Information and Communication Technology Section

Call for Papers
38th National Student Research Conference
Information and Communication Technology Section

1. General Information, Organizers

Organizer of the event:

Pázmány Péter Catholic University
Faculty of Information Technology and Bionics

Address: Budapest, Práter u. 50/A, 1083
Phone: (06 1) 886 4700
Website: https://itk.ppke.hu/

Section website address: https://otdk2027.itk.ppke.hu/
Section e-mail address: otdk2027@itk.ppke.hu
Date of the event: March 22–24, 2027.

The National Association for Student Research (OTDT), the Information and Communication Technology Section Committee (ICT Section Committee) of the OTDT and the organizing Pázmány Péter Catholic University, Faculty of Information Technology and Bionics hereby announce the Information and Communication Technology Section (ICT Section) of the 38th National Student Research Conference under the conditions of the following call.

The conditions for participation and registration in the ICT Section of the 38th OTDK are set out in the General Call of the 38th OTDK and in this Call of the OTDT ICT Section Committee as well as its Supplement.

As one of the 16 Sections of the 38th OTDK, the ICT Section is an interdisciplinary section, a forum for new advances in the field of computer science. Its primary goal is to provide a shared opportunity for specialists studying in various fields of informatics – such as software engineering, technical engineering, economic and agricultural informatics, and bionics – to present their independent research findings. The ICT Section welcomes TDK papers that contribute to the development of theories, tools, and methods in the diverse areas of informatics.

2. Eligibility Criteria

2.1 Who is eligible to participate

In the 38th National Student Research Conference (OTDK), TDK papers and authors (in the case of multi-author TDK papers, all authors) may participate that meet the conditions specified in the General Call for the 38th National Student Research Conference (details are provided in Supplement 2 of the General Call for the 38th OTDK.)

By submitting an application to the ICT Section, the applicant student agrees to be bound by the Hungarian Academy of Sciences’ Code of Scientific Ethics (Resolution 25/2010 (V. 4.) of the General Assembly of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, available at https://mta.hu/data/dokumentumok/hatteranyagok/tudomanyetikai_bizottsag/tudomanyetikai_kodex_kgy_20100504.pdf), and declares that they have conducted their research activities accordingly. If the research topic requires ethical approval, it is the responsibility of the sending institution to ensure compliance with these requirements.

Study circles from cross-border universities and colleges can participate in the 38th OTDK under the same professional conditions as those in Hungary. Details are available in the General Call of the 38th OTDK.

The conference is also open to secondary school students in Hungary and across borders who present their research results at conferences of higher education institutions or national high school science student conferences (for details see Supplement 4 of the General Call for the 38th OTDK) and are nominated for the 38th OTDK. A detailed description of the participation of secondary school students is available in the General Call of the 38th OTDK.

A thesis produced in the course of continuous TDK activity during BA, BSc and Bprof education, can be entered to the 38th OTDK, if it meets the requirements of the Call and its Supplements and has been presented at a student research conference either during the BA/BSc/Bprof or the subsequent MA/MSc training and has there been delegated to the OTDK.

Compulsory assignments prescribed in the curriculum during university or college studies, seminar papers, as well as – in the case of students in integrated master’s or MA/MSc programs – theses already defended by the time of the institutional TDK conference, and scientific works prepared and/or presented by doctoral students after obtaining their university degree may not be submitted to the National Student Research Conference, as they do not fall within the scope of student self-directed research in higher education.

Participation is primarily a form of moral recognition and an opportunity that allows students to present their arguments, engage in debate, exchange views, and gain experience in front of an audience and a professional jury. It prepares students for participation in national and international conferences within their field, and through the evaluation of their own and others’ work and presentations, it provides reinforcement and further motivation for research work.

2.2. Formal requirements for participation and evaluation of TDK papers and presentations

Supplement 1 of the ICT Section Call contains the formatting rules to be followed and the elements of the evaluation, with the following details:

• Content and format requirements for TDK papers and abstracts.
• Rules for the presentation of TDK papers in foreign languages.
• Evaluation criteria for the TDK paper and the presentation.
• Rules for the use of AI-based tools.

2.3. Tools used and research ethics considerations

In the abstract of the TDK paper, the student must clearly indicate their own professional contributions. This is particularly important in the case of papers linked to a project or carried out within a group research context; in such cases, the author must clearly indicate what constitutes their own contribution. In addition, the paper must specify which parts involved the use of artificial intelligence and to what extent it contributed to the results.

