With the start of the academic semester comes a series of conferences. I’m grateful for the conference survival guides and other helpful conference hacks shared by my PLN. Due to limited travel funds and time, I had to decline a few conferences; however I will be sure to follow along the Twitter backchannel (I am looking at you #HEWeb14 and #SMSociety14).
In considering the cost of professional development at many conferences, I have learned to get more involved to help fund this sort of travel.
Here are a few ways to get involved and learn how to fund your own conference travel with your professional affiliations:
- Volunteer at the conference – check-in desk, hospitality, and more! Ask to volunteer!
- Apply to present a Pre-Conference workshop – often you are eligible for comped registration and/or bonus honorarium to travel.
- Get involved with conference planning – join the conference steering committee or planning group. It gets you networked and often offers a discount for registration and/or accommodations
- Get invited – See if invites are available for featured talks, workshops or edu sessions. Tap into your network and share what you are working on.
- Stay with a friend – I have housed and been housed at a number of conference locations just to avoid the steep hotel costs. Bunk up, or find a local off the conference beat.
- Apply for a travel grant – This might be at your own institution, through the professional organization, or other entity.
- See what’s local – You will be surprised to learn a number of different conferences, workshops, and other P.D. that is happening in your own neck of the woods OR online. 🙂
- Present virtually! – Limited travel? See if the conference offers virtual papers, workshops or posters and submit your CFP! If you’re in the #edtech realm, you will likely find this a popular option to travel.
Here is my quick conference list for the Fall 2014 term:
- LINK Research Lab Talks at UTA – Dates vary this Fall 2014 semester
- EDUCAUSE (#edu14) – September 29-October 2, 2014, Orlando, FL
- NACADA (#nacada14) – October 7-11, 2014, Minneapolis, MN
- Pre-Conference Workshop: Academic Advising and Technology: Goals, Practice and Assessment
- Concurrent Session: The #Selfie: Modeling Your Online Persona to Support Student Success
- E-Learn Conference (#elearn14) – October 27-30, 2014, New Orleans, LA
- Virtual Paper Workshop: Digital Scholarship and Impact Factors: Methods and Tools to Connect Your Research
- Annual OLC International Conference (#aln14) – October 28-31, 2014
- Technology Test Kitchen: Joining the tech chefs for hands-on tech & learning. Yay!
- Museum Computer Network (#MCN2014) – November 19-22, 2014, Dallas, TX
- Volunteering and attending to learn more about museum curation & tech
Where are you traveling this academic term? Will our conference travel cross paths? How have you creatively spread your travel funds? Please share. 🙂
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