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In the last decades, many international scientific associations have been created. Organizations such as AAAS, IEEE, ACM, involve thousands of scientists and professors that have similar scientific backgrounds and objectives.

However, besides technical and resource taks (such as providing documentation, articles, books, and organizing conferences) their aim is to push scientists closer, and let them connect with each other and network.

Concerning this last point, I've always wondered: yes, but how?

I'm member of several scientific societies, and I think I should take more advantage of my membership to connect with other scientists. But, anyway, except for conferences where we meet in person, how could I use my membership to get more connections?

How would you do? What's your experience? Are you member of some scientific associations? How do you take advantage of your membership in professional connections?

Many thanks!

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  • Do you get your answer from this answers?
    – M R R
    Jan 3, 2015 at 18:57

4 Answers 4

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The best way to take advantage of memberships in professional societies—beyond attending conferences—is helping to organize them. This will get you in touch with the other people in your field who are at an early-career phase. (Older faculty typically don't need to, or are higher up on the food chain.) Organizing sessions is also a good way to learn your specialty better, and to keep abreast of who's working on what.

In the long run, it can also bolster your career by providing you with "synergistic" (or "service") activities that show you to be a good member of the research community, which is important for getting job offers and promotions.

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  • @aiesmail Thanks, aieismail. What d'you mean with "synergistic" (or "service") activities? Extra courses, extra academic educational activities? Mar 30, 2012 at 7:47
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    I'm not sure this really answers the question. Many conferences and workshops are organized without professional society affiliation.
    – JeffE
    Mar 30, 2012 at 11:28
  • @DavideChicco.it: I meant activities that provide benefit to the community beyond the university: organizing conferences and workshops, sponsoring educational events for younger students and the community, editor and referee work for journals, and so on.
    – aeismail
    Mar 30, 2012 at 12:54
  • @JeffE: I was referring to the meetings that are run by conferences. This tends to be applicable for the "overarching" science organizations (AIChE, ACS, APS, MRS, SIAM, etc.), as well as more focused groups (Society of Rheology or Biophysical Society, for instance).
    – aeismail
    Mar 30, 2012 at 12:55
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In my experience, the only role that membership in professional societies plays in connecting researchers is slightly lower registration fees for conferences. That's it. Conferences and workshops in my field are organized almost entirely by volunteers form the research community. Some are affiliated with professional societies (specifically, ACM, SIAM, and IEEE), but some aren't, and the success of a conference or workshop in bringing colleagues together appears to be independent of any sponsoring organization. But since I'm an ACM member, my registration fees for ACM conferences are slightly lower, so I'm slightly more likely to go.

Other that that, I got nothin'.

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    In case of ACM and IEEE, a membership also provides you with access to their digital libraries (depending on the plan). Indeed, if you are (student/faculty/researcher) member of any good university/research lab you have already pursued free access to that stuff... Apr 25, 2012 at 15:31
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I will say though that early in your academic career (and you shouldn't really get involved in such activities BEFORE you have a PhD), you have to seriously weigh doing such organizational work against the corresponding amount of time spent working at your research. It's good to maybe do one or two things, but I wouldn't recommend spending a lot of time on it.

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  • Obviously research is more important. But how to take advantage of a society subscription? Mar 30, 2012 at 7:48
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    I'm not really sure there is much to take advantage of :)
    – Suresh
    Mar 30, 2012 at 8:47
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In addition to all that was mentioned before, as a student member of some of these associations (experience with the ACM), you may apply for some travel funding... that will enable you to attend a (or some) conference(s) - in case your university/project doen't give you enough money to do that (I personally know about several cases)- , and then you have the opportunity to keep in touch with your peers. It should be good, to a certain extent, for your carrer. Maybe in a simple conference you can meet the guy you've referenced for a couple of time (that doesn't answer your emails... lol), and talk to him about your research projects/ideas, receive some (good) feedback, and so on...

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