All artificial intelligence–based tools used in the preparation of the paper (e.g. ChatGPT, Copilot, etc.), as well as the manner of their use (e.g. language editing, figure or code generation, etc.), must be documented by the student in the appendix of the paper in a declaration agreed with the supervisor. Contrary to Supplement 6 of the General Call of the 38th OTDK it is not necessary to record and list each individual prompt separately, except in cases where the content of the prompts constitutes a substantive professional contribution to the paper. The declaration included in the paper may be used on the OTDK registration interface during the application process.

The sources and public accessibility level of the data used in the TDK paper must also be documented. The paper and the data contained therein are to be considered public; accordingly, only data that are public or whose publication is legally permitted may be used.

2.4. Rules for the presentation of the TDK paper

Presentation of the paper requires the author’s personal attendance at the conference; an exception may be made for students who, in duly justified cases (e.g. illness), have notified the Executive Board of the Information and Communication Technology Section in advance by submitting a request. Decisions on the requests are made by the Executive Board. Students granted permission for online participation must present their TDK paper synchronously online during the panel session; however, as a precaution, they must also prepare a video recording of the presentation in advance and submit it at least 3 days before the conference. The video recording will be used only if the synchronous online presentation fails due to technical reasons. If the student is unable to answer the jury’s questions due to technical reasons, this will result in a deduction of points in the evaluation.

3. Sessions/topics

3.1. Topics

When registering, students must select the most appropriate category from the following list. In choosing the category, they should consider the significant new computer science-related results presented in their TDK paper.

1. Algorithms
2. Speech and language processing
3. Formal methods
4. Formal languages
5. Hardware and embedded systems
6. Networks
7. Signal processing
8. Image processing
9. Cybersecurity
10. Mathematical methods in informatics
11. Applications of artificial intelligence
12. Artificial intelligence algorithms
13. Intelligent systems
14. Information systems
15. Computer graphics
16. Computer vision
17. Software technology
18. Internet of Things and systems operation
19. Other IT-related topics

3.2. Rules for the establishment of the session assignment

The sessions of the conference are established by the Executive Board of the Information and Communication Technology Section, taking into account the above thematic areas belonging to the Informatics Section, as well as the provisions of the 38th OTDK General Call, with the aim of ensuring broad institutional representation within sessions and a balanced number of TDK papers. The Executive Board reserves the right to redirect papers that do not pertain to the scientific field of the Information ad Communication Technology Section – while thanking the applicant for their submission – to a more relevant section of the 38th National Student Research Conference.

Students will be informed about the sessions and the classification of TDK papers via the OTDT online system no later than one month before the start of the conference.

4. Application procedure

4.1. Steps of registration for applicants

4.1.1. Pre-registration of TDK papers

Following the student research conference, upload of the TDK paper, and selection of the section within 30 days from the receipt of the email specified in point 4 of Supplement 2 to the 38th OTDK General Call.

ATTENTION! Please note that uploading a TDK paper does not constitute an automatic entry to the 38th OTDK. Applications must be submitted during the registration period, following the steps described in the next section.

4.1.2. The application

Registration period: 16 November 2026 – 13 January 2027 (Wednesday), 16:00 (CET)

Students’ tasks during this period are:

• Filling in the information related to the uploaded application.
• Uploading the abstract. Students who are native Hungarian speakers or are enrolled in Hungarian-language programs must upload a Hungarian-language abstract; in other cases, an English-language abstract may also be uploaded.
• On the abstract upload page, providing five keywords that do not appear in the title of the paper.
• Finalizing the application in the OTDT online system.

After the registration deadline for students – 13 January 2027 (Wednesday), 16:00 (CET) – it will no longer be possible for students to upload application documents in the OTDT online system.

4.2. Additional tasks for students who have obtained a pre-degree certificate or are expected to obtain a pre-degree certificate in the semester of registration

Students who obtained a pre-degree certificate between the qualifying institutional TDK conference and the 38th OTDK must declare the date of obtaining their pre-degree certificate in the OTDT online system during the application process (those who are expected to obtain their pre-degree certificate in the semester of application, after the application deadline, must indicate that they are expected to obtain it in the semester of application).

