How to conference: a collaboration to support student conference submissions

Science communication is a large part of the research cycle and the STEM Division at ASU Library recognized an opportunity to engage with student researchers with the upcoming American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Annual Meeting being held in Phoenix, Arizona in February 2026. AAAS has a well recognized Student Poster competition. We saw the value in enhancing students’ learning through experience and exposure to the larger science community. The health, physical and life sciences librarians joined with our Data Science and Analytics department, the Graduate College and Barrett Honors College to promote this opportunity to graduate and undergraduate students. The Library team developed and shared 3 webinars on preparing a conference proposal, creating a poster and telling your story with data visualizations. The webinars were aligned and scheduled to follow the AAAS submission process. Faculty and student interest in the series continues, even after the student submissions have closed. Next steps include arranging a session with previous attendees to peer review this year’s presenters. We will share our process, results and how we pivoted during the implementation to better fit student needs and help prepare them for a meaningful conference experience at AAAS and beyond.