ACR/Sheth Foundation
Doctoral Symposium
Thursday, September 24 | 8.30am – 4.50pm
Constitution CDE
Irene Scopelliti
Bayes Business School
Irene.Scopelliti@city.ac.uk
Peggy J. Liu
University of Pittsburgh School of Business
peggy.liu@pitt.edu
Regardless of their core interests and methodological orientation, doctoral students face challenges that include identifying a promising dissertation area, dealing with conflicting advice, publishing papers that are both rigorous and relevant, and navigating the job market. Attendees will leave the Symposium with an improved understanding of how to address the challenges they are currently facing, new tools to begin a successful career, and a support network of new friends and mentors.
Schedule
8:30 – 9:00 a.m. Coffee and Pastries
9:00 – 9:45 a.m.Opening Remarks and Peer-to-Peer Connection
A welcome to the day, followed by a guided opportunity for students to meet and connect with peers from other programs.
PART I: POSITIONING AND PUBLISHING YOUR RESEARCH IDEAS
9:45 – 10:45 a.m.Editor’s Roundtable: Everything You Wanted to Know About Publishing
Session Moderator: Anirban Mukhopadhyay
JACR: Andrew Gershoff (Editor-in-Chief)
JCP: Rajesh Bagchi (Editor-in-Chief)
JCR: Stephen Spiller (Co-Editor)
JMR: Simon Blanchard (Co-Editor)
JM: Stefano Puntoni (Associate Editor)
JPPM: Stacey Finkelstein (Editor-in-Chief)
A session moderated by Anirban Mukhopadhyay in which editors from some of the leading marketing and consumer research journals give doctoral students an insider’s perspective on what it takes to publish in their journals. Each editor will open with a brief pitch for their journal, such as what makes it distinctive and the kind of work it is looking to publish. The conversation will then open up to the questions doctoral students most want answered, via a moderated Q&A session.
10:45 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.Faculty Friendly Feedback Session
Small groups of doctoral students meet with experienced faculty coaches to workshop their own research ideas. The session is designed to be genuinely collaborative: students learn not just from their faculty coaches but from each other, exchanging perspectives and feedback across different programs, methods, and research areas. Students will come prepared with a one-page handout summarizing their research idea to share with the group.
12:15 – 1:15 p.m.Lunch with Faculty Mentors
PART II: NAVIGATING THE PHD JOURNEY
1:30 – 2:40 p.m.Track 1 – Finding Your Footing: Navigating Your Early PhD Years (Years 1–3)
Panelists: Katherine Du (Chair), Jonathan Berman, Yann Cornil, Michael (He) Jia, Kaitlin Woolley
A panel tailored to students in the early stages of their PhD, covering the questions and challenges that are most pressing in the first few years: how to generate and develop research ideas, how to build a productive relationship with your advisor, and how to start establishing yourself as a scholar.
1:30 – 2:40 p.m.Track 2 – Ready for Launch: Positioning Yourself for the Job Market and Beyond (Years 3 onward)
Panelists: Yu Ding (Chair), Alix Barasch, Brent McFerran, Nicole Mead, Francesca Valsesia
A panel for students approaching the job market and the final stretch of the dissertation, addressing what it takes to successfully transition from PhD student to faculty member: how to position your research agenda, navigate the job market, and hit the ground running as they leave the PhD program.
2:40 – 3:00 p.m. Coffee Break
3:00 – 4:10 p.m.Track 1 – Methods and Tools for Consumer Research You Should Know About
Panelists: Ada Aka (Chair), Simon Blanchard, Johannes Boegershausen, Romain Cadario, Nicholas Reinholtz, Stephanie Smith
A panel is which each speaker delivers a short pitch about a method, tool, or analytical approach they have developed or believe more consumer researchers should know about. The goal is to expand students’ methodological horizons and spark new ideas. Panelists will share resources (papers, guides, apps) so students can explore further.
3:00 – 4:15 p.m.Track 2 – How to Write an Impactful Paper
Panelists:Kelley Gullo Wight (Chair), Eileen Fischer, Cait Lamberton, Carey Morewedge, Cristel Russell
Strong research ideas deserve strong writing. This panel brings together scholars known for their ability to communicate research compellingly across methods and genres to share their advice with doctoral students.
CLOSING
4:20 – 4:50 p.m.Closing on a Fun Note: Lessons from the Journey
Faculty: Amit Bhattacharjee, Ximena Garcia-Rada, Christine Kim, Tami Kim, Demi Oba, Jennifer Savary, Geoff Tomaino, Stijn van Osselaer
A warm, inspiring, and at times humorous close to the day. A group of faculty reflect on the lessons they have learned through their own journeys and offer advice and thoughts to the students. The goal is to end a dense day on a lighter and inspiring note.
