Student conference aides are an important part of the SIGCSE Symposium and have been for many years. Each aide works for 5 hours, helping with various conference management activities. You'll interact with the conference organizers and presenters and meet other students from all over the world. More information about the experience, the benefits, and how to register, are provided below.

What do I have to do to become a conference aide?

Each student conference aide is asked to register as an aide prior to the conference. (Instructions for registering as a student conference aide are given below.) Upon arrival at the conference site, you must check in at the Student Conference Aide Office to receive your registration packet and work schedule (with a list of times, locations, and duties). It is your obligation is to work the scheduled hours.

Who is eligible to be a student conference aide?

Any full time student may become a conference aide. Both undergraduate and graduate students are welcome. You specify your school affiliation when you register as an aide, and you should bring a copy of your current course schedule to the conference to verify your full time status. Students attending the conference for the Research Poster competition or the Doctoral Consortium are welcome to become conference aides.

Important information for students requiring a visa: For a student who needs to request a letter of support for a visa to enter the U.S., please obtain a letter of support from a faculty member and a photocopy of a student ID or a current transcript and fax these items to Tom Cortina at (412) 268-5573.

What do I get in return for being a student conference aide?

In exchange for 5 hours of conference service, you will receive:

• Refunded registration fee.
• A conference aide shirt, which you will wear while "on duty" at the conference and is yours to keep
• Entrance to the Student Conference Aide party.
• A chance to meet and work with students from other schools.
• The opportunity to contribute to an effort to improve Computer Science education .. and our sincere gratitude for your efforts.

Note that in addition to these benefits, since you are a registered student attendee, you have all the rights of the non-aide student attendees:

• Access to all sessions, including papers, panels, seminars, and birds-of-a-feather
• Access to all exhibits where book publishers and software vendors have displays and activities
• All conference "coffee" breaks (food and drink)
• The main conference reception on Thursday evening
• The conference luncheon on Saturday afternoon

What kinds of work will I do as a conference aide?

It varies. You might work at the registration booth to help organize the packets that we give out to attendees. You might be at the door of the exhibits to verify that the people entering have a conference badge. You might count the participants at various sessions. You might hang out at certain sessions to assist the speakers with handouts or equipment.

Do I have a say in what work I do as a conference aide?

Not much, but we'll do what we can. There are often fewer aides than we have jobs, so we have to prioritize.

When during the conference will I do my conference aide work?

This issue is driven by conference needs. Some time periods are busier than others. We'll take your preferences into account whenever possible. When you register as a student conference aide, you'll specify when you plan to arrive and leave the conference. Within those constraints, we'll make some initial plans. We realize that things may come up and will try to make dynamic changes as needed. In turn we ask that you be as flexible as possible. Your duties may be broken into separate time periods and even across separate days, but we'll try not to make it too wide spread.

Do I have to be there for the whole conference to be an aide?

No. We realize that travel plans and other commitments exist. We hope that students local to the Cincinnati area will be flexible. In particular, there is always a need for volunteers on Wednesday, which is before most of the conference activities begin and before many of the traveling student aides have arrived. We encourage local student aides to be available on Wednesday.

Can I get funding for travel or hotel expenses?

The conference itself does not provide funding for student conference aides, but you may be able to get some support through your department or through another source at your university. You should print your registration acknowledgement to show to potential funding sources.

How do I become a student conference aide?

NOTE: If conference registration is not yet open, you can still register your intention to be a conference aide. We will send you a reminder when conference registration opens so you can complete the registration process.

Questions? Please contact: