One-Stop Shops for Reliable Career Resources and Growth
By Deborah R. Snyder
With so much info available online, it can be overwhelming to sort through sites to find credible advice and resources in education. My own Google search for “teacher job search” just yielded 109,000,000 results. Really.
Wouldn’t it be nice if you could connect with colleagues in the education profession who understand your needs and can provide up-todate advice? Fortunately, there are professional associations like the American Association for Employment in Education (AAEE), whose mission is to do just that. AAEE comprises university career services and College of Education professionals along with K-12 human resources and other school system administrators.
There are many benefits of joining a professional association:
Universities
• Direct connections with school system employers • Free professional development webinars • Promotion of the career opportunities to students and alumni candidates • Free annual reports and surveys • Reduced pricing for annual conferences, conventions and related events
School Systems
• Job boards and candidate databases • Direct connections with candidates via university career centers and Colleges of Ed • Free professional development webinars • Reduced pricing for ads in publications • Free national reports • Reduced pricing for annual conferences and job fairs
Candidates
(Although candidates are not eligible to join some associations like AAEE, they may access the Job Board and Career Corner blog for free or purchase the Job Search Handbook for Educators and Educator Supply and Demand Report via aaee.org or receive copies from AAEE member universities.)
• Access to the national job boards • Access to the Job Search Handbook for Educators • Access to blogs and articles related to the education profession • Free industry and job outlook reports
While professional associations provide specific resources, programs and services, perhaps the most valuable benefit of a centralized organization of professional colleagues is the networking opportunities. School district members can increase their recruiting exponentially through direct contact with university career services members who put them in touch with candidates.
As Kent McAnally, Director of Career Services at Washburn University, mentions in his blog on professional associations, “Most importantly, there are members to help you and support you when you have questions or problems that you just need to ask someone about. AAEE is an organization that provides this kind of professional development and network for people like me who work with educators and education candidates.”
■ Deborah R. Snyder Deborah R. Snyder is Executive Director of the American Association for Employment in Education (AAEE).
