Call for Submissions

AERA Graduate Student Research-in-Progress Roundtable Series

2025 AERA Annual Meeting
Denver, Colorado

SUBMISSION DEADLINE: December 3, 2024
11:59pm (Pacific Time)

The American Educational Research Association (AERA) invites submissions for the Research-in-Progress Roundtable Series at the 2025 AERA Annual Meeting in Denver, April 23 – 27. 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 Denver. 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 2025 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 and each roundtable will include 3 to 5 participants. 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 Thursday, April 24 to Sunday, April 27 during the 2025 AERA Annual Meeting in Denver.

Eligibility: Students submitting their work to be presented in the Research-in-Progress Roundtable Series must:

• be enrolled in a graduate degree program at the time of application and during the 2025 AERA Annual Meeting;
• be a 2024 or 2025 AERA member;
• not be an author or co-author on a 2025 AERA Annual Meeting Open Call submission.

Submission Requirements:

• Complete the AERA Research-in-Progress Submission Form no later than December 3, 2024.
• 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

• Use the following naming convention for PDF document upload: “Last Name_First Name_RIPRS25”..

Where to Apply:

AERA will only accept online application materials through the AERA Graduate Student Research-in-Progress Roundtable Series online submission portal. To apply, log in to your AERA account here. On the “My AERA” page, scroll down to the 2025 Annual Meeting and click “Submit a Graduate Student Research-in-Progress Roundtable Series Working Paper.” All submitters need a “My AERA” user profile with a username and password to submit. AERA membership is not required to create a profile. However, graduate students who are submitting a working paper for the Research-in-Progress series must be current (2024 or 2025) AERA members at the time of submission in order to be eligible.

All materials must be received by 11:59 pm (Pacific Time) on Tuesday, December 3, 2024. Submissions will be reviewed in the order in which they are received. Decision notifications will be sent by late January.

If you have questions about the Research-in-Progress Roundtable Series, please email edresearch@aera.net and include “Research-in-Progress Roundtables” in the subject line.