The National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) held their annual conferences this year in June. As a premier professional development and networking event, the NACE conferences are a great opportunity to connect with colleagues and learn about the most pressing topics in career services. 
“The conference itself was massive and consisted of many different professionals across the career services space and many opportunities to learn and exchange ideas,” said Princess Vaulx, an early-career Career Coach for the undergraduate program at the Wisconsin School of Business, who attended the in-person conference in Denver, Colorado.
It was this opportunity to exchange ideas that Princess found most useful at the conference. She found that it’s possible to learn from anyone—experienced professionals and those new in their career.
“Being at a round-table discussion is the best place you can be when hoping to gain ideas, refine your own, and learn from different perspectives,” said Princess.
Marie Koko, an experienced career services professional who works as the Director of Career and Employer Services at the LaFollette School of Public Affairs, attended the virtual NACE conference. Although there were drawbacks, she felt it was well worth attending to receive the benefits of the conference with a much smaller price tag.
Like the in-person conference, the virtual conference boasts many different sessions. A few that Marie particularly enjoyed were, “The Future-Fluent Undergraduate: Blending AI Fluency with Human Centric Competencies,” “What Students Really Think About Career Services and Recruiting,” and “AI in the Job Search: Students’ Attitudes, Expectations and Experiences.”
And whether virtual or in-person, the opportunity to connect with a wide range of career services professionals was a major benefit to both attendees.
“It can be easy to be engulfed in one’s own environment but it was helpful to connect with professionals serving small liberal arts colleges, HBCU’s, community colleges, and others,” said Princess.
As for Marie, she appreciated the chance to hear from staff at a variety of different sized campuses and offices. If you’re considering attending a career services conference, it can be intimidating at first. “Be prepared to step out of your comfort zone and network! Take the first step in introducing yourself,” said Princess. “Others are just hoping to connect with you as well!”
She also recommends visiting with a colleague so you can attend different sessions and share what you learn. If you can’t attend in-person, that’s ok. Virtual conferences are becoming more and more popular and they can offer a lot of the same benefits.
“The virtual conference provides a much lower cost way to receive at least some of the benefits of the ‘real’ conference,” said Marie.
If you’re interested in either one of these experiences, OACS can help! Each year, OACS coordinates both in-person and virtual NACE conference registration. While your office is responsible for covering the cost of the conference, registering together offers up to 15% off, making the conference experience more affordable. We’ll send out additional information in the early spring semester about registration.