3 minute thesis

An 80,000 word PhD thesis would take 9 hours to present. Their time limit... 3 minutes.

Samantha O'Sullivan (Physics / African American Studies)

Gullah Physics: Challenging English Language Hegemony in Science

Second prize expand_more

Sahar Mariam Mohammadzadeh (Government)

The Impact of Twitter on the Supreme Court

Third prize expand_more

Stephanie Alderete (Psychology)

Preschoolers' Ability to Think about Alternative Possibilities

Finalists expand_more

Alex Grayson (Molecular & Cellular Biology)

Comparing Fox and Human Brain Connectivity Patterns

Javin Pombra (Computer Science)

Unraveling the Black Box: Explainability for Artificial Intelligence in the Twenty-First Century

Zelin Liu (Classics / History)

Using the Past to Define Group Identity

Jerrica Li (Comparative Literature)

Diaspora: A Genre for This New Planetary Reality

Jahnavi Rao (Government)

The Spillover Potential of a Nudge

Daiana Lilo (Government / Data Science)

A Great Personality: How Different Characteristics Can Predict Supreme Court Decisions

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3MT at the University of Kansas

Brilliant ideas conveyed in three minutes or less.

What is the 3MT® Competition?

The  Three Minute Thesis  (3MT®) is an academic research communication competition developed by The University of Queensland (UQ), Australia. This event challenges graduate students to present a compelling speech about their research and its significance to non-academic persons in just three minutes using only one presentation image. 3MT® commenced in 2008 and is currently held in over 900 universities across more than 85 countries worldwide. In 2020, the 3MT® competition moved to a temporary virtual format due to COVID-19 and continues to be held around the world in either a virtual or live format (depending on local COVID-19 restrictions).

The goals of the competition are to (1) highlight the excellent research conducted by graduate students and (2) improve graduate students’ communication of research to non-specialist and non-academic audiences. The judges of the competition are educated professionals in a variety of positions in corporate, government, and non-profit industries. 

3MT® Timeline

March-april.

Graduate students are invited to register for the 3MT® Competition.

Graduate students registered for the 3MT® Competition will be required to participate in workshops to prepare them for the competition.

The Preliminary Heats usually take place in the first week of November to determine the graduate students that will advance to the final round of the competition one week later.

The KU winner moves on to represent KU at the regional 3MT® Competition, which takes place in late March or early April during the annual meeting of the Midwestern Association of Graduate Schools (MAGS). 

RELATED LINKS

• MAGS 3MT® Competition
• University of Queensland 3MT® Competition

SOCIAL MEDIA

• #3MTatKU on Twitter (X)
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• #3MTatKU on Instagram

PREVIOUS COMPETITIONS

• 2022 KU 3MT® Competition
• 2021 KU 3MT® Competition
• 2020 KU 3MT® Competition

3MT® Competition @ KU

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Preparing your 3MT presentation

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NOTE: Familiarise yourself with the 3MT rules and judging criteria  before starting your preparation. This guidance is taken from the University of Queensland's  official 3MT competitor resources .

Even the world’s best public speakers prepare before important presentations. To assist you with your preparations, please find a few suggestions below that will help you in writing your presentation, creating your slide and practising your verbal presentation.

Drafting your 3MT

Write for your audience The judges will look for evidence that you can explain your research to a non-specialist audience. You may like to:

• avoid jargon and academic language
• explain concepts and people important to your research - you may know all about Professor Smith’s theories but your audience may not
• highlight the outcomes of your research, and the desired outcome
• imagine that you are explaining your research to a close friend or fellow student from another field
• convey your excitement and enthusiasm for your subject

Tell a story

• You may like to present your 3MT as a narrative, with a beginning, middle and end.
• It’s not easy to condense your research into three minutes, so you may find it easier to break your presentation down into smaller sections.
• Try writing an opener to catch the attention of the audience, then highlight your different points, and finally have a summary to restate the importance of your work.

Have a clear outcome in mind

• Know what you want your audience to take away from your presentation.
• Try to leave the audience with an understanding of what you’re doing, why it is important, and what you hope to achieve.
• Proof your 3MT presentation by reading it aloud, firstly to yourself and then to an audience of friends and family.
• Ask for feedback.
• Ask your audience if your presentation clearly highlights what your research is  about and why it is important.

Creating your 3MT slide

Before you start work on your slide, you should take the following rules into account:

• one single static PowerPoint slide is permitted;
• no slide transitions, animations or 'movement' of any description are permitted;
• your slide is to be presented from the beginning of your oration; and
• no additional electronic media (e.g. sound and video files) are permitted.

