1. Why submit to the SOC?

Different from the regular sessions in the ISDC, the SOC provides a pre-conference forum where students can openly share the challenges they face with modeling and their research, rather than communicate polished results of completed research. Here are just a few reasons to consider submitting your work to the colloquium:

• You are studying at an institution where there are few (or no) faculty engaged in system dynamics work, and you wish to present your work in a friendly setting, make connections with people in the field who can help you, discover available resources and meet potential mentors.
• You have an idea for a research/dissertation proposal and would like feedback (on the conceptualization of the problem, the suitability of System Dynamics, appropriate next steps, feasibility, etc.).
• You are in the middle stages of your research and modeling (i.e., the work is not yet ready to present at the general ISDC) and would like feedback on work to date, help getting un-stuck, advice on next steps, or perspectives on the research contributions from people outside your department.
• You are nearing completion of the project/dissertation and are seeking critical feedback and questions to improve the scholarly and practical contributions and implications of your work.
• You are new to SD and want a chance to learn and share in small groups with your peers and expert system dynamicists to develop your project ideas.

2. Who can submit to the SOC?

Doctoral, masters, and undergraduate students are particularly encouraged to submit. However, anyone new to SD can also submit their work.

3. Who can attend the SOC?

All are welcome to attend the SOC. Pre-registration is kindly encouraged since by doing so, we can estimate the resources (e.g., food, volunteers, virtual rooms) required.

4. How are plenary speakers chosen?

Students whose submissions with subsequent expert feedback would benefit the larger audience of the SOC will be invited to present their work in a plenary presentation format These submissions may reflect a problem or question that was observed in several submissions or are commonly experienced by SD students and/or they may demonstrate exceptional modeling, research design, and/or innovative application areas. Emphasis will be on the clarity and quality of the work and its potential for informing many others’ learning.

5. What kind of expert feedback can I expect from participating in the SOC?

All attendees: The SOC is designed in a way that encourages networking and informal dialogue. All attendees, whether SD novices or experts, will get an opportunity to share and learn together during the multiple formats of the programme – plenaries, breakout sessions and the poster and networking session.

Presenters: All presenters whose submissions are accepted are encouraged to participate in the Angel Advisor Programme. Together with your poster/paper and any supporting model documentation, you will submit an informal 2-minute introductory video which will be used to connect you with an Angel Advisor who will closely review your work and provide expert feedback. In addition, successful applicants will have the opportunity to share their work and receive constructive and friendly feedback from other SOC attendees during the Live Poster and Networking Session. Furthermore, student plenary presenters will receive informal feedback from the SOC attendees in a short Q&A period following their 20-minute oral presentation.   

6. Do I need to register for the International System Dynamics Conference (ISDC) to present at the SOC?

Presenters who require a Visa to enter the United States of America should register for Frankfurt ISDC2023 as an in-person attendee. Other attendees and presenters do not need to register for the ISDC, though we highly recommend it. While there is no financial cost to attend the Student-Organized Colloquium, registration for the colloquium is required for all attendees and presenters.

7. What are the SOC submission guidelines?

The Student-Organized Colloquium accepts submissions in a detailed paper, extended abstract, or poster format. Full papers will be considered for plenary presentation, and all submissions will be considered for poster presentation. See more details on the submission requirements below.

8. Are there examples of introductory videos students make for their angel advisors?

Yes. See videos from Cherie Dirk, Mariana Torres Arroyo​, and Min Hu.

Submission and Review Process

Posters, full papers, and extended abstracts are acceptable formats for submission to the Student-Organized Colloquium. 

Note: Colloquium reviews are double blind. Please exclude all author information on your submitted work.

Please submit all the materials via the System Dynamic Society’s Web Portal by the deadline specified above. You can access the Web Portal at https://webportal.systemdynamics.org/web.portal. See also the instructions for using the Web Portal submission system.

Reviews will be on a rolling basis. See above for the SOC deadlines for submission and registration.

Formatting Requirements for All Submissions

Single-spaced
3 cm margins all around
Clear figures, tables, graphs
Prose edited to eliminate typos and increase clarity
Please exclude all author information from your submitted work for review.

