05/05/2026

2026 USAEE Young Professional Best Paper Competition Now Open

Entries Accepted through June 26

2026 USAEE Young Professional Best Paper Competition:
Submissions Now Open!

USAEE is excited to announce the opening of the 2026 USAEE Young Professional Best Paper Award Competition. Young professionals (35 years old or younger at the time of submission or within five years of completing their last degree) are invited to submit abstracts for the 2026 Best Paper Award Competition. Not only do the winners receive recognition for their exceptional work, they also receive a cash award. Details of the cash award will be announced soon.

We invite young professionals working in academia, industry, government, and other organizations to participate in this competition. Four finalists will be selected to submit their full papers and present their research live at the 43rd USAEE North American Conference November 15-18 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Please note the following instructions and deadlines:

ENTER

• The deadline for abstract submissions for the 2026 USAEE Young Professional Best Paper Award Competition is Friday, June 26.

• Entries may be submitted via the Young Professional Best Paper Award Competition form. The form includes four abstract sections (max. 250 words per section):
  1. Overview, summary, problem/issue statement, or research question
  2. Context, previous research, data, research approach, or examples of issue or problem
  3. Research results, insights, or outstanding questions
  4. Conclusions, business or market implications, or recommendations for further research

SUBMIT

FINALISTS

• Invitations to the four finalists for the Best Paper Competition will be sent on or about July 13.

• Finalists will be required to submit a full paper for the 2026 USAEE North American Conference by September 30 via the submission form.

• The paper should adhere to the following format:
  • 8.5 x 11-inch page setup
  • 12-point font size
  • 15 pages maximum (papers exceeding this limit will be disqualified)
  • The 15-page limit does not include references or appendices

• The four finalists will present their research at a concurrent session at the 2026 USAEE North American Conference. To receive the award, finalists must present their work at the conference.

• Conference registration is required at the time of full paper submission.

ELIGIBILITY

To be eligible for consideration, the entrant must:

• Be a young professional (35 years old or younger at the time of abstract submission or within five years of completing their last degree).
• Not be a current student. Students should submit their papers to USAEE student events, such as the Student Paper Competition and USAEE Annual Conference, rather than the Young Professional competition.
• Be a current member of USAEE or IAEE in good standing. Membership information is available at usaee.org or iaee.org.
• The concept development, research, and writing of the paper must be primarily the work of the young professional or represent an equal contribution among all authors.
• The paper must not have previously won a prize at an IAEE-affiliated conference.

Questions related to the Young Professional Best Paper Award Competition should be addressed to Xiaochen Sun, Ph.D. (xsun@nmsu.edu).