[matt_the_bass]

There are a number of trade groups that have conferences with short paper requirements and upon acceptance come with a 20 minute presentation. Try some of those first since acceptance bar is relatively low and does not require academic associations.

This will get you good practice, build a resume, get some good networking, and give you a chance to see both great and poor presentations.

For example, most of the subgroups from IEEE fall into this category.