Academic Conference

Conference as a form of organization of scientific activity has been known for many centuries. The first historically recorded conference was in 416 BC in Greece.

A conference is a meeting of people that “confer” about a topic. An academic conference is a conference for researchers to present and discuss their work. Together with academic or scientific journals, conferences provide an important channel for exchange of information between researchers.

Conferences are usually organized either by a scientific society or by a group of researchers with a common interest.

The meeting is announced by way of a “Call For Papers” or a “Call For Abstracts”, which lists the meeting’s topics and tells prospective presenters how to submit their abstracts or papers. A call for papers (CfP) is a method used for collecting articles or conference presentations. A CfP usually is sent to interested parties, describing the broad theme, the occasion for the CfP, formalities such as what kind of abstract (summary) has to be submitted to whom and a deadline. Prospective presenters are usually asked to submit a short abstract of their presentation, which will be reviewed before the presentation is accepted for the meeting. (An abstract is a brief summary of a research article, thesis, review, or any in-depth analysis of a particular subject or discipline, and is often used to help the reader quickly ascertain the paper’s purpose).

Generally, work at the conference is presented in the form of short, concise presentations lasting about 10 to 30 minutes, usually including discussion. The work may be published in the conference proceedings, the latter being the collection of academic papers that are published in the context of an academic conference. They are usually distributed as printed books after the conference has closed. Proceedings contain the contributions made by researchers at the conference. They are the written record of the work that is presented to fellow researchers.

Often there are one or more keynote speakers (usually scholars of some standing), presenting a lecture that lasts an hour or so, and which is likely to be advertised before the conference. Panel discussions, roundtables on various issues, workshops may be part of the conference.

A large meeting will usually be called a conference, while a smaller is termed a workshop. They might be single track or multiple track, where the former has only one session at a time, while a multiple track meeting has several parallel sessions with speakers in separate rooms speaking at the same time.

Conference activity forms an important part of the career of any academic; for postgraduates it is an important way of participating in academic debate, and “showcasing” their own work. Conference is a way of raising their individual profiles, and a springboard for future publications. “Conference culture” acquisition suggests the development of communication and oral presentation skills of postgraduates, abilities of delivering material in a public forum and defending their ideas.