Presenter Guidelines
Please read all information carefully before arriving at the meeting. These guidelines are intended for poster and session presenters and session moderators to ensure that your presentation goes smoothly.
You must register for ASHG 2026 as scientific attendees. Presenters are not eligible to register as one-day attendees, guests, or with an exhibitor staff registration.
Poster Presenter Guidelines | Speaker Guidelines | Moderator Guidelines
Poster Presenter Guidelines
Please read all information carefully before arriving at the meeting. These guidelines will help ensure that your presentation goes smoothly.
General Information
- Poster presenters display their research using text and visuals on assigned poster boards and engage with attendees interested in their work during their assigned time. The Exhibit & Poster Hall will contain thousands of posters organized by topic. Each poster will only be displayed for one day, with new posters featured daily in the Exhibit & Poster Hall.
Poster Size, Layout, and Design
- Each presenter will have their own poster board.
- On-site poster boards will be 4 feet (48”) tall by 8 feet (96”) wide, mounted on stands. This is a landscape/horizontal format. Poster materials may not exceed this size.
- The recommended poster size is 3 feet (36”) tall x 6 feet (72”) wide.
- See Poster Content and Design Tips and Tips for a Successful ASHG Poster Presentation
Poster Printing
- Authors should bring their posters with them to ASHG 2026 or use poster printing services, outlined below. There will be no remote presentations. Bring a copy of your poster on a USB drive in case it doesn’t arrive with your checked luggage.
- Prepare your poster on laminated poster paper, fabric, or cardboard, allowing for space to mount it on the poster board with push pins provided by ASHG.
- Staples (Bureau en Gros 22)
- Pickup Location: 770 Rue Notre-Dame Ouest, Montréal, QC H3C 1J2
- Contact: 514-875-0977
- MP Repro
- Pickup Location: 1080 Côte du Beaver Hall Bureau 010, Montréal, QC H2Z 1S8
- Contact: 514-861-9281
- Production JG
- Pickup Location: 432 Saint-Pierre Street, Montréal, QC H2Y 2M5
- Contact: 514-844-2897
- Disclaimer: ASHG is not responsible for printing services or fees. Please confirm pick-up of your poster directly.
- Staples (Bureau en Gros 22)
Mounting, Presentation, and Removal
- Presenters are assigned to a specific day to display and present their poster at ASHG 2026. Each poster will only be displayed for one day, and a new set of posters will be available each day the Exhibit & Poster Hall is open.
- Remote presentations will not be permitted as an alternative to in-person presentations; however, poster presenters are highly encouraged to upload an ePoster for attendees to view. Please refer to these upload instructions.
- Authors should place posters on the assigned poster board by 10:00 AM and must remove them when the hall closes (Wed/Fri: 4:30 PM; Thurs: 6:15 PM) on the day of their presentation. Display materials not removed will be discarded.
- Poster boards will be pre-numbered, and floor plans will be available onsite to help you find your poster board. The number sent via email in late September and added to the beginning of your abstract title indicates the board you are to use for displaying your poster. The letter at the end of the poster board number indicates which day you are assigned to present.
- Authors must be present at their boards for the duration of their scheduled presentation time (Wed/Fri: 2:30 PM — 4:30 PM; Thurs: 4:15 PM — 6:15 PM).
- Please find your scheduled poster time in your abstract programming email sent on July 21 or in the program planner.
Poster Schedule
Wednesday
9:30 AM — 10:00 AM: All Wednesday presenting authors place posters on the assigned poster board.
9:30 AM — 4:30 PM: Posters available for general viewing.
2:30 PM — 4:30 PM: Poster Session I (authors present at posters)*
4:30 PM: Exhibit & Poster Hall closed. All authors remove posters from boards. Posters not removed will be discarded.
Thursday
9:30 AM — 10:00 AM: All Thursday presenting authors place posters on the assigned poster board.
9:30 AM — 6:15 PM: Posters available for general viewing.
4:15 PM — 6:15 PM: Poster Session II (authors present at posters)*
6:15 PM: Exhibit & Poster Hall closed. All authors remove posters from boards. Posters not removed will be discarded.
Friday
9:30 AM — 10:00 AM: All Friday presenting authors place posters on the assigned poster board.
9:30 AM — 4:30 PM: Posters available for general viewing.
2:30 PM — 4:30 PM: Poster Session III (authors present at posters)*
4:30 PM: Exhibit & Poster Hall closed. All authors remove posters from boards. Posters not removed will be discarded.
Questions & Accessibility Requests
If you require any accessibility accommodations to present your work (such as needing a chair/stool), please submit your specific request via this form. Advance notice must be provided by September 22 to allow time to explore accommodations.
If you have questions about the program or accessibility services, please contact [email protected].