Suggestions

You may like to consider some of the following suggestions:

• Less is more : text and complicated graphics can distract your audience – you don’t want them to read your slide instead of listening to your 3MT. 
• Personal touches : personal touches can allow your audience to understand the impact of your research.
• Creativity drives interest : do not rely on your slide to convey your message – it should simply complement your oration.
• Work your message : think about how your slide might be able to assist with the format and delivery of your presentation – is there a metaphor that helps explain your research?
• An engaging visual presentation can make or break any oration, so make sure your slide is  legible, clear and concise .

Practising your 3MT presentation

Practice, practice, practice Feeling nervous before you present is natural, and sometimes a little nervousness can even be beneficial to your overall speech. Nonetheless, it is important to practice so you can present with confidence and clarity. Practicing will also help you gauge the timing of your 3MT so that you keep within the time limit.

Vocal range

• Speak clearly and use variety in your voice (fast/slow, loud/soft).
• Do not rush - find your rhythm.
• Remember to pause at key points as it gives the audience time to think about what you are saying.

Body language

• Stand straight and confidently.
• Hold your head up and make eye contact.
• Never turn your back to the audience.
• Practise how you will use your hands and move around the stage. It is okay to move around energetically if that is your personality, however it is also appropriate for a 3MT presentation to be delivered from a single spot on stage.
• Do not make the common mistakes of rolling back and forth on your heels, pacing for no reason or playing with your hair as these habits are distracting for the audience.

Record yourself

• Record and listen to your presentation to hear where you pause, speak too quickly or get it just right.
• Then work on your weaknesses and exploit your strengths.

Look to the stars!

• Watch your role models such as academics, politicians and journalists, and break down their strengths and weaknesses.
• Analyse how they engage with their audience.
• Visit  the Queensland 3MT website , the Vitae 3MT webpages or search YouTube to view presentations from previous 3MT finalists.
• While there is no dress code, if you are unsure of how to dress you may like to dress for a job interview or an important meeting. It is important that you feel comfortable so you can focus on your presentation.
• If you are presenting on a stage that has a wooden floor, be aware of the noise your footwear might make.
• Do not wear a costume of any kind as this is against the rules (as is the use of props).

Further resources

There are many resources available online for further help. Useful ones might include:

Presenting your research effectively and with confidence - By previous 3MT finalists (Taylor & Francis resource)

How a competition changed my academic life - By Jamie Khoo, 2018 UK People's Choice winner

Is it worth doing the three minute thesis?  - By Mary Woessner, Victoria University

How to win the 3 minute thesis  - By Dr Inger Mewburn (aka @thesiswhisperer)

Making the most of your 3 minutes  - Simon Clews, University of Melbourne

Talk nerdy to me  - Melissa Marshall's TED talk

Vitae's 3MT webpages

These guidance pages are part of the University of Queensland's official 3MT competitor resources

E : [email protected]

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Three Minute Thesis (3MT®)

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Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) is a research communication competition developed by The University of Queensland. The competition develops academic, presentation, and research communication skills and supports the development of students' capacities to effectively explain their research in language appropriate to an intelligent but non-specialist audience.

During each competition, graduate students will have three minutes to present a compelling discussion on their research topic, including its significance and relevance, to the general public. 3MT® is not an exercise in trivializing or "dumbing down" research, instead, it forces competitors to consolidate their ideas and crystallize their research discoveries. This is a fast-paced competition where the top 10 finalists compete by summarizing their two to three-plus years of research in only three minutes with only one slide.  Cash awards are given to the winner, runner-up, and People's Choice Award winner.

3MT® at Purdue

Enrolled graduate students in all disciplines at Purdue University are eligible to participate in 3MT®. Research presented must have been conducted at Purdue University, not from a previous degree, and should be in the final stages so students have some sound conclusions and impacts to present. Purdue Alumni are not eligible to participate.

Purdue holds its annual 3MT® competition early each spring. It is a celebration of the discoveries made by graduate students and will allow the broader community to learn about ongoing research at Purdue. It is free and open to the public. Cash awards are given to the winner, runner-up, and People's Choice Award winner.

2024 Competition Timeline

• Friday, February 9, 11:59 PM -  Grad Student Video Submissions Due
• Monday, April 8  - Rehearsal, Fowler Hall 5:00 p.m. EST
• Tuesday, April 9 -  Competition, Fowler Hall, 7:00 p.m. EST

 Cash Awards

• 1st place $5,000 
• 2nd place $3,000 
• People's Choice $2,000 

A panel of judges will select the first and second-place winners, while the People's Choice Award will be selected by the audience.

2023 Winners

First place: elina dawoodani, health and human sciences.

Second Place: Vamsi Krishna Bandaru, Engineering

People’s Choice: Isaiah Mensah, Agriculture

Graduate Student Submissions

The Graduate School welcomes submissions from all Purdue University disciplines. For help with presenting and visual aids please see the following free professional development workshops.

Please read the 3MT® competition rules in the drop-down button below.

