Terms of Service

1. Acceptance of Terms

These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your access to and use of the websites, membership services, programs, resources, communications, career resources, and other services provided by the National Society of Software Engineers, Inc. ("NSOSE," "we," "us," or "our"), including nsose.org (collectively, the "Services").

By accessing or using the Services, creating an account, becoming a member, submitting information to NSOSE, or participating in an NSOSE program, you agree to these Terms and any additional policies or terms applicable to the particular Service or program you use.

If you do not agree to these Terms, you should not use the Services.

2. About NSOSE and the Services

The National Society of Software Engineers is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit professional society dedicated to advancing and supporting the software engineering profession through community, ethics, professional development, education, career resources, advocacy, and related programs.

NSOSE may provide Services including, but not limited to:

• Membership and member services
• Professional and educational resources
• Ethics and professional-practice resources
• Career resources and employment opportunities
• Employer job-posting programs
• Professional development programs
• Community and volunteer opportunities
• Events, communications, publications, and updates
• Advocacy and public-interest initiatives
• Other programs supporting the software engineering profession

NSOSE may add, modify, suspend, or discontinue particular Services or programs from time to time.

3. Accounts and Account Security

Certain Services may require an NSOSE account. When creating or maintaining an account, you agree to provide accurate, current, and complete information and to update that information when necessary.

You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account credentials and for activity occurring through your account. You may not share credentials in a manner that permits another person to impersonate you or obtain access to Services for which that person is not authorized.

You should notify NSOSE promptly if you believe your account has been accessed or used without authorization.

4. Acceptable Use

You agree to use the Services lawfully and in a manner consistent with these Terms and applicable NSOSE policies.

You may not:

• Use the Services for fraudulent, unlawful, deceptive, abusive, or unauthorized purposes.
• Impersonate another person or organization or misrepresent your identity, qualifications, membership status, or affiliation with NSOSE.
• Attempt to gain unauthorized access to accounts, systems, data, or portions of the Services.
• Interfere with, disrupt, damage, or impair the operation or security of the Services.
• Introduce malicious code or use the Services to distribute malware, spam, or other harmful material.
• Use automated systems to scrape, harvest, collect, or extract content or personal information from the Services except as expressly permitted by NSOSE or applicable law.
• Use information obtained through NSOSE to harass, exploit, or improperly solicit members, users, volunteers, employers, or other participants.
• Use NSOSE content, systems, directories, or resources for unauthorized commercial purposes.
• Circumvent technical, administrative, membership, or access controls.

5. Membership

Membership in NSOSE is subject to applicable eligibility requirements, membership terms, Society policies, and payment of any applicable dues or fees.

Membership is personal to the member and may not be sold, transferred, assigned, or shared except where expressly authorized by NSOSE.

Membership categories, eligibility requirements, dues, benefits, programs, and other membership features may change from time to time. NSOSE does not guarantee that any particular membership benefit, program, event, resource, or opportunity will remain available indefinitely.

Membership in NSOSE does not create an employment, agency, partnership, joint venture, fiduciary, or representative relationship between the member and NSOSE. A member does not have authority to speak for, bind, represent, or act on behalf of NSOSE unless separately authorized to do so by NSOSE.

Members may also be subject to the NSOSE Ethics Policy and other policies applicable to membership or participation in Society programs.

6. Membership Designations and Representation

Members may use membership designations, post-nominals, titles, badges, or other membership identifiers expressly authorized by NSOSE only while they hold the applicable membership status and remain in good standing.

Members may accurately identify themselves as members of NSOSE but may not state or imply that membership constitutes professional licensure, government approval, academic qualification, technical certification, accreditation, or an endorsement by NSOSE.

Members may not use NSOSE membership, designations, branding, or affiliation in a misleading manner or in a manner that falsely suggests that NSOSE sponsors, approves, certifies, endorses, employs, or is formally affiliated with the member's employer, business, product, service, political activity, or other undertaking.

The right to use membership-specific designations or identifiers ends when the applicable membership ends, lapses, is suspended, or is terminated, unless NSOSE expressly provides otherwise.

