AAPL Student Membership Expansion

The AAPL board of directors met on Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025, at its quarterly meeting, and voted to approve a change in the AAPL bylaws.

Current Bylaws:

Article V - Membership, Section 6

“Student Member is available to those who are enrolled in an AAPL Accredited Program. A Student Member shall not be considered an Active Member.”

Proposed Bylaws Change (underlined text):

“Student Member is available to those students pursuing a postsecondary education on a full-time basis. A Student Member shall not be considered an Active Member.”

The proposed bylaws change has been vetted by all associated committees, the Bylaws and Policy Review Committee and the Executive Committee before being voted on and unanimously approved by the board of directors. There are additional Policy Manual and Procedure Manual changes that further define this proposed change and make it clear that students in our accredited programs will be the only student members whose dues are covered, are eligible for scholarships and are eligible for our Mentorship Program. But those changes do not require a full membership vote.

The new AMS software includes a dropdown menu that lets students select whether they are in an accredited program. The Landman Scholarship Trust fully covers accredited program student memberships and non-AAPL accredited students will pay for their memberships. AAPL will still require directors to verify their students, and new students (from non-AAPL accredited universities) will have to upload current transcripts from their universities or community colleges. AAPL will check those applications before they are approved, including answering the felony question that all new members must answer.

This change mirrors efforts by a few of AAPL’s Affiliated Local Associations and reflects growing student interest in the land profession due to the popularity of the TV show Landman. TCU was recently spotlighted by several news outlets, including CBS News, for students requesting a class based on the show. 

The directors of our accredited programs were presented with the idea of this change at the LST meeting in both 2024 and 2025. This issue was discussed and agreed to be a net benefit to our accredited programs as a recruitment tool that should allow them to gain students who have been AAPL Student members for a couple of years, while getting their basic courses or studying at a community college and are looking to move into a major and seek a degree in energy management and have access to scholarships.

Michelle Phillips, CPL, AAPL Membership Committee member, also authored an article highlighting the interest in AAPL Student Membership from students outside of AAPL’s accredited programs and the opportunity to grow AAPL’s membership with the next generation of land professionals. Read "Fueling the Future" now.

Looking for your ballot? Active AAPL Members, check your inbox for an email that was sent on Monday, Jan. 12, containing a link to complete your ballot. The deadline to complete your ballot is Thursday, March 12.