Four days at the Indiana Convention Center
The 2026 SHPE National Convention runs Wednesday 28 October to Saturday 31 October at the Indiana Convention Center, 100 South Capitol Avenue. The venue forecasts 15,000 attendees. The organiser's registration site counts nearly 10,000 students, professionals, academics and industry leaders.
Registration and the career fair run on separate clocks. Registration opens at 6:00 a.m. every day. The career fair splits the floor into two groups, and the group you are assigned decides which session you attend.
Two dates before departure
Upload a resume to the SHPE Career Center by 26 September 2026. Employers begin reviewing resumes weeks before the convention and email candidates to set interviews. The convention runs complimentary resume reviews on site, and the organiser asks attendees to bring printed copies.
The registration ladder closes in stages. Regular pricing ends 7 October at 5 p.m. ET. Late pricing runs from 8 October and closes 31 October at 12 p.m. ET. Bulk submissions close 1 October at 5 p.m. ET.
Wednesday 28 October: registration and the first sessions
Attendee registration opens at 6:00 a.m. in Hall F and runs to 5:00 p.m. Exhibitor registration keeps the same hours at the same desk. Wednesday carries no career fair. Sessions run from 8:00 a.m., and the opening ceremony starts at 4:30 p.m. in the Sagamore Ballroom.
The venue reports 4,700 of its 7,100 downtown rooms on the skywalk network. A guest in a connected hotel walks to the badge desk indoors.
Thursday 29 October: University Village and the first booth day
University Village, the Graduate School Expo, runs 8:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. in Hall DE, then 1:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. The Grand Opening sits at 8:00 a.m. in the Hall D lobby. Interview booths open at 8:00 a.m. in Hall BC and close at 4:30 p.m.
Friday 30 October: the career fair splits into two groups
The STEM and Career Fair opens in Hall HIJ. Group A attends 8:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Group B attends 1:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Both groups share the floor from 3:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. The Graduate School Expo repeats its two blocks in Hall DE. Interview booths run 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Saturday 31 October: the groups swap and the fair closes
Saturday reverses the order. Group B attends 8:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Group A attends 1:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Both groups share the floor from 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Interview booths run 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The attendee registration desk closes at 3:30 p.m. and the exhibitor desk closes at 12:00 p.m. Check the badge desk hours before planning a late arrival.
The skywalk route
The skywalk system opens and closes on the convention center's schedule. The center gives a rule of thumb of lockdown at approximately 11 p.m. and reopening at approximately 6 a.m. Finish a late dinner inside that window.
Downtown dining
The convention center counts 200 downtown restaurants within walking distance of the building, and it publishes a dining guide on its attendee pages. Meals sit outside the registration fee.
A half-day corporate tour
The Rockwell Automation Global Distribution Center tour runs Wednesday 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. and opens a 530,000-square-foot facility. Participants must be at least 18 and wear closed-toe shoes. Transport from the convention center is provided and its travel time sits inside the tour window. Registration closes Tuesday 20 October at 11:59 p.m. ET or when capacity is reached. A non-refundable reservation fee applies.
Getting home
Indianapolis International Airport sits 14 miles from the convention center, a drive of 20 to 25 minutes. The venue's own figure is 15 minutes. IndyGo Route 8 runs from the airport to downtown on a fixed route. The housing page carries an airport parking code, SHPE26.
Bring a REAL ID-compliant licence or another TSA-accepted form of identification for a domestic flight. Enforcement began on 7 May 2025.