Submission guidelines
ACL Short Paper targets focused, self-contained contributions: a new benchmark, solid ablations, insightful error analysis, or a lightweight but effective module. Reviewers accept tight space but not weaker rigor “because it is short.” Format matches the ACL family: A4, two columns, 2.5 cm margins, 11pt body, 15pt headings, Chicago Author-Date; main text is usually 5 pages (confirm in the annual CFP).
Frequent rejection reasons: contribution feels unfocused vs. a long paper, experiments too thin for the claims, or the paper reads like a “long abstract.” Format issues: hard 5-page cap, missing Limitations, or confusing A4 with US Letter.
Formatting in detail
- Page and layout: A4; two columns; 5 pages maximum for main text (short); references usually do not count.
- Margins: 2.5 cm on all sides.
- Fonts: body Times New Roman 11pt; headings 15pt.
- Required structure: Abstract, Introduction, Limitations, References.
- Note: layout matches ACL Long; only page limits differ—see ACL 2025 short-paper instructions.
Abstract guidelines
- Length: 200 words maximum.
- Strategy: foreground one core contribution; avoid a laundry list of minor points.
- Consistency: align with tables, figures, and conclusions.
- Clarity: one sentence each for problem, method sketch, main result, and a hint of limitations.
Citations and references
- Style: Chicago Author-Date.
- Space: references must still be complete; avoid “citation stuffing” that eats narrative space.
- Common mistakes: mixing long- and short-paper page counts; incomplete Chicago fields; excessive self-citation that looks thin.
Frequent formatting mistakes
- Main text over 5 pages: figures or prose not compressed.
- Missing Limitations.
- Letter/A4 mix-up or margins not 2.5 cm.
- Locally reduced font size to fit pages.
- Too many sections for a short paper, leaving each section underdeveloped.
How to convert to ACL Short format with AutoSCI
- Upload your paper — PDF or Word.
- Choose a template — ACL 2025 (Short Paper).
- Export — LaTeX, PDF, or Word.
AutoSCI applies page limits, margins, fonts, and citation style for ACL short-paper submissions.
Short-paper writing strategy: less is more
Within five pages, aim for one through-line: one core question, one method idea, one primary experiment table plus ablations or analysis. Move quickly from introduction to what differs from prior work; keep methods lean; let one main table tell the story, with extras in the appendix if allowed.
How to write Limitations in short papers
Two to four sentences can suffice: data scope, uncovered languages, missing strong baselines, or societal risks. Be specific; avoid vague “future work” filler.
How short papers differ from long papers
A short paper is not “half a long paper”—it is a complete small story. If the contribution needs nine pages to be convincing, consider the long-paper track or narrow the scope.
Two-column layout and figures
Prefer one information-dense figure or table; combine subpanels in a 2×2 layout; avoid multi-page figure sequences. Long examples belong in the appendix. Full-width floats (figure*) can waste space—budget carefully.
LaTeX and the ACL short template
Use official short-paper options if provided; acl style is shared with long papers but confirm any short flag in the template. Read the README for that year’s build order and .bst.
Pre-deadline checklist
- A4, two columns, 2.5 cm margins.
- Main text ≤5 pages.
- Abstract ≤200 words.
- Limitations included.
- Chicago Author-Date throughout.
- 11pt / 15pt fonts.
Tips for international authors
Use concise active voice; short sentences beat nested clauses. Deadlines are often AoE (Anywhere on Earth). Align terminology with ACL community usage. If you work with non-English corpora, describe annotation and licensing clearly in English.
Cutting a long paper down to short
Delete redundant background, merge figures, move secondary experiments to the appendix; rewrite the introduction and contribution claims to match a short narrative rather than trimming prose alone.
Additional FAQ
Q: Are appendices allowed?
A: Follow that year’s ACL policy; if allowed, appendices do not count toward the 5-page main text, but the main paper must stand alone.
Q: Is there a cap on reference pages?
A: References usually do not count toward the 5-page main limit; keep Chicago formatting tidy.
