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Professional Associations
The following list reflects some of the professional associations that a student may want to consult for career advice, work search assistance and labour market information. There might also be volunteer and/or conference opportunities, either locally or distance, available for students.
Directories are databases or collections of links to companies and professional organizations that operate in a specific industry or sector. Directories can help you identify organizations that operate in your area of study and directories may be found on professional association pages that include member companies or sponsors.
- Air & Waste Management Association (US)
- Alberta Society of Professional Biologists
- Alliance of Natural History Museums of Canada
- American Institute of Biological Sciences (US)
- Associated Environmental Site Assessors of Canada
- Association of Professional Biology - British Columbia
- Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography (US)
- Bio Alberta
- BioNet Alberta
- BioTalent Canada
- Botanical Society of America (US)
- British Columbia College of Applied Biology
- British Columbia Environmental Industry Association
- Canadian Botanical Association
- Canadian Land Reclamation Association
- Canadian Society for Molecular Biosciences
- Canadian Society for Immunology
- Canadian Society of Environmental Biologists
- Canadian Society of Zoologists
- Ecological Society of America (US)
- Entomological Society of America (US)
- Environmental Careers Organization
- Environmental Services Association of Alberta
- International Federation for Cell Biology
- National Association for Environmental Management (US)
- National Association of Environmental Professionals (US)
- North American Association for Environmental Education
- Ontario Environment Industry Association
- Science of Toxicology Canada
- Science Writers and Communicators of Canada
- Society for Conservation Biology (US)
- Society for Marine Mammology
- Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry
- Wildlife Conservation Society Canada
Depending on the time and effort that the professional association has put into developing its career information, an association’s website can include the following information:
- How to join the professional association, especially as a student member
- Information about certification and licensing
- Access to professional events
- Contact information to find a mentor, or a graduate advisor, or to set up an information interview
- Niche job boards that are relevant to the profession - job boards that are password protected cannot be scraped by Indeed or LinkedIn.
Professional Biologist Status in Alberta and British Columbia
Many jobs in the Biological Sciences in Alberta and British Columbia, such as the second example in the Sample Jobs section, require professional status. This means you are a Senior Biologist member of the Alberta Society of Professional Biologists (ASPB). The membership fees depend on your current status and requirements for professional biologist status include an undergraduate and/or graduate degree in Biology, three or more years of experience and good character and reputation. Biologists-in-Training and Student Biologists can also join the ASPB.Professional biologists in Alberta are also recognized as qualified in British Columbia, and vice versa, due to an agreement in April 2009 between the Alberta Society of Professional Biologists and the British Columbia College of Applied Biology. Refer to the ASPB website for more information.