The International Student Identity Card (ISIC) serves as internationally recognized proof of

student A student is a person enrolled in a school or other educational institution, or more generally, a person who takes a special interest in a subject. In the United Kingdom and most The Commonwealth, commonwealth countries, a "student" attends ...

status and offers access to various benefits and discounts globally, including

travel Travel is the movement of people between distant geographical Location (geography), locations. Travel can be done by Pedestrian, foot, bicycle, automobile, train, boat, bus, airplane, ship or other means, with or without Baggage, luggage, a ...

, accommodation, and

cultural institutions A cultural institution or cultural organization is an organization within a culture or subculture that works for the preservation or promotion of culture. The term is especially used of public and charitable organizations, but its range of meaning ...

. The ISIC Association also issues the International Youth Travel Card (IYTC) for non-students, and the International Teacher Identity Card (ITIC) for

teachers A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. w ...

and

professors Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a 'person who professes'. Professors ...

. Membership fees for these cards vary by country.

ISIC Association

The ISIC Association is a non-profit membership organisation legally registered in Denmark. ISIC Association, "2018 Annual Report of the ISIC Association", http://www.isicassociation.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/190425_ISIC_annual_report_2018_lr.pdf The ISIC card is administered and managed at a global level by the ISIC Service Office d.o.o. The ISIC Service Office d.o.o is a company seated in Belgrade, Serbia. The ISIC Service Office d.o.o is wholly owned by the ISIC Association.

ISIC card distribution

ISIC Exclusive Representatives, who have the exclusive rights to issue ISIC cards in their respective countries, make up a global distribution network for ISIC cards. The ISIC card is available in over 130 countries. In each country, the ISIC Exclusive Representative is exclusively responsible for ISIC card distribution, promotion and development, including the development and managing a portfolio of local and national benefits and discounts, and services available to the ISIC holders.

ISIC card today

Eligibility for the International Student Identity Card (ISIC) is limited to students in higher,

tertiary Tertiary (from Latin, meaning 'third' or 'of the third degree/order..') may refer to: * Tertiary period, an obsolete geologic period spanning from 66 to 2.6 million years ago * Tertiary (chemistry), a term describing bonding patterns in organic ch ...

, or full-time

secondary education Secondary education is the education level following primary education and preceding tertiary education. Level 2 or ''lower secondary education'' (less commonly ''junior secondary education'') is considered the second and final phase of basic e ...

, with a minimum age requirement of 12 years. There is no upper age limit for obtaining an ISIC card. The validity of an ISIC card spans 16 months, aligning with the

academic year An academic year, or school year, is a period that schools, colleges and university, universities use to measure the duration of studies for a given educational level. Academic years are often divided into academic terms. Students attend classe ...

of the country where it is purchased. ISIC Association (1954) "Constitution of the ISIC Association"

Brand refresh

The idea to conduct an ISIC Brand refresh originated in 2017, and was subsequently launched in May 2019.

Endorsement & Alliances of the ISIC

UNESCO Endorsement

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has been involved in the ISIC development almost since the beginning. UNESCO joined the International Student Travel Conference in 1995 and supported the ISIC card. In 1968 UNESCO issued an official endorsement in full support of the ISIC card. UNESCO recognised the ISIC card as the only internationally accepted proof of full-time student status and a unique document encouraging cultural exchange and international understanding. A renewed Memorandum of Understanding was signed in 1993. The UNESCO logo has appeared on the ISIC card since 1993. UNESCO recognises the ISIC card as a unique document encouraging cultural exchange and international understanding.

British Council and Global Study Awards

This initiative was launched by the British Council IELTS,

Studyportals Studyportals B.V. is an Eindhoven-based company involved in providing an online education choice platform, listing more than 200,000 undergraduate, postgraduate, distance learning, preparation course programmes worldwide, along with other intern ...

and the ISIC Association in 2015. The goal of these annual awards is to encourage and support more students undertaking study abroad. This award is available in all countries worldwide. In total there have been 17 winners in 5 rounds

Other Global Endorsement

*AIESEC *Community of Andean Nations *International Association of Universities *International Pharmaceutical Federation *European Students' Union * European Law Students' Association (ELSA) * European Youth Card Association (EYCA) * World Youth Student Education Travel Confederation (WYSETC) *Hosteling International Partnership (HIP) *World Savings Banks Institute (WSBI)

Strategic global partners

*Mastercard *British Council *Education First *FlixBus *Hard Rock Café *The Economist *Homestay *Hostelsclub *Hostelworld *Hotels.com *Lonely Planet *SANDEMANs *Withlocals

ISIC Event

The ISIC Event

References

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External links

ISIC website

ISIC Association website
Identity documents International education industry Student travel