It organizations. Association for information technology professionals

IT ORGANIZATIONS.

ASSOCIATION FOR INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PROFESSIONALS

The AITP accepts members from all stages of their careers and offers a free membership for students enrolled in a postsecondary institution. The group maintains two major platforms, one for specialty training and another for job seekers. There are more than 30 local chapters across the country that offer face-to-face meetups as well as opportunities for mentoring and training. One branch of this organization focuses specifically on the academic aspect of information technology, offering a means for publishing research.

COMPUTER PROFESSIONALS FOR SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

This organization includes IT professionals along with members of other industries who are concerned about the potential changes new technology could make in society. While technologic advancements have huge upsides, there can be some risks if things are not properly regulated. The CPSR has developed policy positions on issues like privacy, intellectual property, civil liberties, and voting protections, and members organize campaigns to educate the public as well as elected officials about these ideas. There are CPSR chapters in 26 countries around the world, and activists also meet locally to share techniques for getting their messages heard.

ASSOCIATION OF SOFTWARE PROFESSIONALS

The ASP is one of the IT professional associations that focuses on a IT specialization, particularly software design and development. The group provides resources to its members about new programming languages and techniques but also offers guidance and support for freelance developers and those looking to start their own businesses. While not as large as some of the other groups, the ASP does have members worldwide who are eager to share their work and review programs created by other members.

ASSOCIATION FOR COMPUTER MACHINERY

Another niche professional IT group, the ACM brings together members of the computing branches of the industry including workers in the fields of automation, artificial intelligence, machine learning, algorithms, and bioinformatics among others. This group has more than 100,000 members from all over the world and offers online educational resources and discussion boards about different topics in the field. There are scholarships and fellowships offered to computing students, funded by membership fees and other donations, as well as lifetime achievement awards for prominent long-term members. The ACM's major focus is to help develop ways for computers to solve some of the world's biggest problems.