Community Guidelines

Our principle: opportunity with commitment

Symposed is designed to make research opportunities easier to access without turning every listing into a race to mass-apply. The community works only when applicants, listers, collaborators and supervisors act in good faith.

For applicants

• Apply because the project genuinely interests you and you can realistically make time for it.

• Be honest about your experience. Being new to research is not a reason to exaggerate your skills.

• Read the role description before applying and answer application questions thoughtfully.

• Respond to project messages within a reasonable time. If your circumstances change, say so early.

• Do not accept work you already know you cannot complete.

• Withdrawing is better than disappearing. Communicate respectfully and follow any platform process for leaving a project.

For project listers and team leads

• Describe the project honestly, including whether a supervisor is confirmed, the level of approval or registration already obtained, and what help is actually needed.

• State the expected workload, role and likely timeline as clearly as you reasonably can.

• Say whether a role is suitable for someone new to research. Do not mark a role beginner-friendly merely to obtain visibility or recognition.

• Give applicants a fair opportunity to demonstrate motivation and reliability rather than relying only on publication count.

• Update or close a listing when positions are filled or the project changes materially.

• Do not promise publication or a fixed authorship position regardless of contribution.

• Address poor performance directly and respectfully before removing a collaborator where it is safe and appropriate to do so.

Messaging etiquette

• A message request is a request, not an entitlement to a reply.

• Keep first contact relevant and professional. Explain why you are contacting the person.

• If a request is rejected or a user asks you to stop, stop.

• Do not pressure someone to share a phone number, personal email or social account.

• Private messages still must not contain patient data or confidential clinical information.

• When a team moves off-platform, continue to treat collaborators professionally and keep project records in an appropriate institutional or research environment.

Supporting new researchers

Symposed welcomes first-time researchers but is not exclusively a beginner platform. Beginner-friendly labels, New Researcher indicators and mentor recognition are intended to improve access and make expectations clearer. They are not a requirement to choose a less experienced applicant and do not lower research-integrity standards.

Reviews and disagreements

• Give reviews only for genuine project experience and focus on conduct you directly observed.

• Be factual, proportionate and respectful. A negative review is not a place for personal abuse.

• Do not threaten a negative review to force authorship, work or contact.

• Research and authorship disagreements should first be discussed within the project and, where appropriate, escalated to the supervisor, institution or journal. Symposed is not an authorship tribunal.