As in the previous years, the Society for Ambulatory Assessment will award the SAA Early Career Award at the SAA conference in Vienna 2026. This award recognizes an outstanding early career researcher who has made an important contribution to the field of ambulatory assessment and who is able to communicate this contribution in a broader, integrative, and forward-looking manner in a keynote presentation.

Eligibility
All current SAA members who

• obtained their doctoral degree within the last three years (i.e., in the calendar year 2023 or later; the three-year post-degree eligibility period is extended by one additional year for each child born in this period)
• are still working in academia at the time of application

are eligible to apply.

Application materials
Applicants are asked to submit:

• One peer-reviewed ambulatory assessment paper published in 2024 or later
  (“online first” and final print versions are acceptable)
• A motivation letter (maximum 400 words) addressing the following points:
  • What is the contribution of your work to the field of ambulatory assessment?
  • Why did you select this paper rather than your other published papers?
  • What vision does the selected paper substantiate, and where should your research field go in the future?

We understand applicants’ desire to submit flawless motivation letters. However, we strongly encourage personal and carefully thought-out letters that clearly reflect the time and effort invested in preparing the application. With regard to language, we fully recognize that not all members of the Society are native English speakers, and applications will not be evaluated based on linguistic perfection.
Applications should be sent by e-mail (including the article PDF and the motivation letter) to [email protected]

Keynote expectations
The award recipient will be invited to give a keynote presentation in person at the SAA conference. The keynote is expected to go beyond a presentation of the awarded paper. In particular, the keynote should:

• situate the awarded work as part of your line of research within the broader field of ambulatory assessment,
• highlight the conceptual, methodological, or substantive contributions of your research, and
• articulate a forward-looking perspective on future developments and directions in the field.

Submission deadline: 15 April 2026
Notification of decision: Early June 2026