Submissions are Open for the 48th Annual Fall Research Conference!

Fifty States, Fifty Systems: State Policy Variations and Impacts

APPAM is excited to announce that submissions for #2026APPAM are open! From now until April 22, we encourage you to submit your research with the 2026 conference theme in mind: Fifty States, Fifty Systems: State Policy Variations and Impacts. The conference will take place November 5-7 in Boston, Massachusetts.

About this year's theme:

The US federalist system of government assigns substantial authority to states to create and implement policies. At this time, as the federal government's role is shrinking, the role of state policy is even more important. Ideally, states make laws based on the unique needs and conditions of their state; however, throughout history and continuing today, state policies vary considerably in their reach and generosity, and not always in ways consistent with the economic, environmental, or social needs of states, but rather in the ideology of state leaders. Measuring state-level variation and its impact on well-being is more important now than ever, and policy scholars bear responsibility for it.

Submissions are being solicited for the #2026APPAM. Every session during the conference will be categorized into a primary policy area.

• Panel: Panels include a session organizer, chair, one to two discussants, and three to four papers. Panels with four papers are encouraged to have two discussants. Presenting authors may not serve as the chair or discussant on the same panel. Individuals may present on up to two panels throughout the conference, though they may serve as a chair or discussant unlimited times. There should be no more than two people per affiliation per submission.
   
• Poster: Poster submissions are single-paper proposals that are presented in a poster format. Presenters will be asked to discuss their work and answer questions during one of two poster sessions. The poster should be in a horizontal (landscape) format, with a maximum size of 8 feet wide by 4 feet tall. 
   
• Roundtable: Roundtables do not include papers; rather, they feature speakers who discuss a topic from varying perspectives and draw the audience into a discussion. Roundtable proposals should include up to four speakers plus a moderator. The moderator cannot also be a speaker in the same session. There should be no more than two people per affiliation per submission.
   
• Single Papers: Single papers are proposals that will later be combined with other single papers to form cohesive panel sessions on a single topic.
   
• Student Research: APPAM is pleased to once again accept student research paper submissions at the Fall Conference. Submitted research must have been conducted by a current student or recent graduate student. Student research submissions will be combined to form a cohesive panel with four student research papers, a chair, and up to two discussants. These sessions will take place throughout the conference.

To submit, log into the All Academic system using the login box on your right hand side bar and select "Submit or Edit a Proposal" in your submitters menu.

Submissions will close on April 22nd at 11:59 PST.