Experiments and comparisons
Fewer baselines are acceptable if they are strong: align with official implementations and common settings; weak-baseline-only comparisons invite criticism.
Workflow with AutoSCI
Finalize content, then convert; verify 5 pages, Limitations, and A4 before submission.
Reviews and rebuttal
Short-paper rebuttals should be tight and precise: answer each concern directly and cite page numbers.
Version notice
The ACL 2025 short-paper call for papers is authoritative.
Ethics and data
Briefly state data provenance and compliance; add a sentence on generative risks if your work touches misuse scenarios.
PDF and fonts
Embed fonts; check pagination for orphans and awkward breaks in two columns.
Anonymity
Strip author-identifying information from the PDF and supplementary files, including metadata where required.
Common pitfalls
- Treating a short paper as an “extended abstract.”
- Filling pages with unexplained equations.
- Writing Limitations as “none.”
- Copy-pasting the abstract into Limitations.
Related work
Curate the most relevant citations; avoid exhaustive surveys that consume your narrative budget.
Symbols and equations
Minimize equation count; move long derivations to the appendix. Keep notation consistent with the main table and figures.
Narrative structure
Aim for: problem → method highlights → experiments → limitations, with each section short but self-contained.
Team roles
Assign one person to page and word budget and another to unified figure specs (width, font size, line weight).
Print preview
Use A4, actual size in print preview—Letter scaling will distort margins.
Final checks
Search for TODO, ??, unresolved citations, and accidental author metadata before upload.
Last hour before submission
Verification and upload only—avoid structural edits or large figure changes.
Compared to EMNLP short papers
Within the ACL conference series, layout is often aligned; page limits and policies follow each venue’s CFP.
Writing cadence
Drafting a longer outline (~7 pages) and compressing to 5 can preserve logical structure better than writing 5 pages cold.
Figure merging techniques
Combine subpanels labeled (a)(b)(c); unify font sizes and line widths across panels so reviewers can compare at a glance.
Data and reproducibility
Provide the minimum training details needed to reproduce main results; link code when the call allows.
Error analysis
One or two deep failure cases often strengthen a short paper more than extra superficial tables.
Cross-lingual research
If you evaluate only in English, do not imply multilingual generalization in the abstract or conclusion.
Citation completeness
Cite landmark and concurrent work you build on, but avoid padding the bibliography with marginally related papers.
What makes a successful short paper
Clear contribution, verifiable experiments, honest limitations, and a compact story that fits the page cap without feeling cramped or incomplete.
Migrating from other conferences
From US Letter venues: recalculate A4 and 2.5 cm margins, switch to Chicago Author-Date, and compress to 5 pages of main text.
Managing deadline stress
Short papers are tight on space—lock figures and tables at least 72 hours before the deadline when possible.
Dual submission with long papers
Follow one-submission-per-work rules and the conference’s dual-submission policy; do not submit the same content to incompatible tracks.
Style and template updates
Each year, confirm acl style version numbers and any short-paper class options in the official package.
Supplementary material and code
If supplementary files are allowed, keep numbering consistent with in-text references; anonymize links and repositories per policy.
Baseline fairness
Align training budget, data splits, and preprocessing with compared methods; report variance when runs are stochastic.
Statistics and significance
Short papers still benefit from reporting uncertainty—avoid presenting a single seed as definitive evidence.
Language and readability
Short sentences, clear subheadings, and scannable lists help reviewers who skim under time pressure.
Findings track
If the main conference rejects your paper, review Findings policies for that year if you consider that path.
Pre-deadline collaboration
After freezing the section outline, limit changes to wording and format—last-minute figure resizing often breaks the 5-page limit.
Two-column floats
Use figure* and table* sparingly; they can introduce large blank areas that cost precious pages.
Reference list maintenance
Merge branches with a single cleaned .bib file; remove uncited entries; verify Chicago fields before final compile.
Final PDF metadata
For anonymous submission, clear author fields in document properties and check creator/producer strings that could identify your lab.