Call for Session Proposals

Important Dates and Deadlines for Session Proposals:

September 17, 2025: Online session proposal submission is available at www.sleepmeeting.org.
December 8, 2025: Deadline to submit postgraduate course, bench to bedside, clinical workshop, discussion group, rapid-fire symposia, and symposia session proposals is 11:59 p.m. EST.
Late January 2026: Acceptance notifications for postgraduate courses are sent via email.
Late February 2026: Acceptance notifications for bench to bedside, clinical workshop, discussion group, rapid-fire symposia, and symposia sessions are sent via email.
March 31, 2026: Deadline to edit session information.
May 22, 2026: Deadline for faculty of accepted postgraduate courses to submit presentation materials for inclusion in electronic course books.

Session Proposal Types

Sessions should focus on a wide variety of topics including clinical practice, basic research, and other aspects of sleep medicine, sleep health, and sleep and circadian research.

The Program Committee is soliciting one-hour and two-hour proposals for the following session types at SLEEP 2025: Postgraduate courses (four-hour or eight-hour only), bench to bedside sessions, clinical workshops, discussion groups,  rapid-fire symposia, and symposia

SLEEP 2025 Hot Topics

The Program Committee encourages proposals on all relevant topics, but in an effort to include sessions on certain subjects, it is requesting proposals on the following:

Submission of a proposal on these topics does not guarantee acceptance.

  • Integrated sleep and circadian interventions
  • Machine learning, AI, and other emerging technologies in sleep medicine practice
  • Management of mild OSA  
  • Metabolomics, genomics, and proteomic approaches towards an understanding of sleep
  • Obesity management: new medications and mechanisms of action
  • Orexin pharmacology
  • Prescription medication and over-the-counter supplements in pediatric patients
  • Sleep health in women
  • Sleep, glymphatic system, and neurodegenerative disorders
  • Social/structural determinants and sex/gender-related sleep health disparities

Session Proposal Descriptions

Bench to Bedside Sessions

Bench to bedside sessions present attendees with the latest advances in translational science and clinical care on a specific topic. These sessions are allotted a one-hour or two-hour time slot to present the latest data and discuss its applicability to patient care. Individual presentations, which should be approximately 20-30 minutes each including time for Q&A, should be integrated on the same topic. For one-hour sessions, a maximum of three speakers, including the chair, is allowed. For two-hour sessions, a maximum of four speakers, including the chair, is allowed.

Co-chairs are not permitted. For two-hour sessions, a fifth participant may be added if the chair intends only to give a brief introduction.

Clinical Workshops (Patient or Business-Related)

Clinical workshops are forums for clinicians to review and discuss clinical challenges in sleep medicine within a one-hour or two-hour time slot. These sessions should focus on either business aspects of sleep centers or the care of patients. These sessions are appropriate for the presentation and discussion of controversial clinical topics or difficult clinical situations that demonstrate the critical thinking process in clinical sleep medicine. For one-hour sessions, a maximum of three participants, including the chair, is allowed. For two-hour sessions, a maximum of six participants, including the chair, is allowed. Co-chairs are not permitted.

Business-Related Clinical Workshops: The topics covered in these clinical workshops should focus on the business of sleep medicine, including economic, legal, political, and social aspects of running a sleep center. These sessions are appropriate for addressing business challenges that clinicians face in their daily practices.

Patient-Related Clinical Workshops: The topics covered in these clinical workshops should have a substantial scientific and clinical basis. These sessions may utilize a variety of formats, such as case discussions or review of polysomnograms with a panel of “master” clinicians or lecturers reviewing a clinical topic followed by group discussion. If case discussions are used, the chair is responsible for ensuring that the cases are of high quality, and that appropriate data are available for discussion.

Discussion Groups

Discussion groups are forums for a less formal presentation of a topic within a one-hour or two-hour time slot. For one-hour sessions, a maximum of four participants, including the chair, is allowed. For two-hour sessions, a maximum of eight participants, including the chair, is allowed. Co-chairs are not permitted.

The APSS encourages conversations on controversial subjects and pro/con discussions or presentations. These sessions should stimulate interest and discussion with the audience without extensive data presentation or use of audiovisual equipment and without necessarily reaching a conclusion. A question or series of questions should be introduced by the panel to start the session. A discussion group proposal must be presented within the guidelines stated above. Proposals that are structured like a symposium will be considered as such and evaluated with the symposia proposals.

Postgraduate Courses

Postgraduate courses provide intensive information and review on a single topic through a half-day (4-hour) or full day (8-hour) session on Saturday, June 7 or Sunday, June 8.

A maximum of four speakers, including the chair, is allowed for half-day courses; a maximum of eight speakers, including the chair, is allowed for full-day postgraduate courses. A minimum of three speakers, including the chair, must be proposed for any postgraduate course. Co-chairs are only permitted for full-day postgraduate courses.

