Frequently Asked Questions


  • Where should I put author information?

PLEASE DO NOT INCLUDE ANY AUTHOR INFORMATION IN YOUR PDF FILE. You will be prompted for author information on the abstract submission form.

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  • Can I change the authorship (number or order of authors) after submitting my abstract?

Please check the confirmation email you receive after submission to confirm that the authorship of the abstract is correct. If you have made an error in the authorship, let the organizing committee know by email as soon as possible. Note that no changes in authorship will be possible after the review process is completed (including deleting an author or changing author order) except in extenuating circumstances.

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  • What information should I include in the abstract?

Please include the title at the top of the abstract and a word count at the bottom. Please do not include any author information in the abstract.

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  • What is the abstract length limit?

The main text of an abstract should be no longer than 500 words. Please note the word count for your abstract at the bottom of the abstract. One extra page for examples, tables, figures, and/or references is permitted.

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  • Are the title and references part of the word count?

No, references and the abstract title are not counted in the word count.

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  • How many abstracts can I submit?

Although each author may submit as many abstracts as desired, we will accept for presentation by each submitter a maximum of 1 first-authored paper/poster. There is no longer any restriction on the number of acceptances for other author statuses. After reviewer scores have been z-scored and weighted by reviewer confidence, if multiple abstracts from the same first author are above the threshold for acceptance, only the highest rated abstract will be accepted, and the other abstract(s) will be rejected.

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  • How will I know if you have received my abstract?

You will see a confirmation after you submit your abstract, and you will receive a confirmation email. This will serve as your official confirmation. Please contact us if you do not receive this email after your submission (it will be sent to the email address of the primary author).

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  • When is the deadline for submitting abstracts?

The deadline is 11:59 PM (Eastern Standard Time, EST) on June 1st. We are sorry that we are unable to consider late abstracts.

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  • When and how will I find out if my abstract has been accepted or not?

Notice of acceptance or rejection will be sent to the authors by e-mail no later than the end of July.

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  • Is it possible to request reviewer comments on my abstract?

There is no need to submit a special request. Comments from reviewers (if they were provided) are automatically included in the notification email that authors receive.

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  • What if I realize I’ve made a mistake?

You may revise your submission by logging back into the submission system up until the deadline. If you realize you have made an error in the web form or in your PDF file after the deadline, please contact us at langconf@bu.edu.

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  • How do I create a PDF file?

Free services/software for creating PDF documents are available from several sources (google ‘free online pdf maker’) including Adobe, which offers a free seven-day trial of Acrobat.

Macintosh only: PDFs can be made on the Mac OS X (and later) operating system by selecting “print” under the “file” menu of your word processing program (look for the “Save As PDF…” button in the print window).

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  • If my paper is accepted but the scheduled time is not convenient for me, can I request that the time be changed?

Because of the difficulty of changing the schedule once it is set, we are not able to honor any requests for a change in schedule. Presenters who must schedule their presentation on certain days for religious reasons should make that known at the time of abstract submission. There is a comment box on the submission form for such requests.

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