Call for Doctoral Consortium Papers

The JCDL 2026 Doctoral Consortium (DC) offers a unique opportunity for doctoral students to present their research, receive personalized feedback from senior scholars, and connect with peers in the digital libraries community and related fields. Held in conjunction with JCDL 2026, the leading international conference in digital libraries, the DC is designed to support PhD students at pivotal moments in their research journey.

This event will feature student presentations, mentoring sessions, panel discussions, and networking opportunities aimed at fostering research development and career growth. Accepted papers will be included in the official proceedings. Authors are required to present their work.

Important Dates

All deadlines are Anywhere on Earth (AoE) time.

Eligibility and Target Participants

We invite submissions from doctoral students who are at or beyond the PhD thesis/dissertation proposal stage. You are encouraged to apply if you are:

• A currently enrolled PhD student in digital libraries or a related field
• At or beyond the dissertation proposal stage, but not within 12 months of graduation
• Have defined your research problem, reviewed the relevant literature, and identified your methodology
• Seeking structured feedback and mentoring from the community

Benefits of Attending the DC

• Present your work and receive feedback from expert researchers in the field
• Community-building activities to foster interdisciplinary connections and support
• The DC paper will be published in the official JCDL 2026 proceedings

Awards

Outstanding contributions will be considered for the Best DC Paper Award, announced during the closing session of the conference.

Submission Guidelines

We welcome submissions from students in all areas of digital libraries and related fields. Submissions should include the following:

1. Doctoral Consortium Paper (2–4 pages, excluding references)

• Title, author name, affiliation, abstract (max 200 words)
• Research motivation and questions
• Background and related work
• Research approach and methodology
• Preliminary results (if available)
• Challenges or feedback areas for discussion

This track uses a single-blind review process. Author names and affiliations should be included. The DC paper should be single-authored. If you require a different authorship structure due to institutional requirements, please contact the DC chairs.

All submissions must be written in English, submitted in PDF format, and prepared in the current ACM two-column conference format. Suitable LaTeX, Word, and Overleaf templates are available from the ACM Website: ACM Proceedings Template. Authors using LaTeX should use the sigconf proceedings template, while Word authors should use the Interim Template.

2. Personal Statement (max. 500 words)

Your PhD stage, research goals, and what you hope to gain from the DC.

3. Advisor Letter (max. 1 page)

• Confirmation of your PhD status and expected timeline to graduation
• Statement of how you would benefit from and contribute to the DC

4. Optional CV (1 page)

For mentorship matching purposes (research interests, experience, publications).

Review & Selection Criteria

• Clarity and potential of research contribution
• Alignment with the digital libraries community
• Stage of doctoral work (ideal: mid-stage with some work completed, and some still adaptable)
• Value of participation for the student’s development
• Diversity in topics, institutions, backgrounds, and geographic representation

Proceedings and Presentation

Accepted papers will be included in the official conference proceedings.

• Each accepted paper must be covered by a distinct conference registration by the deadline.
• Authors are required to present their work during their scheduled session.

Policies

ACM Publications Policy

By submitting an article to an ACM publication, authors acknowledge that they and their co-authors are subject to applicable ACM Publications Policies, including ACM’s Publications Policy on Research Involving Human Participants and Subjects.

Generative AI Policy

All submissions must comply with applicable ACM and conference policies regarding the use of generative AI tools. Any AI-assisted writing or AI-generated content should be disclosed in accordance with the final publication requirements of the venue.

Authorship Policy

JCDL 2026 follows the ACM Authorship Policy. Every listed author must have made a substantial contribution. The complete author list must be finalized by the submission deadline — no additions, removals, or reordering will be allowed after submission.

Desk Rejection Policy

Submissions failing to adhere to length or formatting requirements, or violating academic integrity standards, may be desk-rejected. See the ACM Policy on Plagiarism, Misrepresentation, and Falsification.

ORCID Requirement

Please ensure that all authors obtain an ORCID ID so the publishing process can be completed for accepted submissions. For background, see ACM’s ORCID FAQs.

Ethics and Conduct

Research Ethics

Authors must comply with the ACM Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct. Submissions involving human participants must include a statement on ethics approval (e.g., IRB), informed consent, and relevant safeguards.

Conflict of Interest

All authors, reviewers, and committee members must adhere to the ACM Conflict of Interest Policy. Conflicts must be declared during submission and review.

Harassment Policy

All participants must adhere to the ACM Policy Against Harassment.

Doctoral Consortium Chairs