🏛️ Conference Attendance Checklist

Conferences are the lifeblood of CS research culture. Done well, a single conference can generate 3–5 meaningful collaborations, a job offer, and 6 months’ worth of new research directions.

Before the Conference (4–8 weeks out)

Logistics

  • Register for the conference early (student rates, early-bird discounts)
  • Book accommodation — conference hotels fill fast; aim to stay where attendees stay
  • Book flights (student travel grants often have specific booking requirements)
  • Apply for student travel grants from the conference (see career/grants-and-funding.md)
  • Apply for travel funding from your department/advisor
  • Obtain a visa if required (allow 6–8 weeks for US B1/B2 or Schengen)
  • Check if your institution needs a travel approval form

Preparation

  • Download the conference app or booklet
  • Read through all accepted papers (at least titles and abstracts)
  • Identify the 5 talks you must attend
  • Identify the 5 posters you must visit
  • Identify 5–10 researchers you want to meet — research their recent work
  • Send meeting request emails to target researchers 2–3 weeks in advance
  • Prepare your 30-second elevator pitch for your own research
  • Prepare your 3-minute pitch for detailed conversations

If You Are Presenting

  • Final version of talk slides completed
  • Talk timed to exactly the allocated time (15 min → 15 min, not 17 min)
  • Rehearsed at least 3 times with an audience
  • Backup: slides uploaded to Google Drive or cloud storage
  • Poster printed (if presenting a poster):
    • Correct dimensions for the conference (check requirements!)
    • Printed at 300 DPI
    • QR code linking to paper/project page is working
    • Physical print collected and packed in a tube

At the Conference

Daily Ritual

Morning:

  • Review today’s schedule; confirm which sessions and posters to attend
  • Identify who you might run into and what you want to discuss

During Sessions:

  • Take notes on papers that intersect with your research
  • Note down questions to ask at poster sessions
  • Collect contact info of interesting speakers (Twitter/X, LinkedIn, email)

Poster Sessions:

  • Visit targeted posters and engage in technical conversations
  • Be a good visitor: read the poster before asking questions
  • Take a photo of the poster (with presenter’s permission) for later reference
  • If you have a poster: arrive 10 minutes early; bring business cards or QR code handouts

Evening Social Events:

  • Attend workshop dinners, receptions, and social hours — this is where collaborations form
  • Introduce yourself genuinely; ask what people are working on
  • Exchange contact information before conversations end

Networking Protocol

When meeting a new researcher:

  1. Introduce yourself: name, institution, advisor, and one-sentence research description
  2. Ask what they are working on — be genuinely curious
  3. Look for a connection between your work and theirs
  4. If there’s a match: “We should talk more about this — are you free for coffee?”
  5. Exchange contact information

[!TIP] The best networking is not transactional — it is genuine intellectual curiosity. Ask about their work before talking about yours.

If You Are Giving a Talk

  • Arrive 15–20 min early to test AV setup
  • Bring your own clicker + backup HDMI/USB-C adapters
  • Have slides in PDF format as a backup (in case your laptop fails)
  • Position yourself near the front before your session
  • After your talk: stay for Q&A and linger — interested researchers will approach you

After the Conference (within 1 week)

Follow-Up

  • Send personalized follow-up emails to everyone you had meaningful conversations with
    • Reference something specific you discussed
    • Mention next steps if you discussed collaboration
    • Connect on LinkedIn / follow on Twitter
  • Act on any specific commitments made (“I’ll send you our paper”, “Let’s schedule a call”)

Knowledge Capture

  • Write a brief trip report for your lab (2–3 paragraphs on what you learned and who you met)
  • Read the papers you flagged as interesting
  • Update your research direction based on what you learned

Administrative

  • Submit expense reports with all receipts (conference registration, flights, hotel, meals)
  • Share travel grant acknowledgment materials if required by the grant

Conference Packing List

Technology

  • Laptop + charger
  • USB-C to HDMI adapter (for talks)
  • USB-A to USB-C adapter
  • Portable battery bank
  • Conference poster (if presenting) — in a protective tube
  • Clicker / laser pointer (if presenting)

Professional

  • Business cards OR a QR code card linking to your website
  • Printed copies of your poster or paper (optional, but appreciated)

Useful Apps and Tools

Tool Purpose
Whova Conference management app used by many CS venues
ResearchGate Follow papers and connect with authors
LinkedIn Send connection requests on the spot
Google Maps Navigate venue, find restaurants
Notion Mobile notes for trip report and contacts

Major CS Conference Calendar

Conference Typical Month Submission Deadline Areas
NeurIPS December May ML, AI
ICML July January ML
ICLR April–May October Deep Learning
CVPR June November Computer Vision
ICCV October (odd years) March Computer Vision
ECCV September–October (even years) March Computer Vision
ACL July January NLP
SIGCOMM August February Networking
SOSP / OSDI Fall / Spring (alternating) Spring/Fall Systems
USENIX ATC July January Systems
PLDI June November Programming Languages
CCS November May Security