NAFSA: Association of International Educators promotes the exchange of students and scholars to and from the United States. The association sets and upholds standards of good practice and provides professional education and training that strengthen institutional programs and services related to international educational exchange. NAFSA provides a forum for discussion of issues and a network for sharing information as it seeks to increase awareness of and support for international education in higher education, in government, and in the community.

NAFSA Members

NAFSA's 8,300 members, from all 50 states and 60 countries, share a belief that international educational exchange advances learning and scholarship, builds respect among different peoples, and encourages constructive leadership in a global community.

NAFSA draws members primarily from colleges and universities, but also from associations and foundations, corporations, research centers, community organizations, government agencies, and cultural groups. Members of NAFSA are international student advisors, international admissions officers, ESL teachers and administrators, study abroad administrators, overseas educational advisors, and community support groups. In increasing numbers, campus health services personnel, financial aid officers, campus housing administrators, career planning specialists, and others are joining the ranks as campuses internationalize and integrate their international programs and services into campus life. Ninety percent (90%) of the foreign students in the United States are enrolled in institutions served by NAFSA members.

Professional Training

NAFSA helps its members keep their skills current by providing them with:

• Workshops that help them develop professional skills.

• Lively, friendly, professional conferences (12 annually: 1 national and 11 regional).

• Grants for in-service training.

• A referral program of consultants available for service wherever needed.

• Professional publications, including newsletters, a magazine, an employment registry, and more than 50 books and videos on issues in international education.

• An electronic communications system through which members can obtain and discuss current information on issues in the field.

• Grants to campuses and communities to help them provide the exchange experience of foreign students and scholars and U.S. students abroad, bringing students from newly open areas of the world, and help students prepare for a successful return to their home countries.

• National and regional volunteer leadership opportunities under the direction of an elected, national board of NAFSA members.

• Special interest groups and professional sections to represent the diverse interests and responsibilities of members.

• The opportunity to become involved with a NAFSA network at the local level.

• A voice before Congress and federal agencies, advocating for support for exchange programs and for removing barriers to exchange.

History of NAFSA

NAFSA pioneered the concept of providing professional services for postsecondary exchange students. Early efforts to enhance living and learning environments for exchange students have blossomed into today's active association of accomplished professionals whose numbers continue to grow worldwide.

NAFSA was founded in 1948 as the National Association of Foreign Student Advisors to promote the professional development of American college and university officials responsible for assisting and advising the 25,000 foreign students who had come to study in the United States afer World War II. The academic institutions, government agencies, and private organizations that combined to form NAFSA knew that meeting the needs of students from diverse backgrounds required special knowledge and competencies.

The association's scope soon expanded to include admissions personnel, English-language specialists, and the community volunteers who played an important role in helping foreign students become acclimated to American college communities. To reflect this growing and increasingly diverse membership, in 1964 the association changed its name to the National Association for Foreign Student Affairs.

By 1990, as the number of foreign students in the United States approached the 400,000 mark, there were 6,400 NAFSA members on 1,800 campuses, and increasing numbers of U.S. students were studying abroad. To reflect the now well established role of NAFSA members in all aspects of international education and exchange, the name of the association was changed once more: In May 1990, the membership formally renamed the organization NAFSA: Association of International Educators. The acronym was retained to reflect NAFSA's proud past and broad name recognition.

Page last updated: 15 February 2007