well as helpful publications and materials.