Call for Submissions
AERA Graduate Student Research-in-Progress Roundtable Series

2026 AERA Annual Meeting
Los Angeles, California

SUBMISSION DEADLINE: October 8, 2025
11:59pm (Pacific Time)

The American Educational Research Association (AERA) invites submissions for the Research-in-Progress Roundtable Series (RIPRS) at the 2026 AERA Annual Meeting in Los Angeles, April 8-12. This initiative provides a formal presentation opportunity for graduate students who are engaged in research that is underway but was not sufficiently far along to submit a paper in response to the AERA Annual Meeting Call for Submissions. AERA will hold up to 6 Research-in-Progress Roundtable Sessions in Los Angeles. These roundtable sessions will be highlighted as part of the AERA-wide programming at the Annual Meeting.

The opportunity to present in a Research-in-Progress Roundtable is open to Graduate Student members of AERA who did not submit a paper as an author or co-author for the 2026 Annual Meeting Open Call. The aim for this series is to offer a forum at the Annual Meeting where graduate students can present a work-in-progress paper. Each roundtable will include 3-5 graduate student presenters and will be chaired and facilitated by an accomplished education researcher with relevant expertise. Consistent with the roundtable format, the Research-in-Progress Roundtables are intended to maximize interaction and discussion of each research project.

Session Description

Research-in-Progress Roundtables are intended for presentation of research projects that are not yet completed but are sufficiently far along for authors to share their work and contribute to a substantive discussion of the work at its current stage. The roundtable sessions are designed for graduate students to present research underway and not work that is still being planned or has not yet commenced. Graduate students seeking to participate in the Research-in-Progress Roundtable series should be able to prepare a working paper that a) sets forth the research, b) makes clear where they are in the research process, and c) specifies salient issues related to the project, findings, and completion of the work.   

Research-in-Progress Roundtable Sessions will be 90 minutes long. Like other Annual Meeting roundtable sessions, Research-in-Progress Roundtables will emphasize interaction, so there are only brief presentations to stimulate discussion and no discussants. Because of the emphasis on brief presentations and discussion and the physical configuration of this type of session in large rooms with multiple roundtables, no audiovisual equipment is provided. Presenters who wish to display brief information may do so from their own tablet or laptop computer. Presenters may also prepare handouts to distribute.

Application Details

Dates:
Research-in-Progress Roundtables will take place Wednesday, April 8 to Sunday, April 12 during the 2026 AERA Annual Meeting in Los Angeles.

Eligibility:
All students submitting and presenting their work in the Research-in-Progress Roundtable Series must:

• be enrolled in a graduate degree program at the time of submission and during the 2026 AERA Annual Meeting;
• be a 2025 or 2026 AERA Graduate Student member at the time of submission;
• be a 2026 AERA Graduate Student member during the 2026 AERA Annual Meeting;
• not be an author or co-author on any 2026 AERA Annual Meeting Open Call submission.

If a presenting author does not meet all of the eligibility requirements above, the submission will not be considered.

Submission Requirements:

• Review the submission instructions and complete the AERA Research-in-Progress Submission Form no later than October 8, 2025.
• Upload a brief working paper (maximum 1000 words, excluding references) that provides an overview of the research in progress, describes the current stage of the project, and includes brief descriptions of the following, preferably in this order:

1. Research problem or objectives
2. Theoretical or conceptual framework
3. Research question(s) and relevant literature
4. Methods, techniques, or modes of inquiry
5. Data sources, evidence, objects, or materials
6. Preliminary or anticipated findings
7. Scholarly significance or anticipated contribution to the field
8. Anticipated progress or next steps prior to the Annual Meeting

Where to Submit:
AERA will only accept online application materials through the AERA Graduate Student Research-in-Progress Roundtable Series online submission portal. All submitters need to have a “My AERA” user profile with a username and password to submit. AERA membership is not required to create a profile. However, AERA membership is required for a submission to be reviewed for RIPRS. If a presenting author is not a Graduate Student member of AERA at the time of submission, the submission will not be considered.

To submit, Go to www.aera.net.  Select “Login” at the upper right of the screen to log into your AERA account. After you log in, select “My AERA” at the top of the page. On the “My AERA” page, scroll down to the 2026 Annual Meeting and select “Submit a Graduate Student Research-in-Progress Roundtable Series Working Paper.”

For more information about the submission process, refer to the submission instructions.

All materials must be received by 11:59 pm (Pacific Time) on Wednesday, October 8, 2025. Decision notifications will be sent in January. The Research-in-Progress Roundtable Series yields a large volume of submissions, and the program is unable to provide individual feedback on submissions that are not accepted for presentation.

To learn more about the Research-in-Progress Roundtable Series, please visit our website. If you have additional questions, please email edresearch@aera.net and include “Research-in-Progress Roundtables” in the subject line.