Looking to get involved with APPAM but don't know where to start? Serving as a volunteer for APPAM is a great way to grow professionally, build relationships with peers across the country and develop leadership skills. With so many high-quality proposals to review, committees to oversee, and expert content to deliver, we rely on help from our community to keep our conferences and content top-notch and running smoothly.
The opportunities below are split into two categories: Fall Conference and General Opportunities. Please note that these opportunities are ordered by the date the form closes as this page will be regularly updated. If you do NOT see a link, the form has not yet been opened. Reviewers will be chosen on a first come, first served basis and signing up for the below opportunities does not guarantee participation.
Please note that these forms are open year round. Be sure to check specific dates on the relevant volunteer form.
Thank you for your interest in volunteering and we hope to work with you soon!
Questions? Please email info@appam.org.
Fall Conference Volunteer Opportunities
Each year, APPAM receives over 2,000 proposals for the Fall Conference. We need volunteers to review each proposal in a timely manner and take into careful consideration the conference theme, policy area relevance, and more.
Chairs: Each policy area has one to three assigned chairs to lead the review team. These individuals are responsible for communicating deadlines, review structure, and making the final recommendations to the President-Elect. This role is more time consuming than the reviewer because you must take reviewer scores into consideration in order to rank their recommended sessions and posters, build panels from single papers, then fill session chairs and discussants for these new panels.
Reviewers: Reviewers will be assigned a set number of submissions to review and grade on a five criteria, in addition to providing comments that will help guide the policy area chairs in their final recommendations. The number of submissions depends on the size of the policy area and the number of reviewers for that year.
Time Commitment:
- Chairs: 10 hours in Spring & Summer 2025
- Reviewers: 2-5 hours in April - May 2025
Chairs are crucial to sessions. They monitor paper progress before the meetings and encourage timely distribution of session papers to all discussant(s). Discussants play a critical role in providing feedback and encouraging audience participation in the session. Volunteers are needed for these integral roles at our 2024 Fall Research Conference in National Harbor, Maryland.
Time Commitment:
- Chairs - 3 hours per session in November 2025
- Discussants - 5 hours per session in November 2025, dependent on how many papers and discussants are in your assigned session
APPAM Student Ambassadors are active student members that are highly knowledgeable about the association and willing to share their time at the Fall Research Conference. Student Ambassadors help make the event a positive and welcoming experience for attendees, especially first-time conference goers. This role includes serving as panel chairs, serving as ignite session hosts, assisting conference attendees, and serving and supporting the conference where needed.
Time Commitment: 4-5 hours throughout October and November, including at the Fall Research Conference.
Applications are open now through July 9, 2025!
At poster sessions, presenters will be asked to discuss their work and answer questions during each poster session. A first, second, and third pace winner will be selected from the presenters each day. Judges are needed onsite to review the appearance, content and in-person presentation of the poster sessions.
Time Commitment: 1-2 hours at the Fall Research Conference
General Volunteer Opportunities
Review applications for the 2024 student, young professional, and undergraduate cohorts. Volunteers would need to review CV's, letters of recommendation.
Reviews will take place in summer 2025. Stay tuned to meet the 2025 cohort!
Time Commitment: 4-6 hours per reviewer
The purpose of this award is to recognize emergent scholars in the field by presenting an award for the best PhD dissertation in public policy and management. Volunteers are needed to review nominations and choose the the 2023 award recipient.
Reviews will take place in summer 2025. Stay tuned to meet the 2025 cohort!
Time Commitment: 2-4 hours in late July to late August
The APPAM Mentor Matching Program began in 2016 by the APPAM Student Activities Committee as a means to better serve the APPAM student member population. What started out as an informal speed mentoring program has now grown to dozens of one-on-one mentor/mentee pairings between policy academics, researchers, and practitioners and student members. We encourage both students and professional members in the program to connect and expand their professional networks throughout the year and beyond.
Questions? Email info@appam.org.
Time Commitment: 5 hours throughout the year, with an in-person meeting in November 2025.
The Policy Council works on behalf of thousands of APPAM members to improve public policy and management by fostering excellence in research, analysis and education. Comprised of standing committees and representative members, The Policy Council is the association’s main governing body, or its Board of Directors. Candidates for participation must be accepted through a nomination and vetting process.
Time Commitment: 30 hours throughout the year, with quarterly meetings, two of which are in-person.
APPAM is looking for member-generated content! The webinars, hosted by APPAM, range from topical policy issues, career development, to ways to make the most out of your APPAM membership. Present a webinar or be featured on a podcast with experts to discuss your research or policy expertise.
Time Commitment: 1-2 hours
Questions?
Questions about volunteer opportunities should be directed to info@appam.org.