New submission deadline: Friday, 28 March 2025
The 2025 British Association for Chinese Studies’ annual conference will be held at the University of Leicester (UK) on 3-5 September 2025. The conference committee is now welcoming proposals from a broad range of disciplines (such as history, language, film and media, arts, politics, and economy) as long as the topics are related to the field of Chinese Studies either in their historical or contemporary contexts. . The committee also welcome proposals that address issues related to Chinese domestic and diasporic/migrant communities and cultural exchange.
This year’s conference is accepting proposals from both individual papers and pre-constituted panels.
To submit an individual paper:
The individual proposal shall include the following information, all in a same document.
* A title
* 5-6 key words
* An abstract (maximum 300 words) for a 20-minute presentation.
* Speaker’s short biography (maximum 150 words), including affiliation.
* Speaker’s email address.
To submit a pre-constituted panel:
The panel proposal shall include the following documents.
* A panel title and format. We encourage submission that embraces a range of scholarship. In addition to the conventional presentations of research papers, the panel may adopt a different format, such as roundtable discussions, pedagogic forums, curated Q&A, open-floor dialogues, or working-in-progress workshops. Panel organisers please state clearly which formats the panels adopt.
* 5-6 key words
* A panel statement (maximum 300 words).
* If it is a conventional panel of research papers, please also include all individual abstracts (maximum 300 words each).
* All speakers or participants’ short biographies (maximum 150 words each), including their affiliation and email address.
The official language of the conference is English. Due to budget constraint, we are unable to provide an interpreting service. Therefore, all presenters are expected to deliver their papers in English.
Please email your proposal as an attachment (Word file preferred) to bacs2025@leicester.ac.uk by 28 March 2025. Please clearly state in the email subject either “bacs2025 individual proposal” or “bacs2025 panel proposal”. If you have any queries regarding the conference, please send them to the same email address.
Responses to FAQ
The conference team has put together responses to FAQs:
1. The panel may take a different format. It is not essential to have a chair and/or discussant. The panel organiser can decide whether it is in the panel’s best interest to have one. Having a chair and/or a discussant or not does not affect the review outcome. All attendees will need to pay their registration fee, and so will the panel chair and discussant?
The panel may take a different format. It is not essential to have a chair and/or discussant. The panel organiser can decide whether it is in the panel’s best interest to have one. Having a chair and/or a discussant or not does not affect the review outcome. All attendees will need to pay their registration fee, and so will the panel chair and discussant.
If the panel wish to have a chair and/or discussant, we expect the panel organiser to make the arrangements. In many cases, the panel organiser or one of the panel members may act as the chair. If the panel wishes to have an independent chair but cannot secure one, the conference team is happy to work with the organiser to arrange one on an ad hoc basis. However, in this scenario, we cannot guarantee that the chair will be specialised in the field. If the panel has this kind of requirement, may the panel organiser state the need clearly in the proposal? This will not disadvantage the application.
2. I am interested in the conference but cannot travel. Will the conference offer remote access to presentations or hybrid attendance?
Due to the restriction of IT facilities and tight schedule, we strongly encourage in-person attendance. There might be limited places for remote presentations via Teams, but we cannot provide hybrid attendance for non-presenters.
The remote presenters will also be expected to pay for the same amount of conference registration fee. However, they will not have access to the full programme. Neither can they pick and choose the panels that they wish to listen to. If this is the only option you will take, please state it clearly in your proposal.
The proposal will go through the same reviewing process. Please be aware that the conference team will also consider the facility’s capacity when making the acceptance decision.
3. Does the conference offer any ECR/PGR bursary?
The conference registration fee will be mainly used to cover catering costs and support services. Due to limited funding, we are unable to provide any bursary.
4. I am considering organising a panel with a film screening, will it be acceptable?
The screening is usually longer than the standard panel. This will need a special arrangement. There is one film theatre on the main campus, which is about 5-10 minute walk from the conference venue. If this is the format you are proposing, the conference team can work with you on the arrangement, subject to the acceptance of the proposal.
If you are proposing a screening, please make sure you have cleared all the screening rights. In your proposal, please stated clearly the full length of the session, screening rights status, and auxiliary activities (e.g. pre-screen introduction, post-screen discussion).
5. When can I expect to hear the result?
We aim to inform you as soon as the review decision is reached. For those who submitted within the original deadline of 28 February, we aim to inform you of the outcome by early April. For those who submit during the extended period, we aim to inform you of the outcome by mid-May. Please be aware this is an indicative timeframe. The actual time will depend on the reviewing process.
If you and your panel members are based abroad and need a visa to visit the UK, we suggest you submit your proposal as early as possible so you will have enough time to sort out your travel document.