Conference Guide

Accepted to a panel at an academic conference and are not sure what your role is? Then this guide is for you!

A panel consists of about 3 major parts:

Introduction to the Panel

An introduction to the panelists and overview of the topics to be discussed, setting the stage for the session’s objectives while informing the audience of the panel’s purpose.

  • Oral Presentations
    Each panelist will deliver a focused presentation, highlighting their research or key insights on the selected topic.

  • Question and Answer Session in Two Parts:

    • Discussant Questions and Comments
      Panelists engage with pre-prepared questions provided by the discussant(s) and provide thoughtful commentary on each other’s presentations.

    • Audience Questions and Panelist Answers (As Time Allows)
      Attendees have the opportunity to ask questions, with panelists responding (as time permits), promoting an interactive dialogue.

Important Roles and their Duties

  • Panel Chair(s)

    Introduce each panelist before their presentation

    Determine the order of panelists
    o   Usually, panels simply go in the order found on the program, but if there are technical issues or potentially people running late, the chair(s) can determine the order

    Keep time for panelists and warn them as they run out of time
    o   Ensure you have some means of keeping time (a phone timer is usually sufficient)
    o   Provide panelists with “warning signals” (on average I have seen 5-minute and 10-minute warnings using either fingers or cards with numbers on them)

    Introduce the discussants during the Question and Answer session

    Field audience questions and presenter responses

    Note: While there is usually only one panel chair, you may sometimes be assigned two “co-chairs”.

  • Panel Presenters/"Panelists"

    Distribute your paper to the panel chair(s) and discussants in a timely manner.
    o   Usually the chair(s) and discussant(s) will request them by a specific deadline via email.

    Prepare and present an oral presentation on your paper.
    o   This should be between 10 and 15 minutes in length (dependent on the needs of the panel, as instructed by your panel chair).
    o   The best presentations typically have a slideshow associated with them, although this is not a formal requirement in all cases.
    o   It is highly recommended you do not simply show up and read your paper out loud (this typically does not reflect well at all).

    Respond to discussant and audience questions during the Question and Answer session

  • Panel Discussant(s)

    In cooperation with the panel chair(s), field papers from the panelists in a timely manner before the panel session so the discussant(s) have time to read and provide commentary

    Prepare a brief summary of the papers assigned, as well as comments and questions regarding the papers, for the Question and Answer session.
    o   If there is one discussant, they will either take all of the papers or can split them with the chair(s) who will then take on discussant duties as well
    o   If there are two or more discussants, they will split up the papers amongst themselves
    o   In all cases, the summary, comments, and questions for each paper should be about 5 minutes or so in length.