Registration
Can you please clarify how membership and conference registration relate?
Membership in the Society for Military History is a prerequisite for all panelists and presenters, and also confers a discount in conference registration.
Membership dues do not include the cost of conference registration. Levels of membership vary, and the costs range between $25/year and $240/year. More information on membership can be found here.
For presenters, membership is required by December 31, 2018, and if the presenter is already a member, the membership dates must extend beyond May 2019.
Membership is not required for attendance, if the participant is not a presenter.
What are the different levels of registration?
SMH2019 attendees may register as members and nonmembers, students (including graduate and Young Scholars), partners/family, exhibitors, and as part of the teacher-training program. Member, nonmember, and student registrations are permitted to attend all panels and roundtables and social receptions, while partner/family registrants and exhibitors are permitted to attend SMH2019 social receptions only. Any registrant may add on optional events like tours and the awards banquet for additional costs.
What if my partner and I are both academics and want attend together? Can we register in the same transaction, and can one of us pay the reduced partner/family rate?
The partner/family rate allows an attendee entrance to the social events of SMH2019, namely the Opening Reception and the Keynote Reception. If both partners want to attend panel and roundtable sessions, both must register at other levels (member, nonmember, or student).
What is the teacher-training program?
SMH offers regional teachers the opportunity to attend one day of programming at a low cost, to meet continuing education requirements and to better understand current research in Military History. SMH2019 has partnered with Ohio History Connection and has created a full day of content, including pedagogy sessions on best practices for varying grade levels. Interested K-12 teachers can email smh@osu.edu for more information.
What does “Add Additional Registrant” at the end of my registration summary page mean?
If you’d like to pay for multiple registrations in the same transaction, please select “Add Additional Registrant” at the close of the confirmation summary page. If you do not need to register any additional attendees, please continue scrolling down past that button, confirm the “Terms and Conditions”, and enter your payment information.
Does the registration fee include hotel costs?
Registration fees do not include hotel bookings. To assist SMH2019 attendees who wish to share hotel rooms to defray costs, SMH-HQ will soon post a “roommate finder” message board.
What meals are included as part of registration fees?
SMH2019 will host several receptions with drinks and hors d’oeuvres served gratis to attendees: the Opening Reception, the Robert Harry Berlin Graduate Student Reception, and the Keynote Reception. Conference organizer hospitality will also offer “coffee breaks” in the mornings and afternoons with light refreshments in between panel sessions.
One additional Awards Banquet dinner is granted to SMH2019 prize awardees, and other conference attendees and the public are invited to purchase that event’s tickets.
Hotel guests at the Hilton Columbus Downtown will also have continental breakfast options on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday mornings.
Program and Panels
What constitutes a panel, if I wish to submit a panel proposal?
A panel usually comprises three papers, a commentator who addresses themes of the papers, and a chair that manages panelist timings, introductions, and the Q&A.
The commentator and chair may be the same person.
We have a proposal ready to go, but have not yet found a panel chair or commentator. Are we required to find a commentator and/or panel chair before submission?
If you have gathered the abstracts and CVs of all panelists, you may submit your panel proposal as is. Volunteers have been offering to serve as chairs and/or commentators at SMH2019, and will be assigned to panels lacking them. If you have a late-coming panel chair and/or commentator to add after the October 1 deadlines, please email smh@osu.edu with the panel information, the contact information of your chair/commentator, and their one-page CV.
What are the differences between panels and roundtables?
Panels comprise presenters delivering prewritten papers. Roundtables are discussions that are structured by a predetermined theme. Roundtable participants are scholars in the theme’s field, and their conversation is moderated.
What sort of financial support options are there for those wanting to attend or participate in SMH2019?
There are several competitive awards for graduate students and non-academic historians to attend SMH2019. Application instructions can be found at http://www.smh-hq.org/awards.html.
What is the length of an abstract?
Proposals consist of a 300-word abstract regarding the overall panel, and then 300-word abstracts for each panelist.
What is the length of a conference paper?
There is not a set length for conference papers. Depending on the panel type and the number of panelists, presenters have approximately 15-20 minutes for each paper. A rule of thumb is that is takes 1.5-2 minutes to read one double-spaced page aloud, perhaps up to 2.5 minutes per page if there are audiovisual elements to be explained. Thus, conference versions of papers should be approximately 8-10 pages.
Is there a minimum and maximum number of panelists?
As a rule, panels should include three paper presenters. SMH has had panels with four presenters, but that abbreviates the time per-panelist and Q&A time.
What are the rules about using audiovisual aids? What does SMH provide?
Panel rooms are equipped with a projector, a screen, and a microphone. If you intend to use audiovisuals, please plan to use your own laptops and dongles to connect to projectors.
Can I submit both an individual paper and a panel proposal?
You may make one submission to SMH2019.
Can I participate on more than one panel?
Attendees can serve as a panel chair or roundtable moderator, panel commentator, or presenter. They cannot fill more than one of these roles with the exception that members who act as panel chairs may deliver a paper, serve on a roundtable or offer comments in one other session. Members who serve as both chair and commentator for one session may not present in another session.
Are there previously accepted abstracts I can read?
We do not have accepted abstracts from former panels to use as examples at this time. If you wish to use yours as an example for future conference FAQs, please email it to smh@osu.edu.
When will I know whether my panel or paper have been accepted?
The program committee use a system of individually ranking papers and panels, then congregating their evaluations to make overall decisions. This can take several weeks, and paper submitters can expect to receive acceptances and rejections by the end of November. Young Scholars presenters can expect to hear by February 20, 2019.
By what criteria are the proposals evaluated?
- Proposal explains the topic, research questions, methodologies, and historiographic significance in ways that specialists and non-specialists alike can understand. (10 points)
- Proposal presents new findings or revisions of long-held interpretations. (10 points)
- Proposal addresses the conference theme. (5 points)
- Proposal reflects the SMH’s diversity of institutional affiliations, various career paths and ranks, gender, race, and ethnicity. (Does not apply to individual submissions; 5 points)
What are the differences between conference panels and Young Scholars panels?
Conference panels comprise academic historians (including advanced PhD students) and other professional historians. Young Scholars panels showcase the excellent research of BA- and MA-level students.
What is the paper and panel submission deadline?
Conference papers and panel submissions are due October 1, 2018. Young Scholars paper and panel submissions are due January 15, 2019.
Am I required to become a member of SMH to attend the Annual Meeting?
Membership is not required for attendance at SMH2019, but it is required to present. Accepted panel participants are required to become members by December 31, 2018 in order to remain on the program. Accepted proposals by Young Scholars have until February 22, 2019 to become members.
What is the registration deadline?
All accepted presenters must register for the conference and pay the registration fee by February 28, 2019, to remain on the conference program. There is no registration deadline for regular attendees, though they should note that fees increase by $30 each on March 1, 2019.