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[minorleaguer]

I've been invited to participate in a panel proposal at the American Anthropological Association (AAA) meeting.  For non-anthropologists presenting at the meeting, the membership fee is waved, you just pay for the conference registration.  That said, you are asked to register for the conference well in advance of the date by which the AAA notifies you of your panel's acceptance or rejection.  My guess is that most legit panels are accepted, but this strikes me as a bit of a pyramid scheme to raise funds for the AAA.

I really like the panel topic and see it as a great opportunity to present my research, but I'm concerned about not hearing about the panel's status until late this summer.  Is it crazy to think that we might get rejected?

Will someone hold me and tell me everything will be alright?  Or at least assure me that I didn't just waste a bunch of money?  Is this how the conference game is played in some fields?

[polly_mer]

It seems a little strange to me to be required to register before you know if you will be presenting.

I attend a few conferences where one is encouraged to register early because the rates are much lower up until about the week before official acceptance is finalized and I attend a conference where one is required to register after acceptances come through but before the program schedule is set.

One question is whether the AAA tends to have a high rejection rate.  For example, the American Physical Society has a zero rejection rate.  If you submit an abstract before the deadline in something resembling English with an identified author (even someone working out of his garage), you will get to speak.  That's one of their rules and we only have a few crazies (e.g., alien mind rays, quantum mechanics is wrong, plants have feelings) every year.

One other thing to check is the refund policy.  The conferences that encourage very early registration often have a good refund policy if you cancel well in advance.

[castafiore]

Your panel might get rejected. If it is, then you apply for and receive a refund. (I think that's in the fine print somewhere.)