“Suggestions for Success” – Abstract Best Practices

On behalf of the Committee on Scientific Affairs (COSA), I’d like to thank you for your interest in submitting an abstract for this year’s Society of Cosmetic Chemists Scientific Meeting and Showcase. Your willingness to share your original research is the lifeblood of our organization. Here are a few pointers that will ensure that your abstract has the best chance of resulting in a podium presentation. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out the SCC office: education@scconline.org

1. Your abstract should represent original research or an original review of the latest research on the relevant subject. These two points cannot be over-emphasized.
2. Your abstract is anonymous to the review committee. Any identifying information, outside of the required submissions fields, will be removed before it is presented to the review committee, regardless of the impact to the abstract.
3. Your abstract is graded on four dimensions. Pay careful attention to your abstract’s:
   1. Educational Value to Attendees
   2. Originality / Novelty / Innovation
   3. Clarity and Focus
   4. Significance / Importance / Contribution / Impact
4. There are six main sections to the abstract:
   1. Background Information – What’s the current state of science in this area?
   2. Objective – What does this new research intend to prove?
   3. Methodology – How did you go about demonstrating the novelty of the research?
   4. Results – What was the result of executing the above methodology?
   5. Conclusion – What can we draw from your research?
   6. Importance – How does this research change the current state of science?
5. The following items are not required, but make for a MUCH more compelling abstract:
   1. Disclose how many subjects or replicants were used for each test condition.
   2. Demonstrate that the study is sufficiently powered so that results are statistically relevant.
   3. Explain statistical analysis used.
   4. Include non-commercial or competitive comparisons, without including commercial content.
   5. If study is not in-vivo, explain how the results are predicted to correlate.
   6. Discuss all end points, not just successful ones.