Collect session proposals (call for papers)
Instead of collecting proposals by email, give people one link where they submit their session idea, CV and headshot. You review everything on OpenCEU, accept or decline with one click, and turn accepted proposals into agenda sessions.
Open the call for papers
On your conference page, find the Call for papers card on the right and click Set up call for papers. Under Settings:
- Turn on Accept proposals.
- Write a short description of what you’re looking for (plain text, up to 2,000 characters).
- Optionally set a deadline. It uses your conference’s time zone; if you leave the time blank, the call closes at 11:59 PM that day. It closes on its own at the deadline.
Click Save settings, then Copy the public link and share it wherever you like. You can open a call before your conference is published.
Require a speaker contract (optional)
Under Speaker contract, upload a PDF (up to 10 MB). Everyone who submits from then on must open it and tick “I have read and agree to the speaker contract” before they can submit.
- Need to change it? Upload a new file. It becomes the next version and is required from then on. Earlier versions are kept, and each proposal shows which version that person agreed to.
- Remove requirement stops asking new submitters to agree. Agreements already made are kept.
- Require this version switches back to an earlier version.
What submitters see
Your conference page shows a Submit a proposal button while the call is open. Submitters sign in (or create a free OpenCEU account), then fill in a title, abstract, learning objectives (one per line, up to 10), a speaker bio, credentials, an optional headshot, a required CV (PDF or Word), up to four co-presenters, and an optional note to you. Each person can submit up to 5 proposals per conference.
They get an automatic email receipt. They can edit a proposal until you start reviewing it, and withdraw it until you make a decision.
Review proposals
The Submissionslist shows each proposal’s name, email, title, date and status. Use the status buttons above the list to filter. Click a name to open the proposal: you’ll see every field, the headshot, and download links for the CV and headshot. Add Private notes for your team; submitters never see them.
Click Mark under review when you start looking at a proposal. That also stops the submitter from editing it.
Accept or decline
Click Accept… or Decline…. A box opens with a short note you can edit. When you confirm, the submitter is emailed your note right away. Replies come to your email. Emails are only ever sent when you click.
Changed your mind? Click Reopen to move the proposal back to Under review, then decide again.
Add an accepted proposal to your agenda
On an accepted proposal, click Add to agenda. The conference page opens with the Add a session form already filled in: title, abstract, learning objectives, and the speaker (with credentials and bio) plus any co-presenters. Set the date, start time, duration and CEUs, check the details, and click Add session. Their headshot is copied onto the session, and the proposal shows On agenda.
Things to know
- All files are private. Download links are created when someone clicks and expire within minutes.
- A file has to really be the type its name says. For example, a web page renamed to end in .pdf is rejected.
- Public speaker bios are limited to 1,000 characters, so a longer proposal bio is shortened on the agenda.
- Archiving the conference closes its call for papers.
- Receipt and decision emails go out even if the person unsubscribed from marketing emails, because they are about something they asked for.
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