Proposing a Session

Please read the following information

This section of the proposal system is only for proposing an entire ETS session.

  • This form may not be used for affiliated society sessions.
  • This is not for proposing individual presentations. To submit an individual paper proposal, please use the button at the bottom of the page. Any individual paper proposals submitted here will automatically be declined and deleted from the system.
  • This is not for submitting a Program Unit session. To submit a Program Unit session please click the button at the bottom of the page.

Overview

A complete session is 3 hours and 10 minutes in length. The standard time block arrangement is 4 presentations (40 minutes each including Q&A) with a 10 minute break between presentations. Proposals may indicate a different arrangement of the session, but no session may exceed the 3 hour and 10 minute allotment.

Keys to the Proposal

  • The participants should all be ETS members eligible to present (current full member or current student member enrolled in a research PhD program) at the time the proposal is made.
  • Proposals made with a more diverse group of participants (different institutions, theological traditions, etc.) are preferred.
  • Only program units are allowed to invite non-member or associate member presenters. Proposals submitted with non-member participants will automatically be declined.
  • The participants should not be involved in more than 1 other session at the Annual Meeting. We limit participation to one invited session and one general session.
  • Constructing a session proposal with members who are already committed to participate in program unit sessions will greatly lesson the likelihood that this proposal will be accepted.

The Tips for Crafting a Quality Proposal are all applicable here. Session proposals are reviewed and approved by our committee and are in competition with sessions composed from individual presentations for space in the program. Making an effort to craft a quality proposal is well worth the time.

If the proposed session is a book review session, please keep in mind the following guidelines. Proposals will be most favorably received when the suggested session:

  • provides more than a summary of the book’s content
  • contains presentations by the author(s) and others who have published in the field
  • includes presentations that contribute to the discussion of the topic beyond the content of the book itself
  • incorporates responses and perspectives that differ from the book under discussion
  • reviews/previews multiple significant texts from different authors and publishers
  • is sufficiently in advance of publication to allow the interaction to be formative, or comes long enough after publication for the audience and panel members to be able to interact with the material in a knowledgeable and constructive manner

Special Note on Festschriften: We do not ordinarily accept session proposals related to the publication or presentation of a festschrift. Presentations related to a festschrift are best done either in a program unit, or as a special event, outside of the parallel sessions. For information on special events, please email meeting@etsjets.org

The Process

Session proposals must be submitted during the proposal period (Apr 1-12, 2024). The proposal system will close at 5:00 pm (MST) on Apr 12. No session proposals may be submitted after the close of the proposal period.

After submitting the proposal, an onscreen message and an automated email will confirm that the submission was successful. Additional emails will be sent as the proposal is processed.

To complete the proposal process you will need to include each presenter’s name and affiliation as it should appear in the program. You will also need to copy and paste or attach the abstracts for each individual presentation. (Please combine the individual abstracts into a single document and paste it onto the session proposal form, or attach as a single document.) The quality of the paper abstracts and the quality of the session abstract will directly affect the rating of the session proposal.

Notification regarding session proposals will be made via email by May 31st.

For questions or assistance, please email meeting@etsjets.org.

Session proposals will be accepted during the paper proposal period, April 1st -12th. Please check back after the proposal period opens for instructions on submitting your proposed session.