If you are currently on the hunt for a job opportunity, are you aware of the benefits that come from joining a professional association? Do you know what kind of opportunities await you?
Professional associations are the perfect place for dedicated professionals to advance their careers and continue their education surrounded by like-minded individuals that share the same passion for their careers. These associations offer many benefits that will support your desire to become an influential presence in your field.
Here are 4 ways a professional association can help you find a job:
- Networking & Leadership Opportunities
- Continuing Education Opportunities
- Access to Mentor Programs
- Niche Job Boards
Networking & Leadership Opportunities
One of the many perks association members receive are the exclusive networking and leadership opportunities. As a member, you gain access to virtual, in-person, and hybrid networking events that can help grow your network. Building a network can help you solve challenges in your industry, discover new best practices, and connect to job opportunities you may not have otherwise known about.
Networking events are great places for sharing ideas and information with colleagues to learn about their perspectives and experiences. Virtual networking can make this a little more challenging, but many associations and members have seen great success using LinkedIn pages or other online community platforms to connect with colleagues. When you make a connection with peers in your field, you have the opportunity to advance your career. This happens once a connection is established and a professional relationship starts to build. The more effort you put into your professional relationships, the more you’ll get out of it.
Becoming actively involved within your association not only opens up networking opportunities, but it can also help you develop valuable leadership skills. Many professional organizations are dedicated to leadership or even offer leadership educational opportunities. When you do become a member, you might also be eligible for tuition discounts or educational scholarships offered by the association as a high value benefit.
Continuing Education Opportunities
Another reason to join a professional association is the access to continuing education opportunities like certifications and courses. Earning certifications is critical for continuing competency in your profession and not to mention, this is an essential step in advancing your industry.
In the era of virtual learning, associations give you access to online certifications, which makes achieving these certifications less complicated for working job seekers and students. Some associations even offer discounted rates for certifications and other educational courses!
What is also great about joining a professional association is the access to speciality journals, magazines, professional or peer-reviewed publications and newsletters with industry-related information. Having this kind of information at your fingertips will help you stay up-to-date and knowledgeable about all things industry-related, making you a well-informed candidate and future employee.
Access to Mentor Programs
Associations are the perfect place to find experts who can help you advance your knowledge and skill set to grow professionally. Each mentor’s range of expertise and years of experience can provide you with a plethora of resources to get you to the next level in your career.
They can give you tips and advice on which certifications or courses to take, which programs to enroll in, companies to apply to that are looking for candidates like you and much more. Mentors have a wealth of knowledge that can guide you through your career path and help you when you hit a bump in the road. They have been through and seen it all, so learning from a mentor will be extremely rewarding and beneficial for your career development.
Niche Job Boards
An association’s job board is more effective for job search than a massive job board because they only focus on posting jobs that are relevant to your industry, whereas massive job boards have hundreds of industries they serve. When you are searching for a job on an association’s job board, you confidently know you are exposed to high quality employers and career options.
Additional benefits include the option to create a job seeker profile where you can upload your resume, cover letter, recommendation letters, display certifications and manage your applications all in one platform. This makes it much easier for employers to find you, assess your qualifications and quickly contact you to set up interviews. You, as the job seeker, can sign up for job alert email notifications that send relevant job opportunities directly to your inbox when an employer posts a job that meets your preferred criteria.
When you join a professional association, you’ll be able to access jobs that are specific to your area of interest without the headache of searching through massive job boards to find those types of jobs. These associations will understand the market on an intricate level, giving you top employers and job opportunities on a regular basis.