One venue at 10 percent feels bleak. A whole list of venues is a different number, and Odds Reality Check is the free calculator we built to add that list up properly. Build a target list of up to 8 conferences and journals from the Conf Journal directory, and it returns three numbers: the chance at least one accepts, the chance none do, and the expected number of acceptances if you work through the whole list.
The data honesty matters here. Our dataset records acceptance rates for only 8 of its 329 venues. Those arrive locked in and badged as recorded. Every other venue asks for your own estimate, and the estimate is badged as yours, never dressed up as data. A venue that is not in the directory at all can be added by hand, on your estimate. Our guide to the top machine learning conferences is where most readers start their list.
How to run your first check
- Search the directory by venue name or acronym and add up to 8 venues, in the order you would try them.
- Recorded rates arrive locked. For any other venue, type your own honest estimate.
- Press Run the reality check and read all three numbers, not just the friendly one.
- Reorder, swap a venue, and re-run. Only a changed list counts as a new check.
Two checks on a changed list are free each day on your connection; after that, an email unlocks unlimited checks for the rest of the day. Your list and your estimates stay in your browser.
Start with the list you already have in your head: run it through Odds Reality Check. The companion post, 6 ways to read your target list, walks through a real result line by line. For the deadlines that decide the order, pair it with our conference deadline tracker roundup and the Q1 journals by subject area guide. Submission season is also money season: the RealPay Calculator at PhDStipend shows what a stipend leaves after rent, and deadline boards like WikiCFP list calls we do not track.