Jun520094:49 pm

Final thoughts on NAFSA

A few last thoughts and then I think I’m done discussing last week’s NAFSA conference:

—The Irish universities reception was tamer than I expected (it’s apparently gotten pretty out of hand in the past) but was still a great time—how couldn’t it be with all you can drink Guinness, roving plates of corn beef quesidillas, and lots of happy Irish people?

—I didn’t go through nearly as many business cards as I thought I would (I was actually embarrassed at the number I brought and then had left at the end of the week). I don’t know if this is a result of exaggeration on the part of those who told me to bring a huge stack, or my general crappiness as a flesh-pressing, business-card-flinging networker.

—I saw zero celebrities in downtown LA (even before the Lakers game). I thought I saw Tom Colicchio once, but turned out it was just some bald guy.

—NAFSA is a great resource for career seekers in international education and exchange. Membership and attending both the national and regional conferences are incredibly valuable ways, I’m now convinced, of meeting people in the field and seeing the vast number of international career opportunities that exist (though I recognize that both membership and conferences are expensive). At the very least, though, take advantage of the NAFSA Career Center—it’s free and packed with good stuff.

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