Collegial Conversations - Tips for Writing a Successful Session Proposal for NAFSA's 2008 Annual Conference & Expo
Do you have an idea for a conference session?
Do you want to get on the annual conference program?
Although the process may seem like a mystery, it's an open and straight-forward application. Seeking innovative and good sessions, the KCISSS team encourages you to consider the information below and submit a proposal. The deadline for submission is August 1, 2007.
We have asked experienced NAFSAns to share their thoughts on the elements of a successful proposal to encourage you to think about sharing your skills or knowledge.
Learn more about the experts.
Questions
| Contributors |
| Marjory Gooding is the director of the International Offices at the California Institute of Technology and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. She's been involved in international exchange for 20 years and has worked on regulatory and advocacy issues with NAFSA. Along with Melinda Wood, she is the author of NAFSA's "Finding Your Way: Navigational Tools for International Student and Scholar advisers. |
| Patricia Willer is currently Assistant Vice Provost for International Programs at the University of South Carolina. She has worked in international education for twenty five years, beginning as a graduate assistant in International Student Services at the University of Kansas. She holds a bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Kansas and studied abroad in Denmark. She has served in a variety of NAFSA roles and is currently the Workshop Coordinator for the 2008 NAFSA conference in Washington, D.C. and serves on the annual conference executive team |
| What is a good proposal? |
Marjory:
Good proposals are like good sessions. They reflect consideration of the NAFSA audience, are clear and accurate, have a particular level (beginner or advanced) in mind, deal with timely and pertinent topics, and have a structure that is readily discernable. Good sessions (and the proposals that precede them) are more than a re-telling on one institution's good experiences with a program or procedure. A really good and well developed proposal includes presenters from a variety of institutions (big/small, private/public, teaching/research) and backgrounds. At the end of the day, what matters are solid information and a fresh approach. These things are more important than a fancy PowerPoint presentation or use of technology for its own sake. |
Pat:
There are several different elements of a good proposal. Proposals are evaluated on the basis of the appeal to the target audience, the clarity of the proposal (which is viewed as an indicator of the quality of the actual presentation). The format should also be interesting. Increasingly, NAFSA is trying to move from the "talking head" format and into more interactive modes of delivery.
The proposal should make it clear to the reviewers who would be interested in the sessions (newcomers or more experienced people) and what areas of specialization it might touch. Diversity of presenters is important. Not only having people from different types of schools but also having individuals from other countries, if relevant. Innovative ways of "internationalizing" the presenters are valued in the review process.
As someone who has been reviewing proposals for a few years, I suggest giving lots of attention to title and abstract. They should sound interesting and be very clear. Snappy title and session descriptions really help to sell your proposal to reviewers and, if selected, attract people to the session.
Another item to consider, if doing a session related to regulations, is that there has been some concern the last few years that our sessions have been overly reliant on attorneys and not on practitioners in the field. Therefore, you will want to make sure you have balance. Personally, I value the lawyer perspective, but recommend no more than one on a panel. |
| Are there particular topics or formats of particular interest? |
Marjory:
No. As long as the topics touch on the core interests of NAFSAns, all ideas are welcome. The team that decides on the overall program is looking for balance. They try to include sessions that help us serve international students and scholars better. The art of putting a conference together is something like the art of putting your career together—you include programming skills, hardcore immigration information, and intercultural sensitivity in your day-to-day work. That's what the conference organizers seek as well.
Start with topics that address core functions of an office. On the KCISSS side, these are programming, intercultural training, and immigration advising. Is there a way to include two of these core functions? Example: how to do immigration advising that is sensitive to the intercultural needs of international students. Everyone appreciates sessions that have the potential for some interaction between the presenters and the audience OR among members of the audience. Active learning is always more compelling than passive learning. Maybe the term “passive learning” is an oxymoron. There will always be basic immigration sessions at NAFSA conferences. But you may have ideas for making that information more accessible to beginners or you may have ideas that touch on a particular area of the world that not many NAFSAns understand. You may have run into shortcomings in your own background that you have successfully overcome. That could be a great session. Example: you've concentrated hard on learning how to pronounce Chinese names and can help your fellow NAFSAns learn to do this as well.
This is part of the creative process. You need to do some networking and maybe a couple of “informational” interviews with colleagues across the state or across the country. A ten minute conversation can generate a lot of good ideas and many other contacts. Email someone on your regional team and ask if you can have ten minutes of their time to brainstorm about other presenters. The concept of 6 degrees of separation is particularly valuable here. You'll be amazed at how quickly you are in touch with people who may want to partner with you on your session idea. |
Pat:
Many, many topics--NAFSANs are great learners! I recommend paying special attention to the conference theme and yes, read those conference threads---they really do help to craft a proposal. Topics that consistently get good reviews are those dealing with the "craft" of the advising profession. Ethics, practice innovations, dealing with the gray areas of immigration; developing institutional policies--all these seem to touch the needs of advisers and managers. Personally, I think assessment and outcomes measurement are topics that are underrepresented at the conference and hope we'll see more in the future.
