Ethics & Principles

Since its inception in 1948, NAFSA has been engaged in setting standards and encouraging ethical conduct among individuals, institutions, and organizations active in the field of international educational exchange. The association sets standards of good practice in international education to help guide international educators in providing high-quality education and services to participants in international educational exchange. These standards are manifested in NAFSA's Ethics Program, the Principles for International Educational Exchange, and NAFSA policy statements.

NAFSA members maintain an subcommittee on ethics to create and adjust these principals. The NAFSA directory

contains a complete list of the current members (select "MC Subcommittee on Ethical Practice" from the dropdown list).

NAFSA's Ethics Program

NAFSA's Code of Ethics, which sets standards for the professional preparation and conduct of all NAFSA members.

Procedures for Handling Ethics-Related Complaints
(Revised, May 2001)

Ethics Case Studies (266kb

)

Principles of International Educational Exchange

Based on the consensus and common experience of those who deal with international educational affairs in community organizations and at institutions of higher education in the United States and abroad, the Principles for International Educational Exchange is comprised of several individual sets of principles.

Principles
Institutions Revised, May 2001
Admission of International Students Revised, January 2002
English Programs and Determination of English Proficiency Revised, May 2001
International Student and Scholar Services Revised, May 2001
Provision of Community Services and Programs Revised, May 2001
U.S. Study Abroad Revised, May 2001
Sponsored Programming Agencies Revised, May 2001
Ethical Practice in Overseas Educational Advising Revised, May 2001

NAFSA Policy Statements

In addition to the NAFSA Code of Ethics and the Principles of International Educational Exchange, NAFSA has set forth additional standards in international education in the form of policy statements.