The Proposal Review FAQ
Who reviews session and workshop proposals?
All proposals are peer-reviewed. Proposals will be peer reviewed by a panel with a broad range of expertise chosen from the AMIA membership. The Conference Committee uses the ratings from the Peer Review Panel to schedule the conference.
What does Peer Review consider?
Peer reviewers comment on the overall quality of the proposal and considers these criteria questions:
- Is the topic timely? Does it reflect current discussions in the field?
- Is there new information being presented?
- Is there an effort to bring in new voices on the subject?
- How broad an audience does this topic speak to?
- Has the topic been discussed already or been repeated frequently?
- Is there a speaker outlined that is crucial to the success of the panel?
- If a single presenter, does the proposal outline a clear perspective?
- If a panel presentation, is a balanced point of view presented or are there other areas to be considered?
What happens after Peer Review?
After the reviewers have completed their reviews based on the criteria outlined above, the Conference Committee then begins their review.
Using the comments from peer review, the committee will also finalize any streams of programming that were proposed or that emerged during the proposal process. Then, relying on the comments from the peer reviews, the committee bases their final selections on the goal of creating balanced, broadly-based program that speaks to the wide range of attendees.
Are all sessions and workshops peer reviewed?
Not always. The board or steering group may schedule plenary sessions, speakers, or workshops that are not part of the proposal process. These may include speakers or sessions that speak to a broad issue not addressed in the proposals received, or may be part of a collaborative project or grant that AMIA is involved in.
How are sessions scheduled?
This is one of the biggest challenges the Committee faces every year.
The Committee makes every effort to schedule sessions so that they don’t overlap for similar audiences. That said, sometimes the scheduling needs of the chairs and speakers mean moving sessions around to fit and overlaps happen. If you have specific scheduling needs, please include them in the description of your session. This includes other potential sessions you know about that you do not want to overlap with yours.
Can I be part of the Peer Review panel?
Yes. Each year the Committee puts out a call to AMIA members for participation in Peer Review. The appeal is sent via email to all AMIA members shortly before the proposal deadline. You may also contact program@amiaconference.com.
Each panel member is asked to review a minimum of 15 proposals, providing comments on each (an estimated 3-4 hour time commitment). There is a standard review template for responses, but the most critical part of each review is the comments that panelists provide.
See a copy of the Guidelines provided to Peer Reviewers here.