Student Journal Symposium for Literary and Research Publications 2027

The Student Journal Symposium for Literary and Research Publications seeks to foster dialogue and collaboration among undergraduate and graduate student-led journals, including students, faculty, librarians, administrators, and others involved in student research, literary, and specialized publications and presses.

We hope you join us at the 4th Annual Student Journal Symposium, to be held as a hybrid event on April 16, 2027, at the George Washington University's Arlington Education Center, and virtually.

Call for Proposals: Presentations and Panelists

Deadline for submissions: December 15, 2026.

Please use the submission form to indicate your interest in giving a presentation, or participating on a panel. We welcome your participation and will seek to accommodate as many panelists and presenters as possible.

Attendance to the symposium is free-of-charge.

The Student Journal Symposium invites students, faculty, librarians, administrators, and others involved in student-led journals to discuss issues affecting undergraduate and graduate student-led journals. We are intentional about including literary/arts journals, scholarly/research journals, and specialized journals. Topics include sustainable leadership, workflows, ethics, diversity, navigating AI in submissions, impact of student journals, and more.

At the 3rd Student Journal Symposium, in April 2026, we heard from 35 student-led journals and presses from 30 universities, including ~75 students, faculty, librarians, and others involved in literary, research, and specialized journals at the undergraduate and graduate level. The 2026 program also featured a panel on student-led presses that publish fiction and non-fiction books.

Student Journal Symposium 2027 co-organizers:

• Kathleen Lewis, GW MPS in Publishing, 2027
• Kylie Schneider, GW Columbian College of Arts & Sciences, Class of 2027
• John W. Warren, Director and Professor, GW Graduate Program in Publishing; GW University Press
• Symposium advisor; co-organizer 2023-26: Amelia Nason, GW CCAS Class of 2026;

Organized and hosted by the Graduate Program in Publishing, College of Professional Studies, George Washington University.

Conference Sponsors:

• Scholastica

• The Society for Scholarly Publishing (SSP)

SSP EPIC Awards:

We encourage you to submit your journal to the Society for Scholarly Publishing (SSP) EPIC Awards. EPIC Award nominations open Nov 2, 2026; there is no entry fee for student publications.
The Student Journal Symposium received a Silver Award, in the category of Publishing Education and Training Initiatives at the inaugural EPIC Awards, at the 2025 SSP Annual Meeting. The GW Journal of Ethics in Publishing (GWJEP) received a Gold Award, in the Student Journal category. In 2026, three student journals presenting at the Student Journal Symposium received EPIC Awards: The Challenger Research Journal University of California, San Diego (Student Journals, Research); the Long River Review, University of Connecticut (Student Journals, Literary); and the GW Journal of Ethics in Publishing, George Washington University (Student Journals, Marketing Campaign).