By Jessica Hilt, Campus LISA and UCCSC Chair, UC San Diego.
The University of California Computing Services Conference (UCCSC) will be in beautiful San Diego this year, beginning with a reception at the Scripps Birch Aquarium on August 7, and ending after dinner on August 9, 2017.
The call for proposal submissions is now open! The deadline is April 30.
Don’t panic! We’re going to help you write a fantastic proposal. On April 4, UCCSC ambassadors from the campuses will host an “Ask Me Anything” session via Slack from 10:00 a.m. to noon.
What is an AMA?
Made popular by Reddit, an AMA is when celebrities, politicians, or people with weird jobs host a session where the audience can ask questions and are answered in real time by the presenter. Barack Obama did a very popular one but my favorite is Patrick Stewart’s:
(https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/3hq15d/i_am_actor_patrick_stewart_of_yorkshire_xmen_star/_).
Why are we doing an AMA?
Submitting a proposal is a daunting process! Maybe you’ve never sent a proposal into a conference! Maybe you have an idea but you’re not sure where to go with it! An AMA allows you to speak directly to the people making the decisions on proposals but also to seek advice from the community at large. It’s your chance to ask any burning questions you might have.
What are the details?
You can join the conversation on Slack: https://uctech.slack.com/
Channel: #ama_uccsc
Tuesday, April 4, 2017, from 10:00 a.m. to noon.
What sort of questions can we ask?
Anything! About submitting a UCCSC proposal that is… Maybe ask what makes a compelling proposal, who reviews them… Remember, speakers whose proposals are accepted will get free registration to the conference.
What’s the conference theme?
Our theme is Working for the Greater Good. At UC, we don’t just do IT, we do IT with a purpose of improving the world at large. If your proposal highlights how your particular IT benefited the mission of the UC system by supporting students, faculty, or research, it will take priority over other proposals.
See you at the AMA!