Speaker Guidelines
General Information
- Featured Plenary Abstract presentations are 18 minutes in length: 13-minute presentation, 5-minute questions and answers.
- Platform Abstract presentations are 15 minutes in length: 10-minute presentation, 5-minute questions and answers.
- Lightning Talk Abstract presentations are 3 minutes in length: 3-minute presentation.
- Featured Symposium presentations range in time. Please discuss your allotted time with the moderator(s) before preparing your presentation.
- Rehearse your presentation beforehand. Session moderators will hold you to your allotted time.
- Presenting authors must present the gene symbol and/or name the identified marker at the meeting if you are reporting the mapping, linkage, or association of a locus to a phenotype.
- Dress Code: Attire is business casual.
- Arrive 15 minutes before the start of the session (not the start of your talk). For plenary speakers, you will receive instructions with exactly when to arrive to your session room.
- If you are unable to present at your assigned date and time and need to send an alternate to present on your behalf, please submit a presentation change request form immediately. The replacement author is required to complete a financial disclosure form.
Slide Requirements
- A 16:9 widescreen format will be used for projection of slides. Please see these multimedia considerations for instructions on making your presentation compatible.
- The presentation format is optimized for PowerPoint, whether created on a PC or Mac. We recommend all PPT files be converted to the PPTX format.
- Keynote, PDF, and Prezi files are not supported.
- Use ASHG’s PowerPoint template (optional, but highly encouraged) to format your presentation. There is no required template for presenter slides.
- At the start of your presentation, show a disclosure slide and verbally disclose whether you have any financial support or conflicts of interest to report. This is required for CE purposes.
- If you will be discussing any unlabeled or investigational uses of pharmaceuticals or medical devices, please include that information on the second disclosure slide.
- If you have a new employment or ownership relationship that has not been disclosed, please notify ASHG of the change as soon as possible.
- Be sure to adhere to the Logo Policy for Speakers’ Slides. It is the policy of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) that logos of ACCME defined ineligible companies are not permitted in accredited CME activities.
- For guidance on preparing effective PowerPoint slides, see our Tips for Effective PowerPoint Presentations as well as our Guidelines for Accessibility in Presentations.
Upload Your Presentation
- It is recommended that you upload your presentation before traveling to the meeting. Note that Lightning Talk speakers must upload presentations by October 18. Please upload your presentation to the ASHG Presentation Upload Site by logging in with the email address associated with your abstract.
- If you need to make changes to a presentation that you already submitted, you will need to delete the earlier submission and resubmit the file using a new file name. It is strongly suggested that you review your presentation at least three hours prior to your session by visiting the Speaker Presentation Upload Room (Room 516A) on-site.
At The Convention Center
- If not done in advance, upload your slides in the Speaker Presentation Upload Room (Room 516A) at least three hours before your session. If your travel plans allow, we recommend that you upload your slides the day before your talk.
- You can (and are urged to) review your presentation prior to the start of your session. Visit the Speaker Presentation Upload Room (Room 516A) during the following hours:
- Tuesday: 9:00 AM — 5:15 PM
- Wednesday: 7:15 AM — 5:15 PM
- Thursday: 7:15 AM — 3:15 PM
- Friday: 7:15 AM — 5:15 PM
- Saturday: 7:15 AM — 10:30 AM
- All presentations will be downloaded to your session room one hour before the scheduled start of the session. The system in the Speaker Presentation Upload Room will be locked at that time, and you will be unable to access your presentation thereafter. Please plan accordingly and upload your presentation early.
- Review the session room setup and equipment. Speakers may not take laptops or thumb drives to the podium for use with their presentation. Speakers who arrive at the session room with their presentation on their laptop or a thumb drive will be asked to go to the Speaker Presentation Upload Room (Room 516A) to upload their presentation, which may delay the start of the session.
On the Day of Presentation
- Arrive at the meeting room at least 15 minutes before the start of your session (not your talk) and introduce yourself as a speaker to the audiovisual technician and moderator(s). Please sit near the stage to ease the transition between talks.
- Ask the AV technician to go over the setup and to provide instructions on the use of the speaker timer. The timers have green, yellow, and red lights and are pre-set according to the time allotted for your presentation. The green light appears during your talk, the yellow light indicates you have two minutes remaining and the red light indicates that you should stop talking to allow for questions.
- It is important that all speakers stay on time. Moderators have been instructed to stop you from speaking if you go over the allotted time.
- At the lectern, there will be a monitor where you can follow your presentation. Simply click your session time, then click your name on the display, and your PowerPoint will launch automatically.
- Speak directly into the microphone, and do not handle the microphone while speaking.
- If you have any difficulties or need any assistance, click the ASSISTANCE NEEDED button on the computer.
- At the end of your presentation, the display will return to the list of presenters in that session.
