SHPE National Convention 2026

What is the 2026 SHPE National Convention?

The SHPE National Convention brings the organisation's STEM community to Indianapolis from October 28 to 31, 2026. The host venue is the Indiana Convention Center at 100 South Capitol Avenue. Organisers project nearly 10,000 attendees and 250 + exhibitors; those are expectations for this edition, not audited results. The event is presented in partnership with Latinas in Tech.

Who should attend SHPE 2026?

Students, working engineers, recruiters, academics and technology employers have different reasons to attend. The organiser expects nearly 10,000 people and more than 200 speakers. Latinas in Tech joins as an event partner, widening the professional network beyond SHPE membership. Undergraduate registration is $470 during the regular window, while professional registration is $600.

When and where does the convention take place?

The convention is scheduled for October 28 to 31, 2026. It meets at the Indiana Convention Center, 100 South Capitol Avenue, Indianapolis. Onsite registration opens at 6:00 AM on Wednesday, October 28, although that is a check-in time rather than a universal start time for programming. The published attendee update points visitors to the agenda for individual session times.

What should an attendee plan across the four days?

Wednesday, October 28 begins with onsite registration at 6:00 AM and includes a Honeywell Aerospace lunch. Thursday's programme includes the Excellence in STEM Luncheon; Friday features the STAR Awards Gala. Saturday, October 31 has STEM Familia Fest. Check the Attendee Hub for actual session times and reservations before treating this outline as a personal agenda.

How is the career fair floor organised?

SHPE has published a career fair floor plan and a separate University Village floor plan for 2026. The convention is at the Indiana Convention Center, not at a distributed citywide expo site. Organisers project 250 + exhibitors, but a booth count does not reveal which employer fits a given student's target list. Use the current career fair floor plan for booth-level routing.

How can visitors get to the Indianapolis venue?

The Indiana Convention Center address is 100 South Capitol Avenue in downtown Indianapolis. Onsite registration starts at 6:00 AM on the first day, so early arrivals can plan check-in before later programming. The organiser also lists an October 14 hotel booking deadline. Travel time and parking costs are not specified in the reviewed convention notice; confirm those directly with the venue before departure.

What does SHPE 2026 registration cost?

The live registration page lists regular prices through October 14 at 5pm ET: $470 for an undergraduate, $600 for a professional and $860 for a non-member. Late pricing runs Oct 15 through Oct 31 at 12pm ET; the professional late rate is $760. These attendee rates cover registration, while exhibitor space packages have separate terms.

Which SHPE badges and reservations grant access?

The exhibitor agreement distinguishes Career Fair Only badges, covering the fair and interview booths, from Full Convention registrations, which include open networking events and workshops. Meals and ticketed functions are outside that general full-registration access. The attendee update says select meals and special events need seat reservations; adding a workshop to the Hub agenda does not itself reserve a seat.

What should exhibitors know about official housing?

The exhibitor terms require exhibitors and sponsors to book through SHPE's official housing provider in designated room blocks. The attendee newsletter gives October 14 as the hotel booking deadline. These are related but different instructions: the first is a contractual exhibitor policy, while the second is a dated reminder for attendees. The Indiana Convention Center address is 100 South Capitol Avenue.

When should out-of-town teams arrive?

Teams with Wednesday commitments should account for onsite registration opening at 6:00 AM on October 28. The four-day convention runs October 28 to 31, 2026; STEM Familia Fest is listed on the final day. Hotel booking has an October 14 deadline in the organiser's update. Arrival and departure choices depend on each team's meetings and session reservations; the public materials do not prescribe one itinerary.

What scale of exhibitor participation is expected?

The 2026 event site advertises 250 + exhibitors and more than 200 speakers. SHPE's 2025 facts show 346 exhibitors and 763 interview booths for that prior edition. Those older counts provide context for the career fair's past scale, but should not be presented as a confirmed 2026 floor count or interview capacity. The current floor plan is linked from the attendee update.

Where can attendees research employers beforehand?

The organiser's attendee update links a career fair floor plan and a University Village floor plan. It also says STEM & Career Fair group assignments are available in the Attendee Hub. The 2026 site projects 250 + exhibitors, making a short employer list more practical than trying to visit every stand. Compare the live map and Hub assignment before setting interview priorities.

What sessions and gatherings are announced?

The 2026 site projects more than 200 speakers. Announced special events include the October 29 Excellence in STEM Luncheon and October 30 STAR Awards Gala. The SHPEtinas and Latinas in Tech luncheon is also listed for October 30, reflecting this edition's partnership. These named gatherings do not establish the full session timetable; use the Attendee Hub agenda for session selection.

How can meeting plans fit around reserved events?

Some meal functions and special events require a seat reservation in the Attendee Hub. The Wednesday Honeywell Aerospace lunch and Thursday Excellence in STEM Luncheon are among the named options. Wednesday and Thursday hospitality suites are invite-only. Leave these periods out of open meeting slots unless attendance and access are confirmed; adding workshops to an agenda does not reserve a seat.

What does the available audience evidence show?

