About

The 32nd International Working Conference on Requirements Engineering: Foundation for Software Quality (REFSQ 2026) will once again host a dedicated track for discussing journal manuscripts that are in progress. Inspired by journal-first tracks at other conferences, but uniquely focused on still-evolving work, this track provides a platform for authors to share and refine their journal or conference submissions.

In keeping with REFSQ’s tradition as a working conference, this track explicitly excludes already published work. Instead, it welcomes manuscripts that are nearly ready for submission or have just been rejected.

Accepted contributions will be presented and discussed at the conference, allowing authors to gather feedback from the REFSQ community and, where relevant, to engage in discussion about reviewers’ comments they have received.

This track is designed to benefit both authors and the broader community. Authors will receive valuable input to help strengthen their manuscripts, while participants will gain early insights into cutting-edge research and play an active role in shaping its development.

The Journal Early Feedback track at REFSQ 2026 offers a unique opportunity for authors to present and receive constructive feedback on papers in preparation to be submitted to, or recently rejected from, journals or leading conferences (A/A*). This track is inspired by journal-first tracks at other conferences, but with a focus on work-in-progress, in alignment with REFSQ’s collaborative and formative spirit.

Who should submit

We especially welcome submissions from:

• Junior researchers submitting a journal article as lead author for the first time;
• Authors transitioning into the requirements engineering (RE) domain from other research areas;
• Authors of recently rejected journal papers who would benefit from community feedback before resubmitting;
• Anyone seeking informed advice on how to strengthen their ongoing work.

Submission Requirements

Each submission must include:

1. A one-page proposal with the following:

   • Paper title
   • Author names
   • Abstract
   • (Optional) Name of the target journal or conference
   • A short list of specific questions or discussion topics on which the authors would like to receive feedback.

2. The manuscript in its current form (draft, submitted, or revised)

3. (Optional) Reviewer comments (if the paper has been rejected and the authors would like to discuss these comments)

Important Dates

• February 22nd, 2026: Submission deadline (proposal + manuscript + optional comments)
• March 2nd, 2026: Notification of acceptance

Selection Criteria

All submissions will be reviewed by the track chairs for:

• Relevance to the REFSQ community and to requirements engineering topics;
• Maturity of the manuscript (sufficiently developed to enable meaningful discussion);
• Potential for productive discussion that can benefit both authors and attendees.

Presentation Format

This track seeks to foster early communication, feedback, and visibility of ongoing and published research relevant to the REFSQ community.

Accepted contributions will be included in a dedicated session during REFSQ 2026, where authors will briefly present their work and engage in feedback discussions with the audience.