ASID, IIDA and other professional associations are the most beneficial for their networking potential.
Advanced certification is useful, but very few people know about it.
Here's a quick summary of the results. Licensed designers say yes, maybe and no in equal numbers. But pocketbook issues are not the only benefits credentials confer. ASID and AIA members are more likely than others to consider their membership a marketable credential. Almost everyone believes associations contribute to a higher level of competence in the professional as a whole.