Next year's conference will be in D.C. which should be rich with resources and unique opportunities. What doesn't work is to report on one particular practice or program at one school. It really has to be broad scope. |
| Can I get help in submitting the proposal? |
Marjory:
NAFSAns are a particularly helpful bunch. Did you attend a session at a NAFSA conference that was good? Look back at the program and find the presenters' names. Look them up in the NAFSA directory and email them for help. You may not get an answer from everyone, but you will get an answer from someone. In addition, the people on your regional team would be happy to help. Every NAFSA region has a Web site with contact information. Alternatively, you may be surprised at what a good discussion you can start by asking seasoned professionals in your own office if they have ideas and/or input. |
Pat:
I would suggest a few venues for seeking help. Ask those colleagues you know in your school or state to give it a critical read and help you brainstorm ideas. Ask your regional KCISSS representative is he/she would be willing to give it a read. Use our International Student Advising and Scholar Advising Professional Networks to generate discussion or even to look for partners to help present. |
| Will the KCISSS team help me with my session proposal? |
Marjory:
Absolutely. Just email them with good questions. |
Pat:
Yes, I would suggest starting with your regional Rep for questions, networking to find other presenters, or for feedback. The regional rep can use our KCISSS leader listserv to get further discussion going, if needed. |
| How do I submit the proposal? |
Marjory:
It's easy. Start thinking about ideas and co-presenters now. Contact people who may want to be a part of your session. Run the idea by a variety of people. Once you have a solid idea (even if you don't have all the ideas fleshed out yet) go on line and complete the form. You have lots of time between August 1st and the conference in DC to refine your ideas and work out details of the presentation. |
Pat:
The submission process can be found on-line at NAFSA's Web site. Remember, you can work on a draft and save it without actually submitting it. It's important that you submit a cleaned up and complete proposal submission. The "look" and "sound" of the proposal will weigh in the decision. Occasionally, there are a few presenters not named or something along that line. I strongly recommend minimizing anything incomplete. It just doesn't help.
This year the proposal deadline is August 1 for session and workshop proposals. Poster sessions are a growing element of the conference and are great for those presenters that prefer more individual discussions. That deadline is November 15. |
| Many NAFSAns have good ideas or unique situations for a session at NAFSA but don't feel it is enough for a full session. What can they do to beef up the session? |
Marjory:
You may have a particular expertise or bit of knowledge that would help NAFSAns in general. If it doesn't seem like you could fill a whole session with your piece, you can team up with others around the country to fill a session. Example: your institution has many Native American students and you've developed a great program that brings international students and Native American students together. A colleague at a nearby state institution that has a small College of Music has developed a program that brings interested international students together with music students who want to learn about music education in other countries. The connecting thread is how you both managed to get the groups to come together and what worked in terms of structuring the events and programs. |
Pat:
The idea I'm trying to get at is that they can team up with 2,3, or 4 others to combine their talents into one session. They need to team up with individuals around the country. My response would be that our KCISSS professional networks have discussion forums which would be just right for interesting others in your proposal. This is a great time to float ideas out electronically, see who's interested, and go from there! Use the networks or contact your regional KCISSS rep. |
| What does the team look for in accepting session proposals? |
Marjory:
The team is looking for fresh ideas, solid information, clear thinking, representation from more than one institution, and cross-fertilization of ideas. Almost every NAFSA conference includes at least one session on how to run a better orientation for incoming international students. While there are some basics, you may have hit on something that is not widely used by other offices. That's the hook. The team is also looking for proposals that allow the audience to ask questions and interact with the presenters and fellow audience members. |
Pat:
Polished and professional in presentation. Good fit for our members and a topic that has wide appeal. Method of delivery that has interaction/good diversity of presenters. |
| Does someone need to have a "national" reputation to have a session proposal accepted? |
Marjory:
No, not at all. Conference planners are very interested in sessions that appeal to the entire spectrum of NAFSAns. As a relative newcomer, you may have sensibilities that old-timers have forgotten or never had. You may be striking a new and different balance. That's great since there will be many people at the conference who will share your interests and sensibilities. People develop “national” reputations by virtue of their willingness to step up, speak out, and work hard. |
Pat:
NO! Most members selected are not people known by the reviewers. Well-crafted proposals with wide scope are the winners. What does help is to make sure that when you are submitting your proposal you are giving enough info about the presenters so the reviewer can have confidence in them as presenters. Make sure titles, years of experience, expertise, show up in the proposal. |
| Are there topics that have not been addressed but should be? |
Marjory:
