Call for Member-Initiated Symposia

Submission Deadline:

In order to provide more opportunity for the ISMRM membership to help shape the Annual Meeting, the Annual Meeting Program Committee (AMPC) invites proposals for 2-hour Member-Initiated Symposia (MIS) for presentation at the ISMRM & ISMRT Annual Meeting & Exhibition in Toronto, Ontario, Canada on 03 – 08 June 2023.  MIS’s should focus on new and previously unpublished material. However, our primary aim is to better serve the membership. Provided your session contributes content that will be useful and novel to ISMRM members, we would be delighted to consider it. Didactic or review talks can help to set the stage for subsequent presentations, Note that MIS’s will not provide CME credit. You could prepare a session that has a tutorial format whereby you offer hands-on educational activity to the registrants. Such proposals should be submitted as a Member Initiated Tutorial.

All proposals must be submitted electronically via the form at the end of this page and will be thoroughly reviewed by the AMPC. Selection will be competitive based on the criteria listed below. ISMRM Study Groups are strongly encouraged to submit a symposium proposal, which are the primary mechanism by which Study Groups can contribute scientific content at the Annual Meeting.

All MIS’s and MIT’s are planned for on-site delivery in Toronto. In addition, this year, we will set up a special room for MITs where a fixed number of participants can register at no cost. A first come first serve principle will be applied.

Please note in communications with potential speakers that registration will be required for all speakers in the symposium and ISMRM will not be able to offer accommodation or travel expenses. We strongly suggest using the text in this template letter to make clear to speakers what is expected.

Selection Criteria

The AMPC will score and rank submitted proposals based on the following criteria:

  • Scientific quality, timeliness, and level of interest from the ISMRM membership.
  • “Goodness of fit” within the overall annual meeting program. The most competitive proposals will complement the plenary, scientific, and educational content, as well as the final portfolio of symposia. You can view the 2023 plenaries, named lectures, and educational sessions as they become available in the preliminary Program-at-a-Glance here.
  • Diversity, including engagement of under-represented groups. This criterion is defined broadly: gender, ethnicity, and region, as well as other dimensions (career stage, M.D. vs Ph.D., alternate career pathways, etc.). Diversity encompasses both speakers and target audience and is considered from the perspective of the broader Annual Meeting program.
  • We are promoting educational content that appeals to clinicians in addition to scientists at large. Tutorials that promote clinical translation of basic science are encouraged

Continue to the Submission Form link following the FAQ section.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is there any reimbursement for speakers and organizers for programs?

Symposia program organizers, moderators, and speakers will not receive any reimbursement. When inviting speakers and moderators, organizers should clarify that they must pay for their own meeting registration, travel, and lodging.

What support can we expect from the ISMRM office in the organization of the Symposia?

This is a member-initiated session. As such, members are responsible for inviting speakers and corresponding to their needs. The Central Office will update the program if changes are absolutely necessary, but they have no other expected communication with presenters of the session.

Is there a particular format for Member-Initiated Symposia?

All symposia will be on site in Toronto. They will be held in standard lecture halls and should have a total duration of 2 hours. Typically, these have 3-5 talks alternated with discussion, but the format is fully up to the organizers. Organizers are fully responsible for delivering the session and there will be no funding or support for additional requests (i.e. special AV setups, computing equipment, hardware, etc.). It is strongly encouraged to leave sufficient time for discussion.

Can I speak in a session that I organize?

Organizers/moderators MAY NOT present in a symposium that they organize/moderate, although other individuals from an organizer/moderator’s institution may present. In general, there should not be multiple speakers from the same institution. Typically, organizers will moderate their own sessions.

Should I ask speakers if they are willing to participate before my symposium is submitted?

Yes, all speakers and moderators are required to confirm participation before submission of the proposed symposium. Note that this year, it is imperative that the speakers also explicitly agree to participate in the format (on-site) selected by the organizers. Again, invitations to the speakers and/or moderators are the sole responsibility of the organizers, not the Central Office. The Central Office will have no other expected communication with presenters of the session.

Are speakers required to submit a syllabus or disclosure?

A syllabus and disclosure are not required for these sessions. We do ask that the presenters include a disclosure slide at the beginning of their presentation only to inform the attendees of any potential conflicts

When during the meeting will the symposia occur?

On-site symposia will occur during weekday parallel sessions at the Annual Meeting. Specific session dates/times cannot be guaranteed, meaning that organizers/moderators and presenters must commit to availability for Monday through Thursday of the Annual Meeting.

Can I submit or participate in more than one proposal for a symposium?

Any individual may only be involved in organizing one symposium. If speakers are giving other invited presentations (named lectures, plenary talks, educational courses), they should be presenting on unique topics for their symposium presentation and should not overlap with their other content. In general, including the same speaker on multiple proposals will reduce the likelihood of both being selected.

Can a Study Group submit more than one symposium proposal?

A Study Group can only submit one proposal. If members of a Study Group are interested in submitting a symposium proposal on a different topic from that chosen by the Study Group leadership, they are encouraged to submit their proposals as separate symposia (which will not be associated with their Study Group).

When will we know if the symposium is selected?

Final selection of symposia will be made when the AMPC convenes in January. Decisions on acceptance will be sent at approximately the same time as acceptances for proffered abstracts at the Annual Meeting.

Can student members be involved in Symposia?

We strongly encourage students and early-career researchers to participate as organizers or speakers. In the interest of helping junior members to submit competitive proposals, we recommend that less experienced organizers either include a more experienced co-organizer, or seek mentorship (for example, from members of the AMPC).

Can AMPC members participate?

The goal of Member-Initiated Symposia is to provide a mechanism for the broader membership to contribute content at the annual meeting. We do encourage organizers to consult informally with AMPC members for feedback on their proposals because of the AMPC's experience, but submissions should not come from AMPC members due to conflict of interest.

Further questions?

Please contact the central office at info@ismrm.org if you have further questions.

To continue to the submission form, log in to the Member Announcements page and click the Call for Member-Initiated Symposia Submission Form link in the “All Members” box.