SHPE expects nearly 10,000 students, professionals, academics and industry leaders in Indianapolis in 2026. The edition is partnered with Latinas in Tech and projects 250 + exhibitors. For historical context, 2025 had 346 exhibitors and 763 interview booths. Public sources do not provide a verified 2026 split by job seniority, employer buying role or hiring authority.

Which target organisations warrant advance research?

The 2026 career fair floor plan and University Village floor plan offer separate routes through the event. Attendees can use the Attendee Hub to check STEM & Career Fair group assignments before scheduling fair time. With 250 + projected exhibitors, a useful target list should follow actual recruiting or academic goals rather than simply the largest brands. The 346 exhibitors recorded in 2025 should not decide this year's booth order.

What can the SHPE Attendee Hub do?

SHPE says the Attendee Hub is live for agenda building, session exploration and select seat reservations. STEM & Career Fair group assignments appear there for registrants before October 14; later registrants receive assignments at onsite registration. Adding a workshop, panel or networking item to an agenda does not reserve a seat, a practical distinction when arranging meetings around popular sessions.

Does the Attendee Hub replace exhibitor lead capture?

As of October 12, 2026, the reviewed SHPE event page, attendee update and exhibitor prospectus describe agenda planning, career fair assignments and registration access. They do not state that the Attendee Hub scans badges for exhibitors or exports contact records. A comparison with lead capture software therefore needs a current exhibitor order form or technical specification that was not publicly available in those sources.

What exhibitor prices and payment rules are public?

SHPE's January first-look exhibitor form lists a regular $2,500 University/Community 10-by-10 package and a $17,000 Gold 10-by-20 package. Those are dated first-look figures, not a complete current rate card. The same form says invoices needed payment by October 2 to guarantee listings and warns of a 25% late fee. Confirm a current contract total directly before budgeting.

What must a booth team clear before opening?

The 2026 exhibitor terms release exhibitor and staff registration only after invoices are paid in full. They require booking with SHPE's official housing provider and say no refunds will be provided. Career Fair Only badges cover the fair and interview booths, while Full Convention registration adds open networking events and workshops. The two badge types affect who can attend sessions beyond the fair.

Who provides official SHPE 2026 lead retrieval?

As of October 12, 2026, the public event site, attendee update and exhibitor first-look form do not name an official lead retrieval vendor for this edition. The materials discuss attendee registration, career fair assignments and exhibitor badges, but they do not establish a scanner supplier. The draft therefore leaves the vendor unnamed until SHPE publishes a current exhibitor service guide or order form.

What scanner limits or device rules are documented?

The reviewed 2026 SHPE sources do not publish a scanner specification, per-device allowance, offline mode, badge field list or export format. The first-look exhibitor terms address payment, housing and registration access instead. Any claim about phone compatibility or scan limits would be guesswork. Exhibitors should request the current lead retrieval service terms from the organiser before buying or deploying a tool.

How does B2Brain compare with SHPE's official tool?

A direct comparison requires verified features and terms for SHPE's event-side tool. As of October 12, 2026, the reviewed organiser pages do not identify that tool or disclose its export, data rights and device rules. This page can describe SHPE's event planning and access requirements, but it cannot rank an unnamed scanner against B2Brain on speed, coverage, integrations or price.

Which lead capture option fits an exhibitor?

The public evidence supports a process decision, not a product recommendation. SHPE publishes exhibitor registration and housing rules, while its attendee Hub handles agendas and fair assignments. It does not publish the 2026 lead retrieval product terms in the reviewed sources. An exhibitor should secure the official service details, test consent and export requirements, then choose the tool that fits its approved workflow.

Which attendee fields can exhibitors receive?

No reviewed SHPE 2026 document lists the fields returned by an exhibitor badge scan or gives a downloadable lead export schema. The organiser does explain how attendees receive fair group assignments and how exhibitors gain registration access after payment. Those processes do not prove contact data availability. Request the current data dictionary and permitted-use terms before promising CRM enrichment from show badges.

How much qualified lead volume is documented?

The event site reports 763 interview booths for 2025, while it projects nearly 10,000 attendees for 2026. Those measures describe different editions and do not establish qualified leads per exhibitor. The reviewed sources provide no current conversion rate, meeting quality score or sales outcome. A booth forecast needs the exhibitor's own historical pipeline data and a defined qualification rule.

When should convention follow-up begin?

The convention runs October 28 to 31, 2026. Wednesday and Thursday have invite-only hospitality suites, while Friday includes the STAR Awards Gala. Those gatherings can produce conversations before the final day; capture each agreed next step when it occurs. The organiser does not set a follow-up deadline, and SHPE does not publish a response-time benchmark.

Can a public SHPE 2026 booth ROI be calculated?

The January first-look form gives selected booth package prices and payment rules, but it does not publish each exhibitor's full spend or resulting pipeline. The 2026 site projects participation, not sales outcomes. As of October 12, 2026, public evidence cannot support a return-on-investment figure for a specific booth. Calculate one after capturing actual contract, staffing, travel, meetings and attributable revenue.