Poster

Specifications

• Format: PDF, color
• Orientation: Landscape
• Should not exceed A0 dimensions (46.8 x 33.1 in, 118.9 x 84.1 cm). Ideally, posters will be created with a 4:3 aspect ratio (landscape). All in-person poster presenters will be responsible for printing and hanging (in the designated area) their own poster.

Example

Poster submission format

Poster submissions should be in the form of a full poster that describes the dynamic problem or issue being addressed, the approach being used to address it, the current progress, results and findings, and concluding messages. Works cited should also be included. The poster should be self-explanatory, simple, and specific, presenting material in a logical, legible manner. Introduction, written material, photos, charts, and graphs should be in a sequential fashion, and trademarks must be indicated where appropriate.  A disclaimer may be posted to indicate that “results and/or modifications are in preparation for publication and cannot be used without permission of the author(s).”

Conference participants should be able to open the PDF and enlarge/zoom-in. Therefore, please try to have graphics, especially model structures in vector format to ensure proper visibility. 

To rescale a full-sized poster, just make sure that it is prepared in a 4×3 ratio (landscape), for example, 40” by 30” (or 101,6 cm by 76,2cm). Fill the poster area as you normally would if you were printing it, for an in-person conference, as if you were to hang the poster on the display board. Then print it as a PDF (landscape) to fit the letter-sized paper. Please be sure that the title of your work is legible when printed to Letter or A4 and viewed at 100%.

Final submission once accepted as a SOC presenter

Virtual SOC poster presenters will have a dedicated Zoom breakout room. The PDFs will be available on the Conference Site before the event for all attendees. 

Submit your final poster, video presentation recording*, and a brief bio paragraph via the Web Portal submission system by the deadline specified in the important dates section.

*The video presentation recording is required for presenters who cannot attend any of the Poster Sessions, and optional for those who can present synchronously (either in-person or virtually). The video should be about 5 minutes long. See the section titled “Recording your presentation” for further guidance – https://systemdynamics.org/conference/submission-system/. 

Full Paper

Suggested length 5-20 pages (single-spaced, using 12-pt Times font or some equivalent)

Full papers are more appropriate for work that is in progress and might be thought of as an intermediate progress report of the research. These papers are expected to provide a deeper discussion about the current status of the study and the preliminary findings. Depending on the type of research, this may include a detailed discussion of the model structure and preliminary output, or the setup used in group model building sessions, etc., for example. Full papers do not need to be completed research but need to have a substantial amount of progress completed in order to have a robust discussion section.

Full papers must contain the following sections.

• Introductions
• Background 
• Methods
• Discussion/Analysis
• Results

Full papers will be considered for plenaries or posters.

Extended Abstract

Suggested length 2 pages (single-spaced, using 12-pt Times font or some equivalent). Minimum 2 pages. Maximum 10 pages.

This alternative is especially useful for students in the early stages of research or in the proposal stage. The purpose of submissions in this format is to receive feedback on the conceptualization of the problem and proposed work, relevance, and contribution of SD, the feasibility of the scope of work, insight into the next steps, etc.

Extended Abstracts must contain

• Introduction/ Problem Statement
• Background
• Current Status 
• Next Steps

Extended Abstracts will be considered for posters.

Content and Sequence Suggestions for All Submissions

• Introduce the problem and describe its relevance
• Describe previous work done in the field (i.e., how this problem has been addressed before in other fields, or how the field of has viewed this problem in the past, etc.)
• Discuss how the problem is an appropriate problem to address using SD or why it is relevant to the field
• Present your research question(s) and aim(s)
• Describe the potential contribution of your work or proposed work (i.e., what contribution can SD make, how this work can improve how SD is practiced, etc.)
• Describe the work you plan to do and how you plan to do it(or have already been proceeding).

For those presenting work on which significant progress has been made, describe the work you have already done, and consider addressing some of the following questions:

• What are the dynamics of the problem you are trying to understand and/or address?
• What are the model boundaries?
• What initial structures do you have and why is that a useful way to conceptualize the problem?
• What is your dynamic hypothesis?
• What model insights are you aiming to generate from your work?
• What are some of the major feedback loops in your model(s)?
• What/who are your data sources?
• What variables are endogenous, exogenous, and not included in your model?
• What current behavior modes is your model producing?
• What policies are you testing?
• What steps are you taking to build confidence in your model?
• What insights did you gain about the problem in the modeling process?
• What conclusions can you draw from your work at this time?