Video Competitor Guide

• A single static PowerPoint slide is permitted (no slide transitions, animations or "movement" of any description).
• No additional electronic media (e.g., sound and video files) are permitted.
• No additional props (e.g., costumes, musical instruments or laboratory equipment) are permitted.
• Presentations are limited to three minutes maximum, and competitors exceeding three minutes are disqualified.
• The decision of the judging panel is final, and People's Choice voting results will not be released.
• All presentations will be videotaped and will appear on the graduate school 3MT® website.
• Students who are over the cost of attendance allowance may not be eligible for prizes.

Each 3MT® presentation will be judged based on communication style, comprehension, and engagement. Please view our archive of video presentations made by past winners .

Please email the program administrators at  [email protected]  if you have any questions!

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Penn Three Minute Thesis (3MT)

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Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) is a competition for doctoral and research students to develop and showcase their research communication skills through brief, 3-minute presentations.

Penn's annual 3MT competition is sponsored by the Office of the Vice Provost for Education, with co-sponsorship and support from Career Services, the Graduate Student Center, and GAPSA. 

Penn 3MT is a University-sponsored speaking competition designed to showcase graduate student research in three-minute talks to a general audience. This is a terrific opportunity for graduate students engaged in substantive original research to develop communication skills and share their work with faculty, students, and staff from across the University.

• 3MT Information Sessions : November 2023 & January 2024
• Research Communications Workshops : October - November 2023 &  February 2024 (optional)
• Practice and Feedback Sessions: February 2024 (optional)
• First Round Video Submissions Due: Saturday, March 2, 2024
• Finalists announced: March 7-8, 2024
• Finalist Feedback Sessions: March 8-21, 2024
• In-person Competition : Friday, March 22, 2024

In addition to bragging rights, a prize of $1000 will be awarded to the first-place winner and $500 to both the second-place and audience choice winners. Winners will also have the opportunity to participate in regional and national 3 Minute Thesis competitions!

To enter, students must register below and submit a video of their three-minute talk to Penn 3MT (details below) by Saturday, March 2. From those first-round submissions, up to 10 finalists will be chosen to compete in the campus-wide, live competition on Friday, March 22.

Register for Round 1 Video Submission

The 3MT competition will teach you how to communicate effectively to specialists and non-specialists alike, preparing you to present your research at scholarly conferences and to take part in both academic and professional job markets.

Professional Development:  Penn 3MT is a great opportunity for graduate students to practice sharing their original research to general audiences. Participants have the opportunity to attend workshops and receive group and one-on-one coaching to  develop oratorical skills, dynamic deliveries, and compelling content  when presenting their academic research.

Networking:  3MT participants will have an opportunity to meet and engage with new faculty, staff, and students from across the University.

Impact:  Participants have the opportunity to make the importance and relevance of their research visible to a non-specialist audience. Participants can elect to have their presentation shared online, promoting both your own work and the value of graduate student research to a much wider audience.

Prizes:  Everyone who submits a video will receive prizes from GAPSA and the Grad Center! Please register at the blue button at the top of the page  if you plan on submitting a video so we can collect your contact information. Judges will select a first-place ($1000) and second-place ($500) winner at the live competition. There will also be an audience choice ($500) winner.

Active PhD, Professional Doctorate Research (program composed of at least 2/3 research and eligible for Research Training Program (RTP)), and full-time Masters candidates who have successfully passed their confirmation milestone (including candidates whose thesis is under submission) by the date of their first presentation are eligible to participate in 3MT competitions at all levels. Graduates are not eligible.

Please Note : Students enrolled in any of the following programs are not eligible to enter the 3MT Competition:

Professional Masters

Professional Doctorate (less than 2/3 research)

Entries from all disciplines are welcome and encouraged.

In cases of presentation of a collaborative research project, the presenter’s contribution to the project must be salient and clearly specified.

If you are unsure of your eligibility or would like more information about 3MT, please contact [email protected] . You can also check the Graduate Catalog for your Penn School to see if your program is listed under the PhD and Research Master's Programs.

To enter, you must submit a three-minute video of your presentation by 11:59 p.m. (local time) on March 2, 2024.

Please register at the blue button at the top of the page  if you are interested in participating . Be sure to read through the Rules and Guidelines also before submitting your videos!

Competition Process

Students may submit their slide and video anytime before Saturday, March 2, 2024  for feedback. You can also request a 1:1 session during this time for immediate feedback or to go over your presentation with the Associate Director.

Research Communications Workshops offered by the Graduate Student Center will occur October - November and January - February. See our Events page for details.

Student videos submitted by the deadline of  Satur day, March 2 at 11:59 p.m., EST  are reviewed by a panel of staff for compliance with the eligibility requirements.

10 Finalists are selected for the online competition by March 7-8, 2024.

A  campus-wide competition between the finalists will be held March 22, 2024. A reception will be held after the competition.