In the case of students who qualified at ETDK, FTDK, KTDK, or VMTDK conferences, the expected date of finalizing the application to the 38th OTDK must be indicated as the date of the pre-degree certificate, as this has already been verified upon their acceptance to the qualifying conference.

5. Tasks of the TDT Chair in relation to the 38th OTDK

5.1. Tasks following the student research conference

Uploading the documents of the student research conference and sending them to the OTDT Office according to point 3 of Supplement 2 of the General Call for the 38th OTDK.

5.2. Tasks following the participants’ registration deadline

• Approval of participant registrations in the OTDT online system (applications are automatically approved, the TDT Chair has to deal with this only if they do not approve an entry).
• Approval in the OTDT online system of the consolidated list containing the approved applications of TDK papers and their authors submitted to the Information and Communication Technology Section, and/or its generation from the online system and signature with a qualified electronic signature, or printing and signing, followed by electronic upload to the OTDT online system.

By approving/signing the consolidated list, the TDT Chairs also declare that all TDK papers and their authors included therein meet the requirements set out in Supplement 2 to the General Call of the 38th OTDK.

Deadline for institutional and faculty TDT Chairs to upload documents to the OTDT online system: 18 January 2027 (Monday) 16:00 (CET). After the deadline it will no longer be possible to upload application documents in the OTDT online system.

We are unable to accept TDK papers that are submitted after the deadline or do not meet the requirements outlined in the ICT Section Call; such applications will be rejected.

Applications submitted individually are invalid.

6. Registration fee

The registration fees for the 38th OTDK will be determined at a later stage, subject to the availability of funding.

7. The awards that can be granted at the OTDK and the Special Prize of the Session Panel

A certificate of participation in the OTDK will be awarded to all authors and supervisors of each paper presented. In addition, a maximum of one third of the papers presented may be awarded one of the first, second and third places per section, taking into account that a maximum of one entry per session may be awarded first place. The Section Panel may award a special prize to those papers that do not achieve ranking but are judged by the Session Panel to be worthy of recognition on the basis of their professional merit, and which are judged to be immediately behind the winning applications. The authors of the winning papers and those of the papers receiving the Special Prize of the Session Panel will each receive a certificate for the ranking or the Special Prize of the Session Panel.

The total number of winning papers and papers awarded the Special Prize of the Session Panel may not exceed 50% of the total number of papers presented in a section. Further rules on prizes are set out in Supplement 3 to the General Call.

8. Submission of Pro Scientia Gold Medal application

The authors of TDK papers that have been awarded first place at the national conference may apply for the Pro Scientia Gold Medal, provided they meet the additional criteria set out in the call. Details are given in Supplement 5 of the 38th OTDK General Call.

We invite and welcome all interested students and their masters!

Budapest, 21 April 2026.

SUPPLEMENT 1 TO THE CALL OF PAPERS
38TH OTD
INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY SECTION

1.  The language of the TDK paper and the presentation

TDK papers for the Information and Communication Technology Section (ICT Section) of the 38th OTDK can be submitted in Hungarian and English. Students who are native Hungarian speakers or are enrolled in Hungarian-language programs must give their presentation in Hungarian; in other cases, a presentation in English is also permitted.

2.  Content requirements for the TDK paper

An essential requirement for TDK papers is a scientifically rigorous approach to the chosen problem and comprehensive documentation. The results presented in the paper may be published both before and after the OTDK (e.g., at other conferences, in their publications, or in journals).

TDK papers in which informatics serves only as a tool and the new results relate to another field will be redirected by the Executive Board of the Information and Communication Technology Section – subject to approval by the Section Committee – to the professionally appropriate OTDK section.

The TDK paper submitted to the 38th OTDK must be identical – apart from the cover page and the mandatory declarations – to the paper with which its author(s) obtained eligibility for participation at the institutional TDK conference.

The mandatory appendix forming part of the paper must include: (1) the abstract of the TDK paper, (2) the declaration on the use of artificial intelligence, and (3) a description of 2,000 to 4,000 characters (statement of results) clearly indicating which results are the student’s own and which are attributable to the supervisor or the broader research group. (This is particularly important if the results of the TDK paper were co-published with other authors.) The declaration on the use of artificial intelligence and the statement of results must be written either in the language of the paper or in Hungarian. The requirements for the abstract are set out in Section 5 of this supplement.

