PSA Annual Conference

The PSA Annual Conference - “What Next?" - convened by the University of Birmingham and Aston University, will take place from 14 – 16 April 2025.

We are pleased to announce that registration for the PSA25 Annual Conference is now OPEN!

Early-bird tickets are available until 21 February 2025, so we encourage you to take advantage of this opportunity.

To register for the conference, please log in to Ex-Ordo here. If you don’t already have an Ex-Ordo account, you can easily create one by following the link above.

Please note that accepted paper-givers must be registered by 10 February 2025.

We look forward to your participation in what promises to be an engaging and stimulating event!

ABOUT THE CONFERENCE  

With sponsorship from our lead partners SAGE Publishing, this academic conference asks ‘What Next?’

The world has faced a series of ongoing economic, environmental, health and (geo)political crises over the past two decades. In 2025, the year after the ‘year of elections’, we know the ideological responses and whether any new ones have been provoked. It is in this context that we ask, ‘What Next?’ (with whichever intonation you prefer).

Birmingham provides an ideal venue for such discussions: the UK’s second city is “a true city of the future: endlessly becoming, never arriving” (C.D. Rose). One of the youngest and most diverse cities in Europe, Birmingham has retransformed itself over the past thirty years with extensive redevelopment and regeneration of the city centre and beyond. It has also found itself at the sharp end of austerity and budget cuts with the city experiencing a series of crises of its own. Birmingham is thus once again asking itself ‘what next?’ and is responding, in line with its motto of ‘Forward,’ with its usual stoic determination. 

The conference will be hosted by a team of convenors from the University of Birmingham and Aston University. Head of Department of Political Science and International Studies at the University of Birmingham, and PSA Trustee, Professor Stefan Wolff said: “We look forward to welcoming you here to participate in a dynamic and thought-provoking conference in the heart of our brilliant city.”

The Chair of the PSA, Dr Rose Gann, added: “On behalf of the PSA, I warmly thank the Birmingham and Aston teams for convening this flagship conference in the heart of the city.” 

PSA25 CONFERENCE PRICING

PSA members have preferential rates to attend our Annual Conference.

If you aren’t yet a member of the PSA, why not join before you register?

We will confirm your membership on receipt of payment, and you can then go-ahead and register for conference at the member rates.

As well as being able to book at the discounted member rate for PSA25, you will also join a thriving community and have access to a full range of benefits, support and resources for the next year!

PSA Members:

*For our PSA ECN early career researcher/academic members, in addition to the discounted price for the three-days of conference, we are offering up to 100 ‘One Day’ registrations to support those who may otherwise be unable to attend. Please note that these tickets are limited and will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis, so do consider registering early to benefit from this offer.

** If you are a retired or student member, or a teacher whose school has a collective membership, please email membership@psa.ac.uk to receive your specific discount code.

PSA25 remains primarily an in-person event. However, we recognise the needs of those who may find it difficult to attend due, for example, to caring responsibilities or those with disabilities or specific access requirements. PSA members with such concerns should please contact us at conference@psa.ac.uk.

Non Members:

* Academics from the Global South/Low-income Countries as defined by the United Nations Finance Centre for South-South Cooperation and OECD DAC list of ODA recipients

Please note that we are unable to provide additional discounts, financial support or grants outside of the assistance outlined above.

Potential additional opportunity for submission in early 2025

As the conference approaches, we may identify panels which have capacity to facilitate more papers.If this is the case, a dedicated submission process will be made available enabling the proposal of abstracts for consideration as part of specific panels.

The conference programme will provide the information needed to select an appropriate panel for potential inclusion of your abstract. This process will only be open for a limited period and we encourage you to check back to this page and follow our socials for conference updates.

THE FORMAT 

The conference, taking place in Birmingham, is an in-person event, and we expect to host around 800+ attendees creating a vibrant conference experience.

We are pleased to be able to share the outline PSA25 Conference Programme, which at this stage denotes the day, time and location of the confirmed panels

It doesn't yet include details of the many events which will be part of your conference experience such as Network Roundtables, Keynote speakers, Specialist Group AGMs, or the Conference Drinks Reception and Dinner - these will be shared nearer the time!

Our conference venues are situated around Centenary Square, a vibrant area of the city, incorporating the International Convention Centre, the Birmingham Rep theatre, the Library of Birmingham and The Exchange. The panels will take place in a dedicated room within one of the venues, with paper givers supported by a Chair and the conference team.    

The Conference Dinner, on 15 April, will take place in The Council House, a magnificent Grade II* listed building close by in Victoria Square.

For general conference queries, please email: conference@psa.ac.uk.

For conference promotional opportunities/exhibiting: please email: events@psa.ac.uk.