Rethinking Academic Conferences

Dear Real Academics,

When I started my career in higher education, I thought conferences were places to connect with others and network and learn new information and develop as a researcher. They were supposed to be places for anyone who wanted (and could afford) to go. 

And, they were. As a graduate student, I was lucky to have my fees and travel paid for, and I enjoyed traveling with my research group to new places. I was excited to hear "famous" academics speak in person. As I moved into my tenured position, conferences were great places to connect with colleagues from other universities. 

In the last few years, however, many academic conferences have become anything but places to connect and learn new information or develop as a researcher. 

And it's not just me. I am hearing from other colleagues and graduate students about the same "complaints" I'm listing below, though they would not likely say this publicly as it's not "academically kosher". So, I'll list this for all of us:

  • They are too big. Not all are, but many are. The last time I attended one of the major conferences in my field, for example, I probably spent 80% of my energy just trying to get from one hotel to another just to get to a session.
  • They circulate the same information. Conferences got to a point where I could walk into any session and know exactly what they were going to say. It was almost formulaic. And I wondered...so...after 20 years in academia, we are still talking about the same problems and proposing the same solutions with new labels?
  • They are monetarily costly with a low return-on-investment. For example, an average conference membership + registration field in my field (this is written in 2022) was $500+. Then, it cost me an average of $2,000+ per conference to go present (Note: Universities SOMETIMES reimburse a fraction of the cost, but it depends. And, if you go to several conferences, good luck getting them funded unless you have grant money or political university favor to cover the cost). My presentation was limited to 15 minutes, and, often, the only people in the room were the same people who were presenting. How was this spreading new knowledge?
  • They are also costly in terms of time and energy. I would spend the summer writing up more than one 10 page/ 2,000 word proposal of a completed study I had worked on for over a year and then volunteered at least 20 hours of my unpaid summer "break" to review other people's proposals -- for free. The only good out of this? I would always shape my proposals, whether accepted or not, into high-quality manuscripts for publication. 
  • They discriminate. If you don't agree with their philosophy or politics, you will be excluded. If you don't believe me, talk to people with different beliefs from current mainstream academia and politics if you know any.

Lest I am just ranting...which I am...allow me to say it plainly: What are we doing??? 

We need to re-think academic conferences.

A good conference model is one I attended a few years ago. 

  • The members were extremely welcoming and kind to me as a newcomer. 
  • The fee was affordable for everyone, even if you didn't have funding.
  • The travel was worth the cost and time (i.e., the conference hotel was fabulous with an incredible discount). 
  • The information was useful. Sessions were not 15 minutes of crammed year-long study information one after another, but were focused and engaging talks and workshops of information I could actually use from people with incredible research and practical experience. 
  • And guess what? Not everyone shared the same beliefs. Incredible. And we could all sit in the same space. I do hope all of this is still the case.

So, let's do that. Let's create conferences that are welcoming and allow for deep sharing and learning vs. just and chance to get a line on your vita. Let's stop being hypocritical and be inclusive of all people, regardless of their beliefs. Let's open up spaces where we can ask deeper questions about why we are not solving problems.

Maybe I'm being too radical and asking too much. But, it's because I can. I am no longer in the formal academic "space". I no longer need to play the "line on the vita" game. Some of you may not agree. And that is OK. Maybe you are fairly new to your field and everything just seems "new" and exciting, and that is GREAT. 

But hear me out. Regardless of you experience with academic conferences -- and I admit there are many different ones and my experiences might be different than other people's experience -- think about whether they are doing what real academia should do before you invest your time, money, and energy to support a specific conference:

  • Are they stimulating new ideas and knowledge? This is the whole point of getting a bunch of academics together, no?
  • Are they inclusive of all people regardless of their beliefs? Of all people, academics should be the MOST open to radically different points of view -- yes, even different from "theirs".
  • Are they building you up as an academic? If you are going to invest your time, money, and energy, make sure you are being built up. A line on a vita is good, but it's not worth sacrificing your time, money, and well-being if you are not being built up.

What has been your experience with academic conferences, Real Academics? 

At Real Academics we help individuals be joyful, productive, and successful in their academic, learning, and life pursuits. Find out more about us and what we can do alongside you at www.therealacademics.com. 

As always, we love to hear from you! Send us an email at inforealacademics@gmail.com.

Until next time, happy writing, productivity, and truth-seeking,

Maggie

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