How to start and set up a Discussion – Academia Support

When you upload a paper to Academia.edu, you can transform your document into a discussion, or a conversation around your new piece, where other academics can comment and offer feedback on your ideas!

Learn more about Discussions in our FAQ

Start a Discussion

Click your name in the top-right corner.
Select Start a Discussion under Networking.
On the discussions page, click Create Discussion.
You can start a discussion from:
1. A paper that is already on your profile.
2. A new paper you upload during this process.

Click "Select a paper..." at the top to choose a paper you already uploaded. Click "Upload paper" below for a new paper.

Option 1: Paper from my Academia Profile

To select a paper that is already on your profile:

Open the paper drop-down menu.
Select the paper you want to discuss.
Click Continue.

A drop-down menu will open with a list of the papers you've uploaded to Academia. Select a paper from the list to continue.

Option 2: Paper from my hard drive

To select new paper you upload during this process:

Click Upload paper.
Choose the file from your computer.
Enter the paper information.
Complete the CAPTCHA.
Click Continue.

Choose people to invite

After you choose a paper, you will be asked who you want to invite:

If you check the box next to “Invite your followers on Academia”, only your followers will be invited.
If you leave the box unchecked, we'll send invitations to people we think may be interested. This may not include all of your followers.

Click the checkbox to invite only your followers. Checking the box is optional. Click Continue once you've made your selection.

Add a description or opening questions

Click inside the text box and write a short description of what you want feedback on. This is a great opportunity to add a few opening questions if you have them.

Example questions: “Is my argument clear?” or “What am I missing in the literature review?”

Click into the text box directly to begin typing your questions, comments, or concerns for your audience.

Launch your Discussion

Click Launch my Discussion, and you'll be taken to your live discussion page.

Preview of a published Discussion page ready to receive comments.

Troubleshooting

My document is being converted

If you see a message that says, “This document is currently being converted. Please check back in a few minutes,” that's a perfectly normal part of our conversion process.
Your paper should appear pretty soon.

Upload failed or I cannot click Continue

Try uploading the file again. If that doesn't work, troubleshoot issues uploading your file.
Make sure you completed the reCAPTCHA.
Try a different browser or an incognito window.