On the basis of these presentations, winners will be selected by the panel of judges and a “people’s choice” by audience members.  

Judging and Selection

A panel of non-specialist faculty and staff judges will evaluate student presentations. Presentations will be evaluated based on clarity, comprehension, content, engagement, and communication.

Everyone who submits a video will receive a gift for participating! Please fill out the interest form above if you plan on submitting a video so we can collect your contact information. Judges will select a first ($1000) and second-place ($500) winner at the live competition. There will also be an audience choice ($500) winner.

All decisions of the judging panel are final.

Video submission:   

• Your video and slide should be submitted using the button below.  Please register at the blue button at the top of the page  if you are interested in participating .
• All video files should be named: “Title_of_talk.mp4” or “Title_of_talk.mov”.  Please do not include your name or any other identifying information in the name of the video file.
• You do not need to include your slide in your video. A video of you speaking is enough. You will upload your slide alongside your video.
• At the very beginning of your video, please state your full name, graduate program, and the title of your presentation. The time it takes to do this will not be counted against the three minutes to present your research.
• You will not be judged on your skills as a videographer, and you do not need to use professional video equipment. As long as the judges can see you and the audio is clear and understandable, that is sufficient. You can record yourself using the Panopto interface in Canvas. You can also record yourself in Zoom. You may ask a friend or colleague for help creating your video, or you can get assistance and borrow equipment from the Vitale Digital Media Lab . You can also follow these tips for recording a presentation in Zoom . Here is one demonstrated on a Mac .

Visual submission :

• Presenters may use a single image or static PowerPoint slide (no Prezi or other presentation formats) to enhance their presentation.
• Students must create their slides themselves – they cannot ask someone else to design the slides. Use of PowerPoint templates is allowed.
• Slides can include visual elements (charts, visualizations, photos, clip art, etc.) created by someone other than the student, as long as the slide credits the original creator.
• Embedded audio, animations, and/or video clips (including but not limited to .gif, .avi, .mp4, .mp3, and .wmv file types) are NOT permitted.
• Powerpoint slides should be named "Title_of_talk.ppt". Please do not include your name or any other identifying information in the name of the PowerPoint file.

Powerpoint slides and videos can be uploaded below. If you are having difficulty, please upload it to Microsoft, Box, or Google Drive and email jomcb at upenn.edu the link to download.

Upload Your Video & Slide

Length and Timing: Presentations should be a maximum of three (3) minutes in length, commencing from the moment the speaker starts the presentation through movement or speech.

• The presentation  begins  at the moment the speaker engages with the audience (if they start with a hand clap, a gesture, or any other such engagement, prior to speaking, the clock begins at that time; if there is no such engagement the clock starts when the student begins speaking).
• If the speaker continues past three minutes, points will be deducted from the final score, beginning with one point at 3:03, and one point every two additional seconds thereafter.
• No props of any kind are permitted, and notes cannot be used during the presentation.

Want some help getting started? In need of Inspiration? Check out the resources below!

3MT® Resources

• Three-Minute Thesis Showcase :  Watch winning 3MT presentations from around the world.
• Three Tips to Help You Prepare a Winning Presentation
• 3MT: The Three Most Common Mistakes
• Sample 3MT Coaching Session

Past Penn 3MT ® Competitions and Workshops

Research Communications Workshops

Additional Resources

• Nature MasterClass: Effective Science Communication (PennKey login required)
• Alda Center for Communicating Science Creating Connections Workbook
• XKCD Simple Writer
• Dejargonizer
• TED Talks :  Short talks on “ideas worth spreading.” 
• PhD Comics Two-Minute Thesis  Competition
• Berkeley Grad Slam Competition

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• Three-Minute Thesis

What is the 3MT?

An 80,000 word thesis would take 9 hours to present. The 3MT time limit ... 3 minutes.

• The 3-Minute Thesis (3MT®) is a research communication competition that challenges students to communicate the significance of their projects without the use of props or industry jargon, in just three minutes.
• Originally established by the  University of Queensland (UQ) in 2008 , the competition challenges research students to communicate the significance of their projects in just three minutes, with the aid of a single, static slide.

3MT develops academic, presentation, and research communication skills and supports the development of research students' capacity to quickly explain their research in a language appropriate to a non-specialist audience leaving them wanting to know more. 

Competitions at the University of Minnesota

Collegiate-level 3MT Competitions

• Inquire with your Graduate Program Coordinator (GPC) to find out if your college hosts a 3MT competition. 
• Collegiate-level 3MT winners advance to the University-wide competition. 
• All collegiate-level participants receive a Maroon Digital Badge from the Graduate School. 

University-wide 3MT Competition

• The Graduate School hosts a University-wide competition held every November .  
• All active graduate students