- Remember that the ASHG Recording Policy prohibits attendees from taking photos, videos, or audio recordings of speakers presenting their slides in all meeting session rooms.
Questions & Accessibility Requests
The standard set-up for featured symposia, plenary, platform, and lightning talk speakers is a raised stage (2-3 steps) with a podium, microphone, and head table/chairs for moderators. If you require any accessibility accommodations to present your work (such as needing a wheelchair lift/ramp or tall chair/stool at the podium), please submit your specific request via this form. Advance notice must be provided by September 22 to allow time to explore accommodations.
If you have questions about the program or accessibility services, please contact [email protected].
Moderator Guidelines
Session moderators assist with introducing session speakers, ensuring talks start and end on time, and choosing questions for the speakers to answer during Q&A. Please read all information carefully before arriving at the meeting. These guidelines will help ensure that your session goes smoothly.
If you have any questions, please contact [email protected].
Before the Meeting
- Each moderator must complete a financial disclosure form prior to the start of the meeting.
- Moderators and speakers will need to prepare a disclosure slide to disclose any financial relationships with ACCME-defined ineligible companies. If you do not have disclosures, your slide should say “nothing to disclose.”
- Upload a disclosure slide via the presentation upload site. It is recommended that you upload the slide prior to traveling and keep a digital copy of the slide with you at the meeting. Note that Lightning Talk speakers must upload presentations by October 18.
- Session details, including time and location, can be viewed in our schedule.
- Select one moderator to manage the questions coming in through the mobile app and one moderator to manage questions asked at the microphones. You will receive instructions for the Q&A module in October.
- The standard set-up for featured symposia, plenary, platform, and lightning talk speakers is a raised stage (2-3 steps) with a podium, microphone, and head table/chairs for moderators. If you require any accessibility accommodations to moderate (such as needing a wheelchair lift/ramp), please submit your specific request via this form. Advance notice must be provided by September 22 to allow time to explore accommodations.
- If you have questions about the program or accessibility services, please contact [email protected].
At the Meeting
- Moderators must bring their own laptops to monitor questions through the app during the question-and-answer period of the session. The Q&A module is best accessed using a laptop or iPad, not a mobile device. Please be sure your laptop is fully charged, as you will not have the ability to plug your laptop in during the session.
- All moderators and speakers must arrive to the session room at least 15 minutes before the start of the session. Use this time to introduce yourself to the co-moderator, speakers, and A/V technician, ensure the proper pronunciation of speaker names, affiliations, and presentation titles, and set up laptops.
- Moderators should connect to the conference center WiFi and check that they have access to audience questions submitted through the mobile app prior to the start of the session. Ask your PC liaison if you have any difficulty.
- Moderators must show a disclosure slide and verbally disclose any financial relationships with ACCME-defined ineligible companies at the start of the session. Moderators should remind speakers to do the same at the start of their talks.
- During the initial introduction, moderators will read an announcement provided by ASHG that will be on the head table on the stage. This will include reminders of ASHG’s policies and the session’s eligibility to offer continuing education credits.
- You will also receive a sheet that includes all speakers’ names and talk titles, which will be on the head table on the stage.
- Please remember ASHG’s policies prohibit video and audio recording or taking pictures of speakers presenting or their slides.
- No intervention is needed if the official ASHG photographer is in the meeting room.
- STAY ON TIME! Electronic timers will be used to assist you. Because many registrants move from session to session, it is important that all sessions run on time and that the speaker order is not changed. When necessary, cut off questions to stay on schedule.
- If a presenter does not show up, please take a break between presentations to ensure presenters are speaking at their assigned times.
- During the Q&A, you will have access to questions submitted by the audience through the mobile app, and audience members will also be able to come up to aisle mics to ask questions.
- End the session on time and thank the speakers for presenting.
FAQ’s
If you are no longer able to moderate a session, please notify your session’s Program Committee liaison or [email protected] as soon as possible to allow time to find a replacement moderator. Suggestions for replacements are welcome.
If a co-moderator does not show up, alert your Program Committee liaison, who can get in touch with the co-moderator or act as a replacement.
If a speaker does not show up, inform the audience that there will be a break in the schedule and wait to start the next presentation at the scheduled time. Do not change the order of speakers since attendees often alternate between session rooms to see certain talks.
If a presenter forgot to upload their presentation before the session, direct them to the A/V technician available in the session room.
If there are technical difficulties during the session, an A/V technician will be in the session room the whole time and can assist.
How to ensure Q&A periods are used effectively:
- Listen to the presentations and try to prepare a few questions in case the audience does not have enough to fill the Q&A period. If possible, read through the speakers’ abstracts ahead of time in your session and come prepared with a question or two.
- Be sure to take questions from the audience using the aisle microphones in addition to the questions that are submitted in the mobile app.