Our vision: We are creating regional conferences held in an urban area with access to inexpensive and accessible public transportation.  The conference is designed for students ranging between juniors in high school (currently taking physics) and college students – first year to senior college students are encouraged to participate. Our goal is to meet students where they are at and influence students that have an interest in physics to continue down that road.

Goal 1 – Convene: Inspire the next generation of physical scientists with stories and challenges from a diverse group of stakeholders in the region representing academia, industry, and the public sector.

Goal 2 – Envision: Motivate the next generation of physical scientists by learning about the current and future challenges they can be part of solving as they move from life as a student to life as a professional.

Goal 3 – Propose: Understand and address the gaps in the student journey to ensure strong pathways into future workforce needs.

Goal 4 – Celebrate the student journey

Read about Cosmic Pathways 2026 NYC Here

Read about Cosmic Pathways Chicago Here

Here is the program from 2025.

Here is a pre-print of our coming article in The Physics Teacher (click here).