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An annual meeting working group consists of a small group of meeting attendees who are interested in a common topic and who agree to attend panels and plenaries aligned with the topic and to convene during the meeting for discussion. The idea is to simulate a working group conference experience amidst APSA panels.

APSA provides meeting space, maintains a roster of participants, and provides participants with a letter of participation to certify the substantive professional development experience of the annual meeting working group. 

Organized sections, APSA committees, related groups, and others may sponsor working groups. Sponsors frame the topic, provide a volunteer coordinator/leader, promote the group, and develop any necessary background material. 

Concept
The working group is a seminar integrated with the annual meeting that draws on the meeting presentations for content, focusing on a single topic or theme. A volunteer coordinator, who is expected to facilitate discussion but not lecture on it, leads the group. Participants meet at the outset of the annual meeting and collectively develop a list of panels related to their topic that they will attend, convene during the meeting to discuss the panels and their own work and meet at the end of the meeting for a wrap-up session.

Audience and Benefits
Working groups will appeal to political scientists who want to:

• explore a specific topic at the annual meeting because they are engaged in a particular study, want to explore a new specialty, or are about to teach on a new topic;
• meet or develop a network of colleagues in more depth than conventional annual meeting interactions allow; and
• undertake a sustained and defined annual meeting professional development experience, which may qualify for travel support from their home institution even though the working group is not a conventional paper-giving exercise.

Additional Information
Working groups should encourage panel and plenary attendance without conflicting with other aspects of the meeting. They cannot compete for panel allocations or room space with the panels and plenaries. Covered topics should incorporate meeting themes. 

Click here to find out how to organize a working group for the 2012 Annual Meeting