7. Membership Certificates

NSOSE may provide membership certificates or other documentation of membership status. A membership certificate evidences membership status only and does not constitute professional licensure, certification, accreditation, an academic credential, or verification of technical competency.

Members may reproduce their membership certificates for legitimate personal and professional purposes, including resumes, professional portfolios, and employment documentation, provided the certificate is presented accurately and without alteration.

Membership certificates may not be falsified, materially altered, transferred to another person, or used to misrepresent current membership status or professional qualifications.

NSOSE may provide a means for employers, educational institutions, or other third parties to verify membership status.

8. Fees and Payments

Certain Services, including membership and employer participation in certain NSOSE programs, may require payment of dues, fees, or other charges. Applicable prices and payment terms will be presented in connection with the relevant Service or program.

By submitting a payment, you represent that you are authorized to use the payment method provided and authorize NSOSE and its payment processors to process the applicable charge.

NSOSE may change membership dues, program fees, and other charges from time to time. Changes will not retroactively alter amounts already properly paid for a completed transaction unless otherwise required by law.

Refund eligibility, if any, is governed by the terms disclosed for the applicable membership, program, transaction, or Service and by applicable law.

9. Job Board and Employment Resources

NSOSE may operate a Job Board and provide other career and employment resources for software engineering professionals. Employers may pay fees to submit qualifying employment opportunities for review and publication.

All employers and job postings are subject to NSOSE review and approval. NSOSE may approve, decline, suspend, remove, or refuse a posting or employer participation when NSOSE determines that doing so is appropriate.

Unless expressly stated otherwise, employers appearing on the NSOSE Job Board are independent third parties. Publication of a job posting does not constitute an endorsement, recommendation, certification, or guarantee by NSOSE regarding the employer, position, working conditions, compensation, hiring process, or any other aspect of the opportunity.

Employers are responsible for the accuracy, legality, completeness, and content of their postings and for complying with applicable employment, labor, nondiscrimination, advertising, privacy, and other laws.

Job seekers are responsible for evaluating employers and employment opportunities and for determining whether to apply for or accept a position. NSOSE does not guarantee applications, interviews, offers, hires, qualifications, employment outcomes, or the continued availability of any opportunity.

Additional employer terms and posting standards displayed in connection with the Job Board are incorporated into these Terms for employers participating in that program.

10. User-Submitted Content

Certain Services may allow you to submit information, text, documents, images, logos, job descriptions, links, comments, or other materials ("Submitted Content").

You retain any ownership rights you have in your Submitted Content. By submitting content to NSOSE, you grant NSOSE a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to host, store, reproduce, format, display, publish, and distribute that content as reasonably necessary to provide, administer, promote, or operate the Service or program for which the content was submitted.

You represent that you have the rights and permissions necessary to submit the content and to grant NSOSE the rights described above, and that the Submitted Content does not violate applicable law or the rights of another person or organization.

NSOSE may remove or decline to publish Submitted Content that violates these Terms, applicable policies, applicable law, or NSOSE professional and quality standards.

11. Intellectual Property

Unless otherwise indicated, the websites, publications, software, designs, text, graphics, educational materials, and other original content created or provided by NSOSE are owned by or licensed to NSOSE and are protected by applicable intellectual property laws.

Subject to these Terms, NSOSE permits you to access and use publicly available materials for personal, educational, and professional reference purposes. This permission does not authorize resale, republication, commercial exploitation, removal of attribution, or creation of misleading derivative materials unless NSOSE expressly authorizes such use or the use is otherwise permitted by law.

Nothing in these Terms transfers ownership of NSOSE intellectual property to you.

12. NSOSE Name, Trademarks, and Branding

NSOSE®, the National Society of Software Engineers name, NSOSE logos, membership marks, program names, and related branding are trademarks, service marks, or other identifiers owned by NSOSE or used by NSOSE under applicable rights.

Except for membership designations expressly authorized for use by eligible members, no license or permission to use NSOSE names, logos, trademarks, or branding is granted by these Terms.

You may not use NSOSE branding in a manner likely to cause confusion about sponsorship, endorsement, certification, affiliation, or authorization.

