[Kelly]

Thank you for the great ideas!  I have not been a member of ASLA for 2 years now but was a member throughout school and 1 year after school as an emerging professional. 

As suggested, I’ve contacted my local chapters of ASLA without any response.  The San Diego Chapter responded but no good news there–they already gave out all their “comp tickets” and volunteer opportunities. 

National ASLA let me know that there would be $25/day expo tickets available closer to the day of the conference.  A former professor suggested I go without registering to network in the common areas.  Those are both great options for networking but many of the education sessions seem noteworthy too.  Today is the final day for early bird registration but perhaps I can get into contact with some others before the conference for sponsorships. 

 

Thanks again!

[Kelly]

I spoke with some people at ASLA who told me they would be selling $25/day expo tickets closer to the conference date.  Perhaps give them a call to double check.  I’m trying to attend at a reduced cost because I simply cannot afford $1000+ trip to San Diego as an AmeriCorps member and no longer qualify for a reduced rate and they only extend volunteering to students (perhaps you can try this route). 

I went to many of the conferences as an undergrad and enjoyed the sessions and being around so many like minded people. As it is the beginning of your first year in the field, I’m not sure how beneficial attending the conference would be, unless you want to get in the mix right off the bat.  Lots of networking and career building opportunities but I’m beginning to wonder how they expect anyone with a tight budget (unemployed, students, AmeriCorps, non-profit sectors) to afford attendance at these yearly conferences…

Best of luck!

[Author]

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