Submissions

Request for Proposals

Convergence is now accepting proposals for concurrent sessions that bring attention, resources, and focus to the emergent field of alternative credentials. Presenters will have the opportunity to share their expertise with a diverse audience of thought leaders from across the postsecondary landscape who are transforming learner mobility through credential innovation. Especially of interest are presentations that are highly interactive, feature multiple presenters and institutions/organizations, and can address the needs of a wide range of institutional types and sizes, as well as diverse populations of credit and noncredit learners. 

 Proposals are due by April 27.

Click here to view UPCEA Member-Curated Resources For Submitting Proposals

Proposal Topics Sought: 

• Quality standards for credit and noncredit credentials
• Student success examples 
• Faculty development which leverages alternative credentials 
• Credential innovation that supports workforce or professional standards
• Propose/review/approval protocols 
• Budget models and financial aid pathways 
• Third-party provider engagement 
• Academic Record and SIS considerations
• Interoperability 
• Micro-credentials and global education 
• Registrars who have successfully collaborated with PCO practitioners and vice versa 
• Examples and considerations involving state policy models, advocacy, regulatory  

• Workshop: 60-minute session providing a deep dive wherein participants are actively, tangibly engaged in their learning, via collaboration and hands-on interaction. Workshop presenters generally spend less than half of the session sharing their ideas, using the remaining time engaged in activity that promotes interaction and discussion, ending with a takeaway for participants.

• Roundtable: 15 to 20-minute table-based, small-group, guided discussion about a specific and timely topic, question, or issue. During one, 60-minute concurrent session, multiple Roundtable presenters concurrently share their ideas and promote the sharing of thoughts, solutions, and questions among their respective tables’ attendees. Roundtables are designed to provide space and time to important but particularly nuanced topics which deserve attention, and as such, attendees are free to move between tables.

• Presentation: 60-minute session featuring one to three presenters who share a cohesive series of ideas followed by a robust discussion with the audience. Presentations are sought which involve multiple organizations, as well as content which may be scaled or optimized by attendees from a wide range of institutions.

• Panel: 60-minute session featuring a moderator and two to three panelists from different organizations that can provide insights on a common area of interest. Panelists establish a problem or provide context in the first half of the session and then engage participants in a solutions-focused conversation/Q&A in the latter half.

• Convergence Talk: Quickfire introduction of an idea by a single presenter without audience discussion, and with strict guidelines (presentation can be no longer than 10 minutes and use no more than 10 slides, with font no smaller than 28pt). Five or six Talks are scheduled in one space, in sequence, to offer attendees numerous, shallow forays into critical topics.

• Proposals are expected to highlight a deeply relevant topic and to explore trends and developments in our field, share best practices and innovative solutions, and/or examine controversial ideas which evoke debate and discussion.
• Proposals will offer learning outcomes/goals, a clear plan to engage the audience, and denote an anticipated presentation “level” (i.e. foundational, applied, or strategic).
• Proposals must include complete contact information for all presenters.
• Proposals which do not meet the above elements will be considered incomplete and will not be reviewed.

• Proposals will be peer-reviewed, and selected to ensure the program offers a comprehensive, noncommercial, objective, and diverse content. 
• Attention will be given to diversity of institutions, presenters and geographic location. 
• Note: due to demand, individuals are limited to one concurrent session proposal. 
• We reserve the right to revise presentation titles, reassign the proposed track, or edit the session description of selected presentations for promotional and program publications.
• There will be approximately 30 concurrent sessions, typically 60 minutes in length. Digital copies of presentation materials will be collected from presenters in advance of the conference for dissemination via the event platform and/or mobile app.  

• March 29: Request for Proposals announced
• April 27: Proposals due
• Mid-June: Selected proposals notified

 Proposals are due by April 27.

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