Invitation to submit a paper / poster / film at RANZCO 2025
The Scientific Program Committee invites submissions for papers / posters and films for RANZCO’s 56th Annual Scientific Congress, taking place in Melbourne, Australia from 14 – 17 November 2025.
Submissions are only accepted through the online portal up until 9am (AEST) Friday 20th June
Before submitting via the online submission form, please read all the submission information to ensure that you are able to meet all the requirements.
Submission Information
By submitting an abstract, you agree to the following:
Papers/Posters
- If you are submitting a paper or poster, abstracts MUST be structured to include: Purpose, Method, Results and Conclusion. Abstracts without this structure will not be accepted (excluding case studies that can be in paragraph format).
- Results must be included for an abstract to be considered.
- A maximum of 4 papers/posters will be considered per presenting/first author
- All submissions must be the work of at least one author and made by the submitting / first author (presenter), not by an industry representative.
- All submissions must include an ophthalmologist in the author list.
- The abstract will be assessed on the study design, methodology/results, impact, interest and originality as presented in the abstract.
Films
- If you are submitting a film, your abstract MUST be structured to include:
5 – 6 lines of abstract. - All submissions must include an ophthalmologist in the author list.
- A maximum of 2 films per person.
- Film abstracts must be submitted by 9am on Friday 20th June via the abstract submission portal.
- Films of up to 5 minutes duration must be submitted by Monday 25th August in widescreen (16:9) format to reflect abstract submitted. Files can be submitted as .MOV or .MP4 files using h.264 or H265 compression. Be aware that 5 minutes of reasonable to high quality video will typically be 100MB to 500MB in size. Files should be no more than 1GB in size. Films to be sent using a file sharing software and shared with ranzco@thinkbusinessevents.com.au
- Films will be shown in the Film Festival booth at Congress, added to the Congress app, virtual platform and shared with Fellows post Congress via a secure area of the RANZCO website. If you prefer that your film is not made available online and shared with Fellows, please advise the Congress Office prior to Congress.
- Film notifications will be emailed to submitting authors by Friday 19th September based on both the submitted abstract and film.
Papers/Posters/Films
- Previous abstracts will be considered if published/presented internationally (beyond Australia and New Zealand) and at a regional level / SIGS Conference (e.g. Strabismus, Paediatrics).
- Abstracts presented at a previous RANZCO event either in Australia or New Zealand will not be accepted.
- The acceptance of an abstract does not imply provision of travel, accommodation or registration for the Congress, nor any other costs associated with preparation or presentation of the abstract, or any costs associated with attendance at the Congress.
- All authors presenting at the Congress must register and pay to attend
(IN PERSON). - By submitting an abstract/s you agree to give us permission on behalf of ALL authors to have this abstract appear in printed and online Congress related materials if it is selected for inclusion in the Congress.
- By submitting an abstract/s you give permission on behalf of all authors, for the presentation to be recorded and/or live streamed and made available to Fellows via a secure site following the Congress on the RANZCO website.
- By submitting an abstract/s you agree to give us permission to publish your email address and contact details in the online Wiley Abstract Supplement.
- If the author(s) have any commercial interests or associations that might pose a conflict of interest regarding this submission, they must be declared. If accepted for presentation, the commercial interest or association must be declared on the title slide or the slide immediately following the title slide.
- You confirm that the submission has been approved by ALL authors.
- All abstracts must be submitted in English and via the online submission site. Other forms of submission e.g. by post, email or fax will NOT be accepted.
- The author(s) agree(s) to materially confine their presentations to information in the abstract if accepted for presentation; if an author has more than one abstract accepted, each presentation will be materially confined to the information in the abstract selected for the specific session.
- Please note that authors who make a presentation of an abstract that is not the abstract that was accepted for presentation, will be omitted from the Congress program for a period of three years henceforth.
- At least one author must be available to present the abstract if selected for the program. The authors will immediately notify the RANZCO 2025 Congress Office if they are unable to present an abstract or if the presenting author is changed.
- The decision of the Scientific Program Committee is final and non-negotiable.
View the submission guidelines and instructions here.
Using the online abstract submission form you will be able to select ONE (1) of the following categories that best fits your submission. These categories will be used by the Scientific Program Committee to place abstracts in session streams and assign them to the reviewers.
- Cataract
- Cornea
- Epidemiology / Public Health
- Genetics
- Glaucoma
- Medical Retina
- Neuro-Ophthalmology
- Ocular Oncology
- Oculoplastic / Orbit
- Paediatric Ophthalmology
- Refractive Surgery
- Strabismus
- Sustainability
- Training & Education
- Uveitis
- Vitreoretinal Surgery
- Artificial Intelligence
- Other
The following presentation formats will be available at the RANZCO 2025 Congress.
Please note authors may indicate whether they prefer:
- Poster or Paper
- Paper only (this will not be considered for a poster)
- Poster only (this will not be considered for a paper)
- Film
Please read the descriptions below before submitting your abstract.
Paper Presentations
(In person presentation only. Pre-recorded presentations will NOT be permitted)
Rapid Fire
Most paper presentations are in a ‘Rapid Fire’ format. Presenters will have four (4) minutes to present their paper followed by three (3) minutes for discussion (7) minutes in total in a move to increase interactivity and interaction at Congress.
Best Paper
Six presentations will be selected in a ‘Best Paper’ format. Notification will be sent to the presenters selected for this ‘Best Paper’ session. Presenters will have nine (9) minutes to present their paper followed by four (4) minutes for discussion.
The Gerard Crock Trophy will be awarded to the best paper presented by a RANZCO Fellow (of any year) or Scientist. The John Parr Trophy will be awarded to the best paper presented by a Trainee.
Poster Presentations
(Hard copy and e-Posters will be accepted)
Top scoring posters will be short listed for prizes as awarded by a panel of judges.
The Ophthalmic Film Festival
The RANZCO Congress will host the Ophthalmic Film Festival which will run continuously during the Congress. Selected films will be screened in a specially designated area of the Congress.
Short abstracts of 5 to 6 lines are to be submitted online. Authors must also submit the full film (up to 5 minutes in duration) by Monday 25th August via a file share platform to ranzco@thinkbusinessevents.com.au
Prizes will be presented for the best films in the below categories:
- Ophthalmic Surgery
- Non-Surgical (E.g. research, education, community)
Each abstract will undergo an identity hidden review by multiple reviewers from the Scientific Program Committee.
Abstracts will be graded based on the study design, methodology/results, impact, interest and originality as presented in the abstract. If there are no or insufficient clarity in the results, then the abstract will not be considered (excludes case studies).
Only a certain number of abstracts are selected for inclusion in the program. While we understand that it can be disappointing to miss out, the aim is to provide the most comprehensive and diverse program possible.
Decisions of the committee are final.
Abstract Submission closes:
Friday 20th June @9am (AEST)
Notification to authors:
Monday 25th August
For further information, please contact the Congress office:
Think Business Events
Ph: 02 8251 0045
Fax: 02 8251 0097
Email: ranzco@thinkbusinessevents.com.au