Uncertain Status of Professional Meetings

The American Economic Association (AEA) is now saying that its planned "live" meeting scheduled for Boston in January 2022 is now uncertain and that it is tentatively planning for a "hybrid" meeting with live and remote elements. AEA meetings are part of the Allied Social Science Associations (ASSA) meetings that consist of other related organizations along with the AEA. It is normally a very large professional gathering and includes a significant academic labor market recruitment element. 

From the AEA/ASSA today:

To: Members of the AEA, the ASSA, and other interested parties

From: Peter L. Rousseau, Secretary-Treasurer

Subject: ASSA 2022 and job market

Many people are asking whether we will have a "live" ASSA meeting in Boston this January, and whether the AEA will recommend in-person first-round job market interviews. To help reach a decision, the Executive Committee reached out to a number of department chairs and others involved in the job market, and received a clear signal that departments were quite satisfied with virtual first-round interviews last year.

Given this and the uncertainty about whether international students and interviewers will be allowed into the United States, the AEA leadership is again recommending that prospective employers use virtual interviews for the first round. Consistent with this recommendation, suites will be available to all meeting participants when the ASSA housing website opens, and the AEA will temporarily suspend its special role in the allocation of suites to interviewers.

At this point the likelihood of a live meeting remains uncertain. The options right now seem to be a 100% virtual meeting, or a full "hybrid" meeting where sessions will include live and virtual participants. In planning for the latter, we assume those intending to go in person will need to present (upload) proof of full vaccination with a vaccine authorized by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in order to register for the meeting and subsequently receive a code to book a hotel room.

The Association continues to monitor the evolving public health conditions and the prospects for an in-person component to the ASSA meeting this January, and will communicate further information to you when plans come into sharper focus. Please be assured that the safety of all ASSA participants will be of the utmost importance in making these decisions. 

Source: https://www.aeaweb.org/news/member-announcements-2021-aug-2.