Statisticians gather at the University of Auckland for the 76th NZSA Annual Conference

The New Zealand Statistical Association Annual Conference returns to the University of Auckland from 14 to 16 December 2026, the 76th edition of the country's longest-running gathering of statisticians and data scientists. According to the association's conference website, the programme opens at 1pm on Monday 14 December and closes at 5pm on Wednesday 16 December, with contributed talks, invited keynotes, award presentations and the NZSA Annual General Meeting across the three days.

Who runs it

The conference is run by the New Zealand Statistical Association, the national membership body for statisticians, which describes the annual meeting as a chance for members to meet, share ideas and exchange statistical expertise. The association traces its conference series back to the 1950s and moves it around New Zealand's universities each year; the 2025 edition was hosted by the University of Otago in Dunedin and the 2024 edition by Victoria University of Wellington. The University of Auckland is hosting the 2026 meeting, a role it has filled several times before.

Who it is for and the programme

The event draws academic and applied statisticians, data scientists, students and early-career researchers from across New Zealand and overseas. The association lists invited speakers including Francois-Xavier Briol of University College London, Alain Vandal of the University of Auckland, Rachel Owens of Air New Zealand and Chanatda Somchit of the New Zealand Institute for Bioeconomy Science. Two workshops are scheduled for the Wednesday afternoon, subject to minimum enrolment: "Issues in Survival Analysis" led by Thomas Lumley and "Recent Advances in the VGAM package" led by Thomas Yee, running alongside a Women in Data Science New Zealand event. A Best Student Presentation Award, sponsored by WSP Harmonic, automatically enters all student presenters. Immediately after the main conference, a JSCS 40th Anniversary Symposium runs at the same campus on 17 and 18 December.

Venue and delegate context

The conference is based at the University of Auckland's city campus, in the heart of the Auckland CBD. The association's social programme uses nearby heritage and hotel venues: a welcome reception at Old Government House on the Monday evening and the conference dinner at the Hilton Auckland on the Tuesday. For accommodation, the organisers have arranged rates at the university's Waiparuru Hall at 35 Whittaker Place in Grafton, a short walk from campus, as well as at the Cordis Auckland and the Pullman Auckland. The city-campus location places delegates within walking distance of central Auckland's hotels, restaurants and the waterfront, and the campus is served by the central city's bus network and the nearby rail and ferry connections of the CBD.

Why it matters for NZ business events

Academic congresses like the NZSA conference are a steady contributor to Auckland's business-events calendar, bringing multi-day delegate stays, campus and hotel bookings and associated dining and social spend into the city each December. The 2026 meeting's pairing with the international JSCS anniversary symposium extends the footprint to a full working week and underlines the University of Auckland's role as a host for scholarly gatherings in the region.