All TDK papers submitted to the OTDK will be subject to a plagiarism check. A three-member subcommittee, appointed by the Section Committee, will review and assess the plagiarism report. We specifically draw the attention of applying students to the fact that plagiarism is not permitted in any form; even one’s own work may not be cited without proper referencing (prohibition of self-plagiarism). TDK papers that are proven to infringe copyright will be excluded from the OTDK by the OTDT, with simultaneous notification to the nominating institution.

3.  Formal requirements for the TDK paper

Time for uploading: within 30 days after the acceptance of the student research conference, as described in Supplement 2, point 4 of the General Call of the 38th OTDK.

The TDK papers must be uploaded in PDF format as standalone files. The maximum file size is 10 MB. In justified cases, the author(s) should coordinate via the section’s central email address: otdk2027@itk.ppke.hu

Uploading further supplementary documents is permitted. The supplementary document(s) must be uploaded as a single file, which may include test data, representative results, and any information that supports the credibility of the results and aids in reproducing the work. The file containing the supplementary document has a maximum size of 10 megabytes.

The TDK paper should be prepared with the label “TDK Thesis” on the outer cover page, including the author(s)’ name(s). The following title page must contain the name of the institution, faculty, and department where the TDK paper was prepared, along with the author(s)’ name(s), year, and the supervisor(s)’ name(s) and position(s), as well as the exact title of the paper (matching the title on the registration form). The TDK paper submitted to the Information and Communication Technology Section must be identical to the paper presented at the institutional/faculty TDK conference, except for the outer cover page, the title page, and the appendix containing (1) the abstract, (2) the declaration on the use of artificial intelligence, and (3) the statement of results.

4.  Printed TDK paper

You do not need to submit a hard copy of your TDK paper.

5.  Rules for the abstract

The abstract is to be included in the appendix of the paper. The abstract should explain what scientifically valid, novel solution the paper in question presents. It must introduce the specific scientific/professional question or task examined, the research methodology used and briefly highlight the student(s)’ own achieved results (clearly distinguishing them from the results of the supervisor or the broader research team). The abstract should not include results achieved after the student research conference.

The main text of the abstract needs to be uploaded also to the OTDT online system (the other data: names of authors, institution, supervisor, etc. are generated by the online system). Students who are native Hungarian speakers or are enrolled in Hungarian-language programs must upload a Hungarian-language abstract; in other cases, an English-language abstract may also be uploaded. Size of the summary: minimum 800, maximum 2,500 characters according to the following criteria:

1. A short justification of the research/study in at least 200 characters.
2. A brief description of the methods used in at least 200 characters.
3. Presentation of the student’s own results, clearly distinguished from those of the advisor or broader research group, in at least 200 characters.
4. Key conclusions in at least 200 characters.

6.  Evaluation rules for the TDK paper

The submitted TDK papers will be evaluated in writing by two reviewers, based on the following criteria:

• Novelty of the paper and the quality of its development.
• Relevance and content of the topic.
• Validity of the results.
• The review of literature related to the topic.
• Formal presentation and style of the paper.
• Scientific value of the results, their current publication status, and potential for publication.
• The reviewer’s summary opinion on the paper, evaluating its quality. The strengths and weaknesses of the paper.

In the written evaluation, a maximum of 50 points can be awarded, based on the average score given by the two reviewers. If the difference between the scores of the two reviews exceeds 15 points, the Executive Board requests the reviewers to reconcile their positions through professional discussion; if the difference remains, the Executive Board appoints a third reviewer.

Evaluations will be published by the Organizing committee of the Section via the OTDT online system. The identity of the reviewers remains confidential. Students will have access to the professional reviews one week prior to the conference.

At the conference, participants will have 12 minutes to present their TDK paper (presentation), followed by a 8-minute discussion. The presentation will be evaluated by a Session Panel of recognized members of the field. In the presentation, applicants may mention results achieved since the student research conference, but it must be clearly emphasized that these results are not part of the submitted TDK paper, and the Section Panel will consider this accordingly. Evaluation criteria for the presentation:

• significance of the results;
• verification of the results;
• content and professional quality of the presentation;
• demonstration of the results;
• debate skills of the presenter;
• presentation style, structure, organization and time management.

Maximum score for the presentation evaluation: 50 points.

The final score is determined based on the written evaluations and the oral assessment.

• 38th OTDK Information and Communication Technology Section Call
• Supplement 1