Graduate submissions must be based on a project, such as a thesis or dissertation, and must have been the primary responsibility of the student. The abstract must be submitted from students who are currently enrolled in a graduate program or will graduate in 2026. The submission form will require the name of the faculty advisor. Graduate research must be completed by the time of presentation.

Selection Criteria for Abstracts: Abstracts will be judged in accordance with the following criteria:

1. Significance and originality of the research;
2. purpose and rationale clearly stated;
3. soundness of the research design/methodology;
4. findings/results clearly stated;
5. relevance of the implications and conclusions; and
6. clarity and organization of written abstract, including meeting all requirements listed below.

Submissions that do not adhere to the submission requirements will not be reviewed. Acceptance for poster and/or oral presentation obligates the graduate student to register for and attend the 2026 AAFCS Annual Conference. Abstracts from the conference will be published in the proceedings on the Family and Consumer Sciences Research Center website. 

Abstract Submission: Submissions are due by 11:59 PM EST on January 30, 2026. The abstract will undergo a double-blind peer review. Applicants will be notified by February 27, 2026. The submission requires the completion of the online Abstract Application and submission of the completed Abstract Template (Graduate Student). The abstracts should be submitted as Microsoft Word files (Times New Roman 12 point font size), use the official Abstract Template, and include no more than two pages. Submissions that do not adhere to the submission requirements will not be reviewed.

Abstract Guidelines: An abstract cannot exceed 1,000 words. Abstracts must be formatted using Times New Roman 12 point font size and submitted on the Abstract Submission Template (Graduate Student) which is organized according to the following sections (in order):

• Title of the research
• Name(s) of the author(s), and the name(s) of the institution(s) (following each name, in cases of multiple authors) - Indicate the corresponding author with an asterisk (*)
• Purpose
• Rationale
• Methodology (including research design, data collection, and analysis procedures)
• Findings
• Conclusions
• Implications for research and/or practice