Conference choices

[Psychologist_dreamer]

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Hi everyone,

I have a question RE conferences. There were two in an area close to me this year I want to submit to do a poster presentation but i can only afford 1.

I submitted to SRCD's biennal conference a long time ago in august, and just found out I was accepted!

I had also considered applying to APS as I did more research recently into other conferences, but I dont think I can afford to go to both.

Was wondering what your thoughts on the two conferences were, if theres anything I dont know about reputableness of one vs another, and if you all think I should just do SRCD since I was accepted and forget about APS or still submit and see ?

Thanks!

(Also if anyone remembers me from previous posts, I dropped out of an unfuded PhD and resolved to make myself a better candidate in 2018 for one last try at getting a funded spot.. I also apologize for some harshness in previous posts, I was in a sensitive place this last year as I felt very confident with my MA and going forward towards PhD apps and it was a terrible disappointment to only get in and interview at 1, and then find out it was such a poor program. It was very difficult but I am trying one last time and forcing my self out of my depressive streak following the disappointment!)

 

[MCParent]

Hi everyone,

I have a question RE conferences. There were two in an area close to me this year I want to submit to do a poster presentation but i can only afford 1.

I submitted to SRCD's biennal conference a long time ago in august, and just found out I was accepted!

I had also considered applying to APS as I did more research recently into other conferences, but I dont think I can afford to go to both.

Was wondering what your thoughts on the two conferences were, if theres anything I dont know about reputableness of one vs another, and if you all think I should just do SRCD since I was accepted and forget about APS or still submit and see ?

Thanks!

(Also if anyone remembers me from previous posts, I dropped out of my for profit PhD and resolved to make myself a better candidate in 2018 for one last try at getting a funded spot.. I also apologize for my behavior, I was in a dark and sensitive place this last year as I felt very confident with my MA and going forward towards PhD apps and it was a terrible disappointment to only get in and interview at 1, and then find out it was such a poor program. It was very difficult but I am trying one last time and forcing my self out of my depressive streak following the disappointment!)

I loved going to APS as a student. They have tons of networking opportunities for students built in.

 

[Justanothergrad]

Some of it will depend on your research interest as easy conference has a group of folks who make it their home. I dont know much about SRCD (I'm not even sure which this is), but APS is a great networking opportunity. That's what matters more than prestige between good conferences imho.

 

[Psychologist_dreamer]

Some of it will depend on your research interest as easy conference has a group of folks who make it their home. I dont know much about SRCD (I'm not even sure which this is), but APS is a great networking opportunity. That's what matters more than prestige between good conferences imho.

Srcd is social research in child development which is related to my area of interest.

Thanks for the advice! Honestly I have been leaning more towards aps but now I am accepted to SRCD I'm wondering how to go about it since I can only do 1. I havent yet applied to aps

 

[Spydra]

I haven't been to either conference, but depending on your career goals they both could be very beneficial to you. Have you looked into travel awards offered by either conference? They can be competitive, but if you're picked then you could potentially go to both. Some conferences also allow students to volunteer and then waive the registration fees.

 

[Psychologist_dreamer]

I haven't been to either conference, but depending on your career goals they both could be very beneficial to you. Have you looked into travel awards offered by either conference? They can be competitive, but if you're picked then you could potentially go to both. Some conferences also allow students to volunteer and then waive the registration fees.

I am going to apply for some but I'm in a weird position because I have already completed my MA but am working on strengthening my CV for PhD applications so I'm not sure how qualified I will be for the student awards.
I'm also hoping that given my situation and still having access to my student email I can get a student discount for the registration and member fee, this whole process is so much more expensive than i thought !

 

[MAClinician]

Srcd is social research in child development which is related to my area of interest.

Thanks for the advice! Honestly I have been leaning more towards aps but now I am accepted to SRCD I'm wondering how to go about it since I can only do 1. I havent yet applied to aps

Society for Research in Child Development. The biannual conference is in Baltimore. If you live in NYC, you can take Amtrak from NYC To Baltimore or possibly a low cost flight. Or drive. Tolls and gas shouldn’t cost more than $150 round trip on average. SRCD has disciplines other than psych that attend. But it can be a good conference depending on what you make of it. I presented a poster as a student many moons ago. It was not high stress like some other conferences can be.