Of course there are. Do you have a good idea for a session that deals with international students and smoking and alcohol? How about a session on mental health services for international students? A new way of running weekly OPT group advising in the spring? Techniques on helping international scholars with long-term immigration planning? A particularly good working relationship with your Office of General Counsel? What did you wish you'd learned at the last NAFSA conference you attended? No session on that? Go out and learn what you felt you needed and then offer that new information to your colleagues in the form of a conference session. Have a particularly vexing problem with a co-worker? Get some counseling and then bring those helpful techniques to a NAFSA conference. |
Pat:
Remember that the goal is to try to expand the knowledge base of members; this is not just show and tell. Try to incorporate D.C. and international elements. Make it lively; make it clear that interaction is involved. |
| There are many sessions geared towards the beginning adviser. What suggestions do you have for good proposals for the more advanced adviser in the field? |
Marjory:
NAFSAns with all levels of experience come to conferences and are looking for sessions that will help them do their jobs better. A good proposal targets a particular level and CLEARLY marks the session as being apropos of that audience. Example: experienced NAFSAns are keen to compare notes with people from like institutions. A good proposal for a round table discussion would note that the tables will be organized by type of institution. An adviser from a small liberal arts college can join a group from like institutions and they can quickly get to the knotty problems that come with the lack of economy of scale. An adviser from a large state institution can join a table where the economy of scale discussion doesn't need to happen but a discussion of “adviser shopping” would be quite compelling. |
Pat:
More interactive vs. "talking heads". Descriptions should accurately describe the session proposal so the audience gets what they expect. I've mentioned some things earlier. The other thing I would suggest is that those sessions that relate to our own professional development have been well received. |
| How detailed does the session proposal need to be? |
Marjory:
A good session proposal needs to have a clear structure but it doesn't need a lot of detail. It does need to include the target audience and it does need to include people from a variety of institutions. One-office proposals face an uphill battle. |
Pat:
You need to include target audience. In general, the more detail, the more it sounds like a "finished" proposal and will get more serious consideration. |
| How are government presenters incorporated into sessions? |
Pat:
Sessions related to immigration and regulatory issues are developed in two ways. The KCISSS team and P & P (Policy and Practice) collaborate to identify most of the large immigration sessions, including those which include government officials. However, sessions that deal with regulatory matters also come from individual members and we encourage independent submission. These can include government presenters, but it's important to note that any session with a government presenter needs to go through an additional step because we all want the various government presenters to have a single, official, and consistent invitation for the conference. If your government-presenter session is accepted, you'll need to work with the NAFSA staff for the invitation. This prevents overlap and confusion.
There are also very valuable sessions that focus on regulatory issues but don't include government presenters, and that call upon the expertise of NAFSA members. In designing this type of session it's important to keep in mind the roles of international advisers, as well as immigration attorneys. In the same way that we encourage institutional and geographic diversity in proposals, we also recommend that session presenters be balanced among types of practitioners and that attorneys, while valuable, should not dominate. In many cases, one attorney in a proposal helps achieve that balance. |
| What if I don't have all of the details worked out by August 1? Should I submit what I have or must it be in final form? |
Marjory:
Your session proposal does not need to be in final form, but it does need to have enough information to allow the conference planners to make a good decision. If you haven't worked out co-presenters, indicate that you realize that this is important and that you are working to include presenters from other institutions/groups. Of course, the more solid and reasonable and thought-out your proposal is, the better chance it has of being accepted. The conference planners can spot a great idea that needs just a little more help. They can also spot a great idea that needs a lot more help and they might ask you to do that work over the next year and propose the idea next year. |
Pat:
I strongly suggest that you do finish. It's impossible to compare a proposal that clearly lists a topic, mode of delivery, and 4 presenters with their qualifications to a proposal that has an interesting title and concept and nothing else. There's no rule against submitting an incomplete proposal, but it won't review well. This is one deadline you really need to meet! The exception to that are the regulatory sessions that may have government speakers who need to be reserved through NAFSA staff.
My closing comments-- Just do it! If you don't submit a proposal, you know you won't be on the conference session. So take a chance. Have a colleague give you critical feedback--you'll end up with a stronger proposal.
Consider doing a similar presentation at the Regional conference. It's a good way to shape and polish your ideas and presentation. Then, when taking it nationally, broaden the scope for wider appeal and to avoid the "re-run" syndrome. If intimidated, consider the poster session route. There is an area that is really growing and maturing.
Consider a workshop proposal. Most of these are organized by NAFSA and presenters are people who have been through the trainer corps. But there are field trips, cultural venues, etc. that might be perfect for 4 hour workshop slots in Washington. Perhaps a visit to a mosque or the education office of an embassy? (not just for the field trip, but what to learn from it.) Remember, members pay for workshops so they need to add value--but they are a great way to provide experiential learning. |
