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SSBSE 2021
The 13th Symposium on Search-Based Software Engineering
Mon 11 - Fri 15 October 2021 Bari, Italy
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The Symposium on Search-Based Software Engineering is a venue dedicated to the SBSE research field. We invite the submission of high-quality papers describing novel and original work in all areas of SBSE including, but not limited to, applications of SBSE to novel problems, theoretical analyses of search algorithms for software engineering, rigorous empirical evaluations of SBSE techniques, and reports of industrial experiences. The authors of the best manuscripts will be invited to extend their papers into full journal papers, for the EMSE Special Issue on Advances in Search-Based Software Engineering.
SSBSE 2021 will feature five tracks:
- Research Papers
- Journal First
- NIER - New Ideas and Emerging Results
- RENE - Replications and Negative Results
- SBSE Challenge

In the following, we list the deadlines and scope for all tracks. For the complete details of the topics and guidelines for submissions visit: https://conf.researchr.org/home/ssbse-2021

*** RESEARCH PAPERS ***

IMPORTANT DATES
Abstracts due: Mon 3 May 2021
Papers due: Mon 10 May 2021
Author response period: Wed 30 Jun - Wed 7 Jul 2021
Author notification: Sat 10 Jul 2021

We invite the submission of high-quality papers describing novel and original work in all areas of SBSE including, but not limited to, applications of SBSE to novel problems, theoretical analyses of search algorithms for software engineering, rigorous empirical evaluations of SBSE techniques, and reports of industrial experiences. SSBSE welcomes applications of search-based techniques throughout the software engineering lifecycle. We also invite the application of a broad range of search methods - ranging from exact operational research techniques to nature-inspired algorithms, local search metaheuristics, and simulated annealing. We particularly encourage papers that report on software engineering applications to which SBSE has not been applied before. Research papers must have up to 15 pages in length, including all text, figures, references, and appendices
Following the conference, the authors of the best manuscripts will be invited to extend their papers into full journal papers in a special issue. More information will be announced soon.
https://conf.researchr.org/track/ssbse-2021/ssbse-2021-papers

*** JOURNAL FIRST ***

IMPORTANT DATES
Proposal submission: Wed 23 Jun 2021
Author notification: Wed 21 Jul 2021

This year SSBSE welcomes authors of papers accepted in relevant journals to present and discuss their work directly with the community.
A journal-first presentation must adhere to the following criteria:
The accepted journal paper was accepted to a journal from the list below no earlier than May 30, 2020 and no later than March 30, 2021
- The paper is in the scope of the conference
- The paper reports completely new research results and/or presents novel contributions that significantly extend and were not previously reported in prior work.
- The paper does not extend prior work solely with additional proofs or algorithms (or other such details presented for completeness), additional empirical results, or minor enhancements or variants of the results presented in the prior work.
- The paper has not been presented at, and is not under consideration for, journal-first - programs of other conferences.
- The paper should not exclusively report a secondary study, e.g., systematic reviews, mapping studies, surveys.
The presentation proposals are evaluated in terms of contributions to and relevance to the community. An award will be given to the outstanding paper. Please, check the website for the full list of journal and submission guidelines: https://conf.researchr.org/track/ssbse-2021/ssbse-2021-journal-first

*** NIER - New Ideas and Emerging Results ***

IMPORTANT DATES
Papers due: Wed 23 Jun 2021
Author notification: Wed 21 Jul 2021

The New Ideas and Emerging Results Track at SSBSE 2021 is a forum to present and get feedback on forward-looking, innovative ideas in the Search-Based Software Engineering (SBSE) field. This forum provides an opportunity for researchers to present and gather feedback on groundbreaking results, tools under development, experience reports, or position papers. The track provides an opportunity for researchers to introduce ideas that challenge the status-quo in the SBSE community, start a discussion, and receive feedback on new research ideas or results in an early stage of investigation. Early career researchers and Ph.D. students are particularly encouraged to present inspiring research efforts that push the boundaries of SBSE. However, researchers at all levels are invited to submit.

The submissions should not exceed 6 pages in length and should be prepared for double-blind review following the symposium general instructions. Please, check the CFP on the website for more information and for submission guidelines: https://conf.researchr.org/track/ssbse-2021/ssbse-2021-nier---new-ideas-and-emerging-results-

*** RENE - Replications and Negative Results ***

IMPORTANT DATES
Abstract due: Tue 15 Jun 2021
Papers due: Tue 22 Jun 2021
Author notification: Fri 23 Jul 2021

The RENE track provides a venue for researchers to submit (i) replications of all types of empirical studies related to Search-Based Software Engineering, and (ii) original works reporting negative results on any of the topics of interest for the SSBSE conference (see the main Research track).
Replications can either strengthen the results of the original study by increasing external validity with additional data or provide new insights into the variables that may impact the results. Papers can report replications of the author’s own work or replications of another researcher’s work. If the experiments have been replicated and reproduced either partially or fully, the replications track is the right avenue to submit your findings. In addition, we welcome negative results papers as we believe negative results are important contributions to scientific knowledge because they allow us to constantly evaluate our hypothesis space and understanding of the current approaches.

We invite submissions in two categories for both replication and negative results: full papers (10 pages in length, including all text, figures, and appendices + 2 additional pages for references) and short papers (5 pages + 1 additional page for references). For the full papers, a fully or partially replicated study (or original study reporting negative results) is expected to be described. For the short 6 page submissions, works in progress or preliminary experimental designs may be submitted with the clear intent of running the full study in the near future.

Similar to previous editions of SSBSE, the RENE rack will follow a strong double-blind reviewing process. Please, check the CFP on the website for more information and for submission guidelines: https://conf.researchr.org/track/ssbse-2021/ssbse-2021-rene---replications-and-negative-results

*** CHALLENGE ***

IMPORTANT DATES
Papers due: Wed 23 Jun 2021
Author notification: Wed 23 Jul 2021

The SSBSE Challenge Track is an exciting opportunity for SBSE researchers to apply tools, techniques, and algorithms to real-world software. Participants can use their expertise to carry out analyses on open source software projects, or to directly improve the infrastructure powering research experiments. The principal criterion is to produce interesting results and to apply your expertise to challenge the state of the art and inspire future SBSE research.

This year, participants are invited to submit SBSE research that has been applied to the subjects in the Defects4J bug benchmark (or that enhance the Defects4J infrastructure). Please, check the website for detailed information: https://conf.researchr.org/track/ssbse-2021/ssbse-2021-challenge#Call-for-Challenge-Solutions

We also invite submissions relevant Challenge Cases for the next edition of the SSBSE conference (SSBSE’22). Submitted cases are expected to pose interesting and relevant research challenges to the SBSE community, and proposals will be reviewed with regard to their clarity, relevance, and potential to inspire interesting research submissions.
Accepted cases will be part of the official conference proceedings. The next edition of SSBSE will call for solutions to the accepted cases.

https://conf.researchr.org/track/ssbse-2021/ssbse-2021-challenge#Call-for-Challenge-Cases

*** SPONSOR ***
SSBSE 2021 is supported by Facebook