Breakout sessions or small workshops within a postgraduate course should not be proposed due to time and technological constraints.

It is mandatory that ALL postgraduate course speakers be recorded for SLEEP 2025 Postgraduate Course On-Demand Recordings.

All postgraduate course proposals must adhere to the following schedule:

TimeLecture Number
8:00 a.m.-8:15 a.m.  Introduction
8:15 a.m.-9:00 a.m.  Lecture 1
9:00 a.m.-9:45 a.m.  Lecture 2
9:45 a.m.-10:00 a.m.  Refreshment Break
10:00 a.m.-10:45 a.m.  Lecture 3
10:45 a.m.-11:30 a.m.  Lecture 4
11:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m.  Questions & Answers*
12:00 p.m.-1:00 p.m.  Lunch
1:00 p.m.-1:15 p.m.  Introduction & Recap**
1:15 p.m.-2:00 p.m.  Lecture 5
2:00 p.m.-2:45 p.m.  Lecture 6
2:45 p.m.-3:00 p.m.  Refreshment Break
3:00 p.m.-3:45 p.m.  Lecture 7
3:45 p.m.-4:30 p.m.  Lecture 8
4:30 p.m.-5:00 p.m.  Questions & Answers

* End of morning ½-day courses
** Beginning of afternoon ½-day courses

The APSS offers an honorarium for all postgraduate course speakers. This policy is subject to change without notice, and the final honoraria guidelines for SLEEP 2025 will be provided to chairs and speakers for accepted proposals.

  • Speakers may receive a $500 honorarium for up to two postgraduate course presentations that are at least 45 minutes in length for a maximum of $1,000.
    • $250 per 45-minute presentation, up to a maximum of two presentations; and
    • $250 for providing presentation slides for inclusion in the course materials by the due date of May 14, 2025, up to a maximum of two presentations. There will be no exceptions to this deadline.
  • A maximum of four (4) speakers will be awarded an honorarium for half-day postgraduate courses.
  • A maximum of eight (8) speakers will be awarded an honorarium for full-day postgraduate courses.
  • Course chairs are eligible only if they provide a 45-minute presentation and meet the requirements listed above.
  • Both AASM and SRS members and nonmembers are eligible for the honoraria.

Rapid-Fire Symposia

To increase opportunities for junior investigators, the APSS Program Committee created the rapid-fire symposia to allow junior investigators to present exciting and cutting-edge science. These symposia are geared toward a young cross-section of scientists (senior graduate students, postdocs, and junior faculty with a rank of assistant professor or below).

Rapid-fire symposia sessions should be presented by young scientists (assistant professor and below), but up to two senior investigators are allowed. Rapid-fire symposia are allotted a one-hour or two-hour time slot to present the latest data and ideas on topics in sleep medicine, sleep health, and sleep and circadian research. Individual presentations, which should be approximately 15-20 minutes each including time for Q&A, should be integrated on the same topic. For one-hour sessions, a maximum of four speakers, including the chair, is allowed. For two-hour sessions, a maximum of six speakers, including the chair, is allowed. For two-hour sessions, a seventh participant may be added if the chair intends only to give a brief introduction. Co-chairs are not permitted.

To promote diversity within the content of the meeting, research studies should not be submitted for both symposia or rapid-fire symposia and oral abstract presentations.

Symposia 

Symposia sessions are allotted a one-hour or two-hour time slot to present the latest data and ideas on topics in sleep medicine, sleep health, and sleep and circadian research. Individual presentations, which should be approximately 30 minutes each including time for Q&A, should be integrated on the same topic. For one-hour sessions, a maximum of three speakers, including the chair, is allowed. For two-hour sessions, a maximum of four speakers, including the chair, is allowed. Symposia chairs are strongly encouraged to include at least one junior faculty member to participate in each session. A fifth participant may be added if the chair intends only to give a brief introduction. Co-chairs are not permitted.

Symposia chairs should be aware that individuals are limited to two invited presentations (symposia and one-hour invited lecture) per meeting to encourage a wide variety of speakers and promote diversity of content at the meeting. If a speaker exceeds this limit, the Program Committee reserves the right to request that the chair of an accepted symposium select a different speaker.

To promote diversity within the content of the meeting, research studies should not be submitted for both symposia or rapid-fire symposia, and oral abstract presentation.

Additional Submission Information

  • Those speakers who have been confirmed for an accepted session must be the people who actually deliver the presentations; changes in sessions must be reviewed and approved by the APSS Program Committee.
  • In an effort to promote mentorship, session chairs should invite at least one junior faculty member to participate in their course.
  • Speakers are responsible for the information included within their slides and are responsible for obtaining copyright permissions. Speakers will be required to agree to a copyright assignment statement when submitting a session proposal.
  • Speakers will be required to disclose relationships with ineligible companies upon submission of their proposal.
  • Chairs for accepted sessions are responsible for providing a detailed agenda and ensuring that faculty submits all required materials by the appropriate deadlines.

