SEMINAR,

CONFERENCE,
WORKSHOP AND
SYMPOSIUM
SYMPOSIUM
 A Symposium is a formal gathering in an academic
setting where participants are experts in their fields.
These experts present or deliver their opinions or
viewpoints on a chosen topic of discussion. It would be
correct to label a symposium as a small
scale conference as the number of delegates is smaller.
 A symposium will have many opportunities for
participants to confer and present their own work briefly
or in poster sessions. There is generally a fee to attend,
whether presenting or not (though symposium or plenary
speakers will receive a discount or honorarium).
 Symposium is a sort of meeting in which experts on a
particular subject are called to speak upon it.
 a meeting or conference for the public
discussion of some topic especially one in
which the participants form an audience and
make presentations.
 formal gathering in an academic setting
where participants are experts in their
fields. These experts present or deliver their
opinions or viewpoints on a chosen topic of
discussion. It would be correct to label a
symposium as a small scale conference as the
number of delegates is smaller. 
CONFERENCE AND WORKSHOP
 A conference will typically have invited experts
speaking (sometimes in “plenary” sessions). 
 Conference is a formal meeting of people having a
shared, common interest, where exchange of
informations, views etc. take place. It can be one
day conference or more than that. This term is quite
common in the business, scientific segments.
 A workshop implies that the participants will be
learning actively, rather than simply listening.
 Workshop is like a class in which a group of
interested people are trained, helped to learn some
methods, develop skills to do something specific. 
 Conferences are occasional or annual meetings organized by a
committee, with a group of appointed paper reviewers who
review submissions and select the most suitable, original, best
etc. papers for publication in a book: ‘conference proceedings’.
 A Conference refers to a formal meeting where participants
exchange their views on various topics.
 Conference can take place in different fields, and it need not be
academic in nature all the time.
 Thus, we have parent teacher conferences, sport conferences, a
trade conference, a conference of journalists, conference of
doctors, a conference of research scholars, and so on.
 A conference is a meeting that has been prearranged and
involves consultation and discussion on a number of topics by the
delegates.
 Conference and symposium are similar events where speakers
come together and give their opinions on a chosen subject.
Symposium can be described as a smaller conference that gets
over in a single day with a lesser number of delegates.
SEMINAR
 A seminar is predominantly used to describe
a single invited speaker event. They can be
in a series (weekly or monthly). However, a
seminar might have several speakers or a
panel of speakers and in that way resemble a
conference or symposium. The main
difference is that a seminar is held within an
institution - the only invited outsiders would
be the speakers (though guests from
neighbouring institutions might attend
informally). Guests would not be charged to
attend.
 Seminars are generally of shorter duration and it is
possible to have several business seminars inside a
conference which may last for a few days. 
 A seminar may be organized to enhance the skills of
people involved in a particular profession.
 In such a case, experts are called who give lectures to
the participants and all participants receive a
certificate at the end of the seminar.
 is a form of academic instruction, either at a university
or offered by a commercial or professional organization.
 It includes some take home material for the participants
that relates to the lecture. A full laboratory phase is not
a requirement.
COLLOQUIUM

 usually a academic meeting at which specialists

deliver addresses on a topic or on related topics
and then answer questions relating to them
 typically consists of a single lecture given by a
member of the academic community about his
or her work to colleagues who work in the same
or an allied field.
 The audience is expected to ask questions and
to evaluate the work presented.
 Colloquia provide scholars with the opportunity
to face and respond to criticism in the early
stages of the development of new ideas.