2026 SPES + Q&P Student Paper Competition
The Sections on Physical and Engineering Sciences (SPES) and Quality and Productivity (Q&P) of the American Statistical Association (ASA) are pleased to co-sponsor a student paper competition for research on the development and application of statistical techniques in the physical and engineering sciences and quality and productivity. This paper competition is for completed research. A manuscript suitable for journal submission is required to enter the competition. Published papers are eligible if (1) the paper had not previously won an ASA-funded student paper competition, and (2) the paper was accepted on or after 2024. Winners of the competition will receive partial support to attend the 2026 Joint Statistical Meetings (JSM) in Boston, Massachusetts.
The ASA sets the deadlines and general principles for the student paper competitions, which are available at the following link: Student Paper Competitions.
Specific details for the SPES+Q&P Student Paper Competition for the 2026 JSM are provided below.
Eligibility:
To be eligible for this award, the candidate must have been a full-time student (undergraduate, master's, or Ph.D.) on or after September 1, 2025. The candidate must be first author on the paper, and the advisor (or other co-author) must write a letter stating that the candidate had primary responsibility for the research and write-up. The candidate must be a member of SPES or Q&P. Students who have previously received travel support from SPES or Q&P are not eligible to participate.
Application deadline: November 15, 2025
The formal application consists of sending an e-mail to Qiong Zhang (qiongz@clemson.edu) with the subject line "SPES+Q&P 2026 Student Paper Competition" and the following attachments (in PDF format):
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The curriculum vita of the applicant.
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A letter from the advisor (or other co-author) verifying the student status of the candidate and briefly describing the candidate's role in the research and writing of the paper.
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A blinded version of the paper in PDF without any author names and affiliations in the text or on the title page. Submissions in formats other than pdf will not be accepted. Self-identifying citations and references in the article text should either be avoided or left blank.
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An unblinded version of the paper with all authors’ information in PDF.
Selection of winners:
The submitted papers will be reviewed by a committee determined by the officers of the SPES and Q&P. Criteria for selection of the finalists will include but are not limited to: novelty in theory/methods/applications, significance and potential impact of the research, and clarity of writing and presentation. The decisions of the committee are final.
Applicants will be notified by January 15, 2026. The winners of the SPES + Q&P Student Paper Competition must submit the abstracts for their papers and register for the 2026 JSM by February 1, 2026 through the official JSM abstract submission system. To receive the award, winners must register for the conference and present a talk under the auspices of the SPES and Q&P on the topic of their winning paper. Those who are not selected as winners are encouraged to submit a contributed abstract to the 2026 JSM.
Prizes:
SPES and Q&P anticipate awarding the winners with a travel award. All winners will be presented with a certificate at the SPES and Q&P Joint Mixer at the 2026 JSM. Please note that the financial award will likely not cover all of a winner's travel, so the winners will need to supplement the SPES and Q&P award with other funds.