Building Conference Skills

Attending and presenting at academic conferences can be intimidating, but conferences can also be rewarding venues in which to deepen your understanding of your field and grow your academic network. In this microseminar, we’ll work on building the skills and knowledge you need to take advantage of academic conferences, with a particular focus on the Pacific Ancient and Modern Languages Association (PAMLA) 2026 meeting, which is being held in Seattle this year. 

First, we’ll explore how to find conferences and sessions that are relevant to your work by introducing online resources, examining program books, and reading selections from conference-based edited volumes and journals like PAMLA’s Pacific Coast Philology. Second, we’ll examine the abstract submission process, critique real abstracts and workshop practice abstracts of our own; and discuss what to expect at a conference. Our third event is our field trip to PAMLA in downtown Seattle. Finally, we’ll gather to reflect on our experiences, talk about conference networking, and answer students’ other conference questions. Students will submit a final reflection paper.

Add code required. Please email Kathryn Medill (kmed1@uw.edu) a short statement about your interest in the course.