Doctoral Consortium: : Call for Participation

The 7th International Conference on Higher Education Learning Methodologies and Technologies Online (HELMeTO 2025), to be held in Naples, Italy, on 23–25 September 2025, is excited to announce its Doctoral Consortium, a dedicated session aimed at supporting the next generation of researchers in the field of educational technologies and methodologies in online higher education.

We warmly invite:

PhD students at any stage of their doctoral journey,
Recent graduates applying for PhD programs
Advanced undergraduate or master’s students planning to pursue a PhD

to submit their research work, even in early or conceptual stages.

List of Topics

Join us in exploring the future of online higher education! We welcome submissions touching on diverse and cutting-edge topics in educational technologies and methodologies in online higher education. Here is a glimpse of the key themes you can engage with at the Doctoral Consortium:

Online Pedagogy and Learning Methodologies

Digital and hybrid teaching strategies
Feedback-centered and formative assessment approaches
Integration of formative and summative assessment
Case studies and best practices across disciplines

Learning Technologies, Data Analytics, and Educational Big Data Mining

Learning management systems and adaptive assessment tools
Learning analytics for performance improvement
Educational data mining for institutional enhancement

Artificial Intelligence in Education

Personalized and adaptive learning systems
Intelligent tutoring systems, chatbots, and virtual assistants
AI for automated assessment, feedback, and content creation
Generative AI for educational games and simulations
AI tools for syllabus design, instructional planning, and strategic support

Opportunities and Challenges of AI

Improving engagement, accessibility, inclusivity, and equity
Ethical issues, data privacy, transparency, and explainability (XAI)
Teacher roles, training, and professional development in AI-rich environments
Cost, infrastructure, and organizational challenges
Long-term trends and emerging research directions

Mathematics Education and AI

Digital tools and AI integration in university-level mathematics teaching
Blending concrete and digital resources in math education

Creative and Artistic Practices in Digital Learning

Use of visual arts, performance, music, and creative writing in online education
Aesthetic, narrative, and participatory approaches to foster engagement and inclusion
Digital platforms as creative, collaborative learning spaces
Multidisciplinary intersections of art, pedagogy, technology, and design

Inclusive Innovation: UDL and AI

Implementation of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) in higher education
AI-driven solutions supporting personalization, accessibility, and adaptive learning
Teacher education (pre-service and in-service) for inclusive digital practices
Policy, governance, and institutional strategies for UDL and AI adoption

Why participate?

The Doctoral Consortium offers a unique opportunity to:

Present your ongoing or planned research in a relaxed and supportive environment.
Receive constructive feedback and suggestions from experienced faculty members, senior researchers and peers.
Gain an overview of the breadth and depth of the conjunction between three main sectors Education, Computer Science and Psychology.
Network with leading academics and other early-career scholars as well as with peers and future colleagues.
Share experience and collect insights taken by other doctoral candidates.
Discuss concerns about research, supervision, the job market, and other issues.
Improve the quality and impact of your research project.

Submission Details

Submission format: Extended abstract (maximum 2 pages + 1 page for references) + PhD info sheet.
Language: English
Submission system: EasyChair: https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=helmeto2025
(please select the “Doctoral Consortium” track during submission)

The abstract must adhere to the Springer CCIS template:

The Word template for the abstract can be downloaded from: https://www.helmeto.it/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/HELMETO2025_abstract_template_word.zip

The LaTeX template for the abstract can be downloaded from: https://www.helmeto.it/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/HELMETO2025_abstract_template_latex.zip

Your abstract should clearly state:

Title of your research project.
Your name.
Research objectives and questions.
Context and motivation for your research project.
State of the art and/or key related work that frames your research.
Methodological approach.
Expected outcomes.
Preliminary results (if available) or expected contributions.

Your PhD info sheet (to be included after the references) should clearly state:

PhD study status:
- PhD student (please specify your current year in the PhD program and the expected thesis defense date – month and year)
- PhD candidate (currently applying for doctoral programs)
- Student planning to apply for a PhD in the future (please specify your current year at the university and the expected graduation date – month and year)
Advisor/s name/s
University of belonging
PhD studies advancement:
- Start date of the PhD program (in the case of a current PhD student)
- Expected PhD program start date (in the case of a PhD candidate)
- Expected graduation date (in the case of a master degree’s student)
5 keywords describing your research studies
Key challenges or aspects on which you would like feedback.
One of the two main areas in which the presented research studies are framed:
- Technology Enhanced Learning
- Educational methodologies

In addition, please note that:

Abstract must refer to main research proposal of the PhD candidate
Each abstract must not have contributors that hold a PhD including supervisors. They could be acknowledged in the “Acknowledgements” section of the paper
Each abstract must be presented by the student/s during the Doctoral Consortium

All submissions must be made electronically through the online submission system on EasyChair » https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=helmeto2025 During the submission process, the Doctoral Consortium track must be selected.

All abstracts submitted for the Doctoral Consortium will be judged by a panel mainly on relevance, originality, potential impact and clarity

Abstracts will be selected for two one of the following two modalities:

Oral presentation (10 min);
Poster (2 min).

The accepted abstracts will be published, free of charge, in the digital book of abstracts of the Conference. Each accepted abstract must have at least one registered author by September 01, 2025 (early registration deadline August 10, 2025).

Students’ Participation Modalities

The authors of accepted abstracts will be asked to present their work at the Conference.

Authors whose abstract has been accepted for an oral presentation will be required to prepare:

An introduction of themselves and their Ph.D. project for the introductory session (1 slide). Duration: 60 sec max.
A 9-minute presentation of their Ph.D. project to be used for introducing discussion about their project and its main issues. The Doctoral Consortium advisory board will comment on each presentation.

Authors whose abstract has been accepted for the poster session will be required to prepare:

A poster depicting their Ph.D. project for the main conference poster session.
A 2-minute presentation of their Ph.D. project that will be discussed during a panic session with a panel of experienced faculty members.

Advisory board

At the end of the Doctoral Consortium session, the advisory board there will promote a general debate based on all the students’ presentations (oral and poster presentations), including a reflection about current and future research topics in the area.

Best Presentation Award

The best presentation will be honored with:

An official certificate of Best HELMeTO 25 Doctoral Consortium presentation
The opportunity to publish the presented work in the Springer post-conference proceedings (Communications in Computer and Information Science series, indexed in Scopus and other major databases).

Important Dates

Abstract submission deadline: June 20, 2025
Author Notification: July 20, 2025
Camera-ready abstract submission: August 10, 2025
Conference dates: September 23–25, 2025

Registration fees

For the authors of papers accepted to the Doctoral Consortium, reduced registration fees are available.

Contact

For questions or further information, please visit the HELMeTO 2025 website or contact the Doctoral Consortium chairs at conference@helmeto.it.