[D] Attending EMNLP 2022 in person?

Submitted by DeepThoughtsBubble t3_xydgc0 in MachineLearning

I'm an undergrad at a US university, and recently my paper (1st author) got accepted to EMNLP 2022 Main conference. Since the reviewer score was high (unanimous strong accept), I'm also expecting a high chance of Oral presentation.

However, the conference is being held in Abu Dhabi, and I would have to pay for everything except the flight. I also have to sacrifice my finals to some degree, as the conference ends 2 days before the final. I haven't decided yet whether to go to grad school as I'm more focused on founding a company utilizing LLMs. But everything aside, I'd love to present my paper in person to meet researchers and learn about current trends. Do you expect many researchers will attend EMNLP 2022 in person, given that the conference is hybrid and being held in Abu Dhabi? And in general, would you recommend presenting my paper in person in EMNLP 2022?

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EDIT: This work was done when I was working as a researcher in a startup, so it does not have any affiliation with the university's lab or any faculty members. And since I left the startup, I can't get funded by them.

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pornthrowaway42069l t1_irgt36a wrote

On one hand a big presentation like this will be a wonder on the resume.

On the other hand, you will spend money and potentially do worse on a final.

IMO, if money is no concern, give the speech, I personally feel it would worth more than a course later in life. If money is tight, or you are not sure, then it's alright to stay home - you already have a flex on you (Highly rated paper), so it's not the end of the world if you won't do it.

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stochastimus t1_irhm0md wrote

Obviously a personal opinion -

1.) Go - you’ll regret not going later if you don’t. If possible, study on the plane, even fly in late and fly out early if necessary, but go.

2.) Make a goal of 20 new relevant connections, attend mixers and get contact info. Try to meet a new person maybe every 20 mins and make contact via SM or email or text with each that night.

3.) Sleep less and in uncomfortable places if necessary. I attended a neuroscience conference once by sleeping in a common area of the hotel for 3 hrs in the middle of the night, and glad I did. Also if you make a friend they might let you nap in their room during the day, I’ve done that before too, so can you.

4.) You’re young. You can do this. Have fun and good luck!

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DeepThoughtsBubble OP t1_irgw6w8 wrote

Thanks for your opinion - one question, though: how would presenting the paper in person/hybrid differ in terms of the resume? I suppose they are both same as long as the paper is accepted? Do people value having the experience of actually presenting in front of a crowd?

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fmai t1_irhyhmn wrote

It doubt it makes a difference to anyone reviewing your CV. What matters is that you have a publication at a top venue.

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pornthrowaway42069l t1_irh69qh wrote

It's a difference "Presented Paper X at Y event" vs "Published highly reviewed paper"

It a) Gives you network opportunities b) Shows you take your stuff seriously c) Shows that you have oral skills, which means you can like use words in a not totally idiotic manner to convey your thoughts, which is always a plus in a technical field.

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fmai t1_irhy6dc wrote

  1. Presentation type is usually not based on reviewer score, but rather the type of paper you're presenting.

  2. 99% of your resume boost through this achievement comes from the fact that you have a first author publication at EMNLP. When you apply to jobs in the future, nobody will care if you actually presented in person or online. It only matters for the connections you make at the conference itself - which are way more important at later stages of your career, not so much as an undergrad.

  3. For things like applications to PhD programs your GPA still matters. Take that into consideration if you think your exam performance might suffer as a result of attending EMNLP in person.

  4. The in-person EMNLP will certainly be large, but I also suspect a sizable online crowd as well, because Abu Dhabi is far from Europe, China, and NA, and has received a lot of criticism for being an LGBTQ-unfriendly place. While it's easier offline, you certainly can make a lot of connections during online events as well. I especially found poster sessions in GatherTown to be fruitful. If you study the program carefully to attend virtual posters of researchers you want to meet, it's a viable way of networking.

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DeepThoughtsBubble OP t1_irjjxgr wrote

Yeah I think that's why the conference is consistently showing stats of Abu Dhabi being safer than previous venues in Seattle (NAACL 2022) and Dublin (ACL 2022). My first-author paper was also accepted in NAACL 2022, but I couldn't go in person then, so might as well try it out this time!

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dojoteef t1_irgxlt4 wrote

I presume you worked with a faculty member on this paper. If so, you should discuss these questions with them. Most will pay for your conference expenses (travel, accommodation, and daily expenses like food). Their grants usually include funding for conference expenses.

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DeepThoughtsBubble OP t1_irgya87 wrote

I should add this detail to the original post - this work was done when I was working as a researcher in a startup, so it doesn not have any affiliation with the university's lab or any faculty members. And since I left the startup, I can't get funded by them.

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abby621 t1_iri2tm9 wrote

Check if your university has any small funding mechanisms for things like this. (Research active faculty adjacent to the space might be aware of internal small grant programs)

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BwwwS t1_isnf7vk wrote

Maybe you could contact the instructor and TA regarding the issue of the finals, I guess they will support you somehow.

I'm in a worse situation. I wish to attend but I'll endure a long quarantine upon returning from abroad, which will make my finals a complete mess without any possibility of making it up.

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