Graduate psychology students attend NCME and AERA

Students and faculty from the Assessment and Measurement PhD Program and the Psychological Sciences MA program recently traveled to the annual conferences of the National Council on Measurement in Education (NCME) and American Educational Research Association (AERA). Below the students reflect on their experiences.

As a first-time attendee at NCME, Jack Gilmore (second-year, Quantitative Psychology Concentration, Psychological Sciences Master’s program) had a wonderful experience going to sessions, conversing with professionals, and presenting his work. Some of the sessions he attended included research on motivation in low-stakes assessments, the use of AI in education, and several graduate student poster sessions in which he was able to connect with graduate students from other institutions. Through connecting with alumni and attending sessions about employment in the field, Jack learned how to best approach becoming employed. This was highly relevant as he is seeking employment after graduating with his master's. During his poster presentation, he was not only able to demonstrate his work to colleagues, but Jack also received valuable feedback/insights for future work which motivated him to want to continue to conduct research in this area. Altogether, this conference made Jack feel more connected with the field, was a vastly educational experience and inspired new research ideas.

Jon Henriques (second-year, Quantitative Psychology Concentration, Psychological Sciences Master’s program) had a wonderful experience at his first NCME. He was very impressed by the quality of the sessions he attended. Some sessions were especially helpful in providing practical, applicable skills that he can carry into future jobs and internships, while others offered valuable insights into current research and emerging ideas in the field. Networking was a highlight of the trip, as he had the opportunity to connect with many JMU alumni and other professionals in the field. He was also able to reunite his JMU alumni mentor, who introduced Jon to many of his colleagues. Jon also participated in the NCME mentorship program, where his mentor provided him with valuable information regarding internships and career opportunities. In sum, Jon’s first NCME experience was one to remember and he looks forward to continuing to attend in future years.

Riley Herr (first-year, Assessment and Measurement PhD program) had an amazing time at NCME. Riley presented as part of a coordinated paper session focused on examinee disengagement in low-stakes tests; she appreciated her discussant's thought-provoking and insightful feedback. Riley attended several sessions focused on multilevel modeling and machine learning/large language models - all of which were inspiring and impressive. Furthermore, Riley was able to network with seasoned professionals in the field during the Women in Measurement event, the JMU event, and at the NCME reception. She encourages graduate students who are thinking of attending in the future to participate in the NCME mentorship program, as this allows graduate students to connect with professionals and alumni in a formal manner. This was Riley's first time attending NCME, and she looks forward to the opportunity to attend in the future."

Laura Lambert (third-year, Assessment and Measurement PhD program) was able to attend her first NCME/AERA conference this year, attending sessions and workshops at both locations.  In particular, she attended sessions on hierarchical modeling and assessment in STEM fields.  The presentations she was able to attend by others in the field were both insightful and inspired her and her own work.  She was also able to meet and network with authors whom she had previously cited and whose work she follows.  Participating in the NCME mentoring program allowed her to have a meaningful conversation with a professional in the field that holds a similar positions she hopes to hold one day.  

Stephanie LeRoy (second-year, Assessment and Measurement PhD program) attended her first NCME conference that was held this April in Denver, CO. She presented her current research about vertical linking at a graduate student eBoard session. During the poster presentation she was able to discuss her research with attendees across a range of expertise in the topic. She also spent time discussing others’ research and made connections with other researchers to further discuss different areas of research. Along with connections made outside of the university, Stephanie was able to meet alumni from the Assessment and Measurement program and discuss current and future plans. Although NCME was a larger conference, she was grateful for the opportunity to have one-on-one conversations with professionals in the field.

Mara McFadden (second-year, Assessment and Measurement PhD program) had an excellent experience attending and presenting at both NCME and AERA conferences. At NCME, she presented on her work from her summer internship at the Center for Assessment and at AERA she presented on her research with her advisor, Joe Kush. Both presentations led to engaging conversations and Mara left with great ideas for future research. In addition to her two successful presentations, Mara attended some great networking events, including the Women in Measurement networking reception and The Center for Assessment’s reception. She was able to interact with peers and professionals in the field at these events and throughout the conference. Mara enjoyed attending sessions at both NCME and AERA on important and timely topics in the field of educational measurement. Attending both conferences was an excellent professional development opportunity for Mara, and she looks forward to continuing to learn from and build connections with fellow educational measurement professionals.

Juste Mehou (second-year, Quantitative Psychology Concentration, Psychological Sciences Master’s program) had a great experience attending NCME for the first time this year. Throughout the conference, he met great professionals, had long conversations with people in the field (professors and professionals) and participated to sessions particularly related to AI and its applications in Measurement. He also presented his work during an E-board session, which allowed him to further discuss with people doing similar research. Overall, attending this conference was a fantastic professional development opportunity that helped a great deal in figuring out his future plans in terms of research.

Nicolas Mireles (fourth-year, Assessment and Measurement PhD program)  had a full and exciting experience at NCME this year. As co-chair of the Graduate Student Issues Committee (GSIC), he received a service award from NCME recognizing his service to GSIC. Throughout the conference, Nicolas played a key role in creating community spaces. He helped plan and host a joint social reception for graduate students with NCME and AERA Division D and organized a marginalized mixer to provide a space where professionals from historically marginalized communities could build connections and share experiences. He also facilitated a workshop on positionality, guiding students and early-career researchers in reflecting on their research identities. This year also marked another milestone, as Nicolas led the launch of the first NCME GSIC E-Board Award, designed to celebrate graduate student work. In addition to his service roles, Nicolas presented his dissertation research, focusing on diagnostic classification models and examining how students’ disengagement behaviors over time affect inferences about student’s obtainment of skills over time. 

This was Kelsey Nason's (third-year, Assessment and Measurement PhD program) second year attending NCME this time as a presenter and a session chair. She was able to present her work in a coordinated paper session alongside well-known researchers in the field. Not only was she able to attend sessions that sit at the frontier of new research avenues, but she was also able to connect with familiar and new colleagues. It was especially meaningful to meet with her employer for her summer internship. Once again, she had a positive experience participating in the official mentorship program and received additional advice from JMU alumni. She hopes to return to NCME next year as she rounds out her graduate experience."

Autumn Wild (second-year, Assessment & Measurement Ph.D. program) attended the NCME conference for the second time this year. As a current member of the NCME Graduate Student Issues Committee (GSIC), she helped coordinate and facilitate several graduate student events – from the joint NCME/AERA Division D Graduate Student Mixer to NCME’s very first graduate student-led training workshop. Autumn also presented on graduate-level internships, sharing research and moderating a panel of key stakeholders in the internship process. On top of that, she presented her own research during a graduate student poster session. When she wasn’t presenting or attending networking receptions (including meeting with her NCME Mentor), Autumn attended sessions about intersectional identities in measurement invariance testing and social justice approaches to educational measurement. She’s already looking forward to NCME 2026!