Candidate Services
Information about our Candidates program
What are “Candidates?”
Candidates are often experienced presenters with valuable expertise that they developed while working in other career fields. They join NSA-Arizona to explore the business of speaking as a possible full-time or part-time career.
What is the NSA-Arizona Candidate Program?
The NSA-Arizona Candidate Program is a Chapter activity that assists with the development of individuals who are dedicated to becoming Professional Speakers and members of NSA. This program is designed for those who want to accelerate their careers as either full-time or part-time speakers. It is suitable for people who are paid speakers and for those who aspire to achieve that status. Candidates have a conditional affiliation with the NSA, but they are not members of the NSA.
Candidates may attend NSA-Arizona member programs (held the second Saturday of each month from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.; there is no meeting in July or August) and special Candidate Program meetings (held immediately following the monthly member programs, from 12:15 p.m. to 1:45 p.m.). During these programs and meetings, experienced NSA-Arizona members and outside speakers provide knowledge and views on various aspects of the speaking business. Group discussions allow Candidates to question these speakers and benefit from their experience.
In addition, seasoned members of the Chapter volunteer to serve as knowledge resources and take inquiries from individual Candidates who need advice or counsel. Candidates are also encouraged to seek coaching and mentoring from Professional Speakers within the entire NSA membership. This coaching may require the payment of fees; however, if a Candidate is interested in fast-tracking their career, this may be the best approach for achieving this goal in the shortest period of time.
Candidates sign up for the Candidate Program one year at a time. The optimum plan is to qualify for NSA membership within two years of the candidate joining the NSA-Arizona Candidate Program.
What is the investment required to Participate in the NSA-Arizona Candidate Program?
The Candidate program membership fee is $150 per year, plus the cost of the meetings that you attend (usually $30). Professional NSA-AZ members (who pay several hundred dollars annually for their NSA membership) pay $85 per year for their NSA-Arizona memberships, plus the cost of meetings attended.
Your $150 investment entitles you to:
- Attend both the monthly Professional NSA-Arizona member meetings and NSA-Arizona Candidate Program meetings (which immediately follow the monthly Professional member meetings) at member rates
- Access to a Candidate Resource Website that contains useful documents, forms, and website links
- Membership in a special Candidate Program e-mail group
- Access to the Candidate Library, which contains a host of valuable books, tapes, CDs and videos that are available for Candidates to borrow
If you are interested in joining the NSA-Arizona Candidate Program, you may do so online by clicking here. As you complete the form, you will reach a section where it asks you at what level you will join. Click on the down arrow and choose Candidate (not yet a member of NSA National). Then, complete the rest of the application.
For additional information about upcoming Candidate sessions, check Meetings and Newsletters, or contact the Candidate program coordinator.
Online Services for Current Candidates:
Update your Online Profile listing (members only) here.
Renew your Candidate Membership here
To register for the next monthly meeting, use the link in the meeting announcement, click here.
Access to the Candidates Website
We have a special candidates website that is available for candidate and members only. A special user ID and password are required.
When you login to this website as a member, you will find the required User ID and password for the candidates website displayed in the sidebar of this website.
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