Ten Simple Rules For Attending Your First Conference - PLOS

Rule 10: Tie up the loose ends after the conference

After attending the conference you will likely want to come home and collapse from all of the excitement, but wait …you have a few more things to do before you are done. These loose ends pertain to both in-person and virtual conferences. First and foremost, update any notes you have about the conference itself before you forget. Conferences can be a fast-paced blur, so make sure to record any feedback you get on your work at the conference, so that you have it when you are ready to make improvements. Updating your resume and/or curriculum vitae (CV) is another important step you should complete as quickly after the conference as possible. In addition to any posters or presentations you gave, you should also add any awards you received including travel funding awards. Depending on your career stage, you might also include other events or support you received—check with a mentor about what is appropriate.

Next, you should follow up with people you met at the conference. This helps to solidify the relationships you began at the conference. Email people you are interested in speaking with again, and ask for an opportunity to meet. If you spoke with companies or potential job seekers, follow up with an email containing your resume and statement of interest. When you attend a conference, you meet so many people that it is hard to remember everyone. By reaching out with a simple note or a LinkedIn invitation, you will be helping people to remember you which can lead to future collaborations and/or job opportunities!

If you received a travel award (for an in-person conference, for example) that requires reimbursement, you will need to carefully follow the instructions and/or rules of your funding agency. Reimbursements can take quite a while to process so the faster you get it done after the conference, the better. Pay special attention to rules regarding the submission of receipts (itemized receipts are required in some cases) and deadlines for submission (some agencies require reimbursement documents be submitted within a month of the conference ending). Make a note to yourself to follow up on reimbursement; if you do not hear back about your reimbursement within 2 weeks, go ahead and reach out to inquire about your paperwork (you can also ask your mentor if it has been longer than you were expecting).

Finally, you should take time to write thank you notes or emails to anyone who supported your travel to the conference whether that be financially, in conference preparation, or in your research. This not only helps you to further strengthen relationships with those people, but also helps future students receive these awards by leaving a good impression with the awarders.

For mentors

Communicate your institution’s rules and requirements about reimbursements to your trainees, and tell your trainees who to contact for reimbursement paperwork (e.g., a department administrator). We suggest holding a paperwork session after the conference so that all travelers can come together and fill out paperwork, print and/or make copies of necessary materials, and ask questions of each other and you. If multiple travelers attended the same conference, then mentors can also submit all of this paperwork together to increase the chances of its timely completion. We sometimes also bring a giant box of thank you notes so that students can easily grab one to write a note of thanks to those who helped them along the way. If students run into bureaucratic difficulties with paperwork, help them get the issue resolved.