13. Third-Party Websites and Services

The Services may contain links to websites, application systems, payment processors, employers, educational resources, social networks, or other services operated by third parties.

NSOSE does not control third-party services and is not responsible for their availability, security, content, products, services, privacy practices, or terms. Your interactions with third parties are governed by the terms and policies of those third parties.

14. Privacy

NSOSE's collection, use, disclosure, and protection of personal information is described in our Privacy Policy .

Please review the Privacy Policy to understand how personal information is handled when you use NSOSE websites and Services.

15. Communications

By providing contact information to NSOSE, you may receive transactional, administrative, membership, account, program, or other communications necessary to provide the Services in which you participate.

Promotional or informational communications may be subject to separate subscription preferences and applicable law. Where an unsubscribe mechanism is provided, you may use it to manage eligible communications.

16. Suspension and Termination

NSOSE may restrict, suspend, or terminate access to an account or Service when reasonably necessary to protect NSOSE, its members, users, systems, or programs; enforce these Terms or applicable policies; address unlawful, fraudulent, abusive, or unauthorized activity; or respond to legal requirements.

Membership suspension, termination, disciplinary action, or loss of membership privileges may also be governed by NSOSE governing documents, ethics requirements, membership policies, disciplinary procedures, and applicable law.

Termination of an account or membership does not automatically eliminate obligations or provisions that by their nature should survive termination, including provisions concerning intellectual property, submitted content, disclaimers, limitations of liability, and responsibility for prior conduct.

17. Professional and Educational Information

NSOSE may publish educational, professional, career, classification, policy, ethics, or other informational resources. Unless expressly stated otherwise, these resources are provided for general informational and educational purposes.

NSOSE resources do not constitute legal, financial, tax, employment, or other individualized professional advice. Users and organizations remain responsible for evaluating information and obtaining appropriate professional advice when necessary.

18. Disclaimer of Warranties

To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, the Services are provided on an "as is" and "as available" basis. NSOSE makes no warranty that the Services will always be available, uninterrupted, secure, error-free, or suitable for every user's particular purpose.

NSOSE does not warrant or guarantee the accuracy, completeness, reliability, availability, or continued availability of information supplied by third parties, including employers, members, users, external websites, or other organizations.

To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, NSOSE disclaims warranties of any kind, whether express, implied, statutory, or otherwise, including implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement.

19. Limitation of Liability

To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, NSOSE and its directors, officers, employees, volunteers, agents, and representatives will not be liable for indirect, incidental, special, exemplary, punitive, or consequential damages arising out of or relating to your use of, or inability to use, the Services.

This includes, to the extent permitted by law, losses arising from third-party conduct, employment opportunities or decisions, unavailable Services, loss of data, unauthorized access, or reliance on information made available through the Services.

Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits liability that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited.

20. Indemnification

To the extent permitted by applicable law, you agree to indemnify and hold harmless NSOSE and its directors, officers, employees, volunteers, agents, and representatives from third-party claims, liabilities, damages, losses, and reasonable costs arising from your unlawful use of the Services, your material violation of these Terms, your Submitted Content, or your infringement or violation of another person's rights.

21. Changes to the Services and These Terms

NSOSE may update these Terms from time to time to reflect changes to the Services, Society programs, legal requirements, or organizational practices.

When these Terms are revised, NSOSE will update the Effective Date shown at the top of this page. Where appropriate, NSOSE may provide additional notice of material changes.

Your continued use of the Services after revised Terms become effective constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms to the extent permitted by applicable law.

22. General Provisions

If any provision of these Terms is determined to be invalid, unlawful, or unenforceable, the remaining provisions will continue in effect to the fullest extent permitted by law.

NSOSE's failure to enforce a provision of these Terms does not waive its right to enforce that provision or any other provision later.

These Terms, together with any additional terms and policies expressly applicable to a particular Service or program, constitute the agreement governing your use of that Service or program.

Section headings are provided for convenience and do not limit or alter the meaning of these Terms.

23. Contact NSOSE

Questions regarding these Terms of Service may be submitted through the NSOSE contact page .

National Society of Software Engineers, Inc.