The office of IASSW is located in the office of the President, Angelina Yuen Tsang at Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong. IASSW is governed by the Board of Directors under a Constitution approved by the biennial General Assembly. The mission of the association emphasizes the promotion of world wide excellence in social work education and engagement of a community of social work educators in international exchange of information and expertise.

IASSW carries out its purposes through:

• a biennial conference of social work educators, the IASSW Congress
• publication of a newsletter
• representation at the United Nations
• co-sponsorship, with IFSW and ICSW of the journal International Social Work
• activities of Committees and Task Forces
• funding of small cross-national projects in social work education

Important recent policy documents include the Definition of Social Work; Global Standards for Social Work Education and Training; and Ethics in Social Work: Statement of Principles (all developed with the International Federation of Social Workers).

IASSW was founded in 1928 at the First International Conference of Social Work, held in Paris. It was initially comprised of 51 schools, mostly in Europe, and was known as the International Committee. Revitalized after World War II, the organization expanded its membership to include a wider range of countries and was renamed the International Association of Schools of Social Work. The association has member schools in all parts of the world; 5 regional organizations in Africa; Asia and the Pacific; Europe; Latin America; and North America and the Caribbean are affiliated with the IASSW and represented on the Board of Directors.

Membership is open to tertiary level social work schools, individual social work educators, and others specifically interested