Conference papers in Harvard referencing fall into two categories: papers published in proceedings (which are treated like book chapters) and papers presented but not published (which are treated like unpublished or grey literature). The key distinction is whether the paper appears in a formally published collection — if it does, you reference the proceedings volume; if it doesn't, you reference the presentation itself with the conference name, location, and date.
Conference Paper Published in Proceedings
When a conference paper is published in a proceedings volume — typically by an academic publisher — it is referenced like a chapter in an edited book. The paper title goes in single quotation marks, and the proceedings title is italicised.
Reference list:
Torres, M. (2024) 'Sustainable urban design and public health outcomes', in Okafor, D. and Chen, L. (eds.) Proceedings of the 12th International Conference on Urban Planning. London: Routledge, pp. 145–162.
In-text citations:
Parenthetical:(Torres, 2024)
Narrative:Torres (2024) found that access to green space within 500 metres of residential areas was associated with…
Key Elements
| Element | What to Include |
|---|---|
| Author | Paper author's surname and initials |
| Year | Year of publication (or year of the conference if published the same year) |
| Paper title | In single quotation marks, sentence case |
| "in" | Lowercase, introduces the proceedings |
| Editor(s) | Initials and surname, followed by (ed.) or (eds.) |
| Proceedings title | In italics |
| Place of publication | City |
| Publisher | Publishing house |
| Page range | pp. X–Y |
Proceedings With a DOI
If the proceedings volume or individual paper has a DOI, include it at the end:
Patel, N. (2023) 'Machine learning approaches to flood prediction', in Williams, K. (ed.) Proceedings of the IEEE Conference on Environmental Modelling. New York: IEEE, pp. 78–91. doi:10.1109/icem.2023.0078.
Proceedings Available Online Without a DOI
Rahman, S. (2024) 'Community-based mental health interventions in rural India', in Fernandez, R. (ed.) Proceedings of the Global Health Conference 2024. Available at: https://www.globalhealthconf.org/proceedings/2024 (Accessed: 18 February 2025), pp. 34–49.
Conference Paper Presented but Unpublished
If the paper was presented at a conference but not published in proceedings, reference it as a presentation:
Reference list:
Kim, J. (2024) 'Student perceptions of AI-assisted feedback in higher education', British Educational Research Association Annual Conference. Manchester, 10–12 September.
In-text citations:
Parenthetical:(Kim, 2024)
Narrative:Kim (2024) reported that 72% of surveyed students preferred human feedback over AI-generated comments…
Key Elements
| Element | What to Include |
|---|---|
| Author | Presenter's surname and initials |
| Year | Year the paper was presented |
| Paper title | In single quotation marks |
| Conference name | Full conference name (not abbreviated) |
| Location | City |
| Date | Day–Day Month (the conference dates) |
Unpublished Paper Available Online
If slides or a preprint of the paper are available online, add the URL:
Kim, J. (2024) 'Student perceptions of AI-assisted feedback in higher education', British Educational Research Association Annual Conference. Manchester, 10–12 September. Available at: https://www.bera.ac.uk/conference2024/kim-slides (Accessed: 20 October 2025).
Poster Presentation
Poster presentations are referenced like unpublished conference papers, with [Poster presentation] added as a format identifier:
Reference list:
Williams, K. and Harrison, T. (2024) 'The effect of sleep quality on academic performance in first-year undergraduates' [Poster presentation], Annual Conference of the British Psychological Society. Nottingham, 15–17 May.
In-text citations:
Parenthetical:(Williams and Harrison, 2024)
Narrative:Williams and Harrison (2024) presented data showing a statistically significant correlation between…
Keynote Address
Keynote addresses are referenced with [Keynote address] in square brackets:
Reference list:
Fernandez, R. (2024) 'The future of interdisciplinary research in a post-pandemic world' [Keynote address], Royal Society Research Conference. London, 22 March.
In-text citations:
Parenthetical:(Fernandez, 2024)
Narrative:In her keynote, Fernandez (2024) called for a fundamental rethinking of how research councils fund…
Keynote Available as a Video Recording
If the keynote was recorded and is publicly available, add the URL:
Fernandez, R. (2024) 'The future of interdisciplinary research in a post-pandemic world' [Keynote address], Royal Society Research Conference. London, 22 March. Available at: https://www.royalsociety.org/conference2024/keynote (Accessed: 10 April 2025).
Symposium Contribution
A symposium is a themed session within a larger conference. Reference the individual contribution and name the symposium:
Reference list:
Okafor, D. (2024) 'Cultural competence in clinical psychology training', in S. Ahmed (Chair), Diversity and inclusion in mental health education [Symposium], British Psychological Society Annual Conference. Nottingham, 15–17 May.
In-text:
(Okafor, 2024)
Key Elements
| Element | What to Include |
|---|---|
| Author | Contributor's surname and initials |
| Paper title | In single quotation marks |
| Chair | Symposium chair's initials and surname, with (Chair) |
| Symposium title | In italics, preceded by "in" |
| [Symposium] | Format identifier |
| Conference name | Full conference name |
| Location and date | City, Day–Day Month |
Conference Paper Available Online
If a conference paper — whether published or unpublished — is available online, always add the URL and access date:
Torres, M. (2024) 'Sustainable urban design and public health outcomes', 12th International Conference on Urban Planning. London, 3–5 June. Available at: https://www.urbanplanningconf.org/papers/torres-2024 (Accessed: 22 July 2025).
For papers with DOIs, prefer the DOI over a URL — DOIs are permanent and won't break:
doi:10.1109/icem.2023.0078
Summary: Conference Paper Reference Formats at a Glance
| Source Type | Reference List Format |
|---|---|
| Published in proceedings | Author (Year) 'Paper title', in Editor (ed.) Proceedings title. Place: Publisher, pp. X–Y. |
| Published with DOI | Author (Year) 'Paper title', in Editor (ed.) Proceedings title. Place: Publisher, pp. X–Y. doi:xxxxx. |
| Presented (unpublished) | Author (Year) 'Paper title', Conference Name. Location, Day–Day Month. |
| Poster | Author (Year) 'Title' [Poster presentation], Conference Name. Location, Day–Day Month. |
| Keynote | Author (Year) 'Title' [Keynote address], Conference Name. Location, Day Month. |
| Symposium | Author (Year) 'Title', in Chair (Chair), Symposium Title [Symposium], Conference Name. Location, Day–Day Month. |
Common Mistakes With Conference Paper Citations
| Mistake | Why It's Wrong | Correct Approach |
|---|---|---|
| Treating an unpublished presentation like a book chapter | Unpublished papers don't have a proceedings volume, publisher, or page range | Use the presentation format (conference name, location, dates) |
| Omitting the conference name | The reader needs to know where the paper was presented | Always include the full conference name |
| Using the conference abbreviation without the full name | Abbreviations like "BPS" or "IEEE ICEM" may be ambiguous | Write the full name; add the abbreviation in brackets if useful |
| Missing page numbers for published proceedings | Published proceedings have page ranges, just like book chapters | Include pp. X–Y for published papers |
| Confusing the conference year with the publication year | Proceedings are sometimes published the year after the conference | Use the publication year for published proceedings |
What's Next?
Now that you know how to reference conference papers, explore these related guides:
- How to Reference a Lecture in Harvard Style — formats for lecture slides, lecture notes, and guest lectures
- How to Reference a Dissertation or Thesis in Harvard Style — formats for published and unpublished theses
- Harvard Reference List — the complete guide to formatting your reference list