 

[Psychologist_dreamer]

Society for Research in Child Development. The biannual conference is in Baltimore. If you live in NYC, you can take Amtrak from NYC To Baltimore or possibly a low cost flight. Or drive. Tolls and gas shouldn’t cost more than $150 round trip on average. SRCD has disciplines other than psych that attend. But it can be a good conference depending on what you make of it. I presented a poster as a student many moons ago. It was not high stress like some other conferences can be.

Thanks for the feedback! Yes I blanked on the S part of the acronym lol.

Yes I am in tri state area, I was thinking of doing that but I definitely will want to probably book a hotel for the day before and the night of. My boyfriend was thinking of coming with me on the trip to one of the conferences and in that case we could drive which would be nice. Otherwise I will either fly or take the train.

The main thing i think is that between hotel, travel, and the fee to attend it's going to be quite high. I remember looking into the cover of i believe APS and I was shocked how much it costs just to like get entry to the conference.
I'm also in a weird position where I'm an MA graduate but not a PhD/current student so I need to look into what sort of cost bracket I fall into.

APS will be in may in DC, SRCD is March in Baltimore so both are doable. I would love to do each but I dont think my wallet can afford that.

I think SRCD would be good because it's more my area of interest and might not be as overwhelming. Its my first one and I'm pretty much doing it all alone with no prep, guidance, or support so. APS would be nice cause I'd rather go to DC, will be better weather for travel (no risk of snow), and more time to prepare but also is much bigger.

Also I'm not sure what the consequences would be of rejecting/changing my mind about an acceptance ? Like if I apply to APS too and get accepted to both and have to cancel and choose, is that okay? Or is that very frowned upon..

I just hope I make the right choice because my reason for doing this is to make my CV better to get into a funded clinical PhD. So I am working on preparing and submitting my manuscripts for publication this year, and want to do a conference as well, and then will be applying to paid research coordinator positions in my city in the new year.

I really hope I am able to accomplish all 3, so I really need to try to make each bullet really shine..which is why I'm stressed a little about the conferences! If I can only do 1 I really want to pick the 1 that will look best on my applications.

I also decided this is my last time I will be applying for phds for a very long time I decided so I am trying to make it count this year and tick off the boxes I need for research products..hopefully I will be successful

 

[Justanothergrad]

One option is to talk to coauthors about where they can present / plan to attend. I have seen folks withdraw and it's not a huge issue but both conferences are good so not a huge issue which you present at. Your choice wont make or break your application and the bigger issue is have a presentation. In general, I would advise you to plan submissions so that you can attend the conferences you submit for. Beyond posters (so advice for the futute), it's a bit of an issue if symposia withdraw.

 

[barbatenussapientes]

To be honest, I don't know that the reputation of the individual conference matters that much. I'd be more focused on showing continued productivity. Choosing a conference that best matches your interest would also be helpful as it allows you to meet potential advisors/connections with similar interests.

Also, it sounds like you've already been accepted at a conference. I've never had a formal conversation about this and so maybe this isn't how the field sees it, but if I submit to a conference then I see that as a commitment to present should it be accepted. Will it hurt you if you don't? Probably not. But I see it as an internal standard that I hold myself to - certain values I want to represent across contexts because I think they are important to my development as a professional (in this case, dependability).

Sent from my SM-N950U1 using SDN mobile

 

[deleted343839]

Part of the purpose of attending a conference is to meet people who could become future mentors, collaborators, etc. If you take a look at past programs for each of these conferences you will get a sense of who might be attending. Generally, I think it is easier for most trainees to start with a relatively specialized conference where they can get a better read on what's happening in their field of interest and have a greater chance of interacting with people in that field.

I've been a program chair and have helped vet posters for quite a few conferences. Withdrawing a poster after acceptance is not a big deal in the grand scheme of things. Still, someone takes time to review your abstract, you might be taking a space that could be used for someone else, etc. Given the effort that goes into making a poster session happen (and I've been on the sides of organizer and presenter many times) I would not submit an abstract without being prepared to show up.

 

[PhDPlz2011]

If you are planning to apply to child clinical programs/mentors who do child clinical work, I recommend going to SRCD. It is a very highly regarded conference and considered to be highly competitive, even for posters, so it will look good for you to have presented there. I would definitely not think of SRCD as being more low-key than APS. Child-focused people tend to save their best work for SRCD. I would say that the overall vibe is friendly (all the people who attend are child people, and child people tend to be nice) but the caliber of work is high and expectations are higher than at other conferences I regularly attend.