All Session Proposals must be submitted online and require the information below:

  • Session Title
    • The APSS reserves the right to edit the session title for marketing purposes. Notifications of title changes will be communicated to the session chair.
    • A title should not exceed 115 characters and should be:
      • Interesting: The title should entice learners to want to know more about the session content.
      • Relevant: The title should be pertinent to the session content.
      • Focused: The title should describe the session content.
  • Target Audience: Provide a description of the audience for which the presentation is intended
  • Brief Overview of Session: Provide a 2-3 sentence overview of the session for attendees
  • Track
    • Clinical Sleep Science and Practice
      • This track focuses on clinical practice, policy, populations or research with an immediate clinical or direct clinical application.
    • Basic and Translational Sleep and Circadian Science
      • This track includes basic research on the fundamental aspects of sleep and circadian science from animal models to humans as well as translational research on fundamental mechanisms to understand disease and discover treatments.
  • Learning Objectives: Provide 3-4 measurable learning objectives for the session. Complete the phrase, “Upon completion of this session, attendees will be able to…”
  • Educational Content: Within a 500-word limit, describe the educational content of the session. The description will be used for evaluation purposes and should explain the background, purpose, and significance of the proposed topic. All sessions except discussion groups should include a detailed agenda of the session
  • Need Justification: Explain how the session will contribute positively to SLEEP 2025 and why the annual meeting is the best venue for the presentation
  • Participants/Speakers: Below is the information that must be provided for each session participant
    • First name/last name
    • Professional degree(s)
    • Affiliation(s)
    • Contact information including address, phone number and email address (email is REQUIRED for every speaker)
    • Membership status (AASM, SRS, Dual AASM/SRS, or nonmember)
    • Individual presentation title for each speaker (The title MUST be included at the time of submission). Presentation titles are not applicable to discussion group proposals
    • Disclosure of conflicts of interest is required for all session participants

The submitting speaker is expected to provide all required information, aside from conflicts of interest, on behalf of the speakers.

Policies, Disclosures, and More

Continuing education credit will be provided to attendees of all sessions. All presenters are required to review and adhere to the conflict of interest policy listed below.

SLEEP 2025 meeting activities have been planned and implemented in accordance with the Essential Areas and Policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through the joint providership of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) and the Associated Professional Sleep Societies, LLC (APSS). The AASM is accredited by the ACCME to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

To comply with the mandatory ACCME guidelines to offer continuing education credits, all session speakers must comply with the APSS conflict of interest policy.

Prior to the activity, every speaker/presenting author must disclose to the APSS if they do or do not have financial relationship(s) with an ineligible company. The following information must be submitted for each speaker/presenting author:

  • Their role in the educational event
  • The name(s) of any ineligible companies with which the individual has a financial relationship(s) within the prior 24 months
  • The nature of the relationship(s), and whether or not the relationship has ended

Companies that are ineligible to be accredited in the ACCME System (ineligible companies) are those whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling or distributing health care products used by or on patients.

The accredited provider is responsible for identifying relevant financial relationships between individuals in control of educational content and ineligible companies while managing these conflicts to ensure they do not introduce commercial bias into the education. Financial relationships of any dollar amount during the past 24 months are defined as relevant if the educational content is related to the business lines or products of the ineligible company.

The nature of the relationship(s) is defined as financial relationships in which the individual benefits by receiving income, salary, royalty, intellectual property rights, consulting fees, honoraria, or other financial benefits. Financial benefits are typically associated with roles such as employment, consulting, investigational or contract research, speaking/teaching, membership on advisory committees or review panels, board membership, and other activities from which compensation is received or expected.

Additionally, speakers cannot promote any ineligible companies during their presentation. This includes displaying logos and/or advertising in their presentations. Speakers cannot promote any other educational programs or events during their presentation.

If a speaker/author does not comply with the APSS Conflict of Interest Policy, the individual will not be permitted to participate in the program and may be banned from participating in future meetings. The APSS Program Committee will review the disclosures of financial relationships and the topic of the session to ensure compliance with the requirements stated above.

To comply with some requirements, presentation slides may be requested from a speaker in advance of the meeting depending on their disclosed conflicts.

Speakers must disclose any relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies verbally during their sessions and in their presentation slides, if applicable. Further information and instructions will be provided prior to the meeting.

Questions?

Questions regarding SLEEP 2026 submissions should be directed to:
Associated Professional Sleep Societies, LLC
Attn: Meeting Department
Phone: (630) 737-9700
Email: [email protected]
www.sleepmeeting.org

The APSS is a joint initiative of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) and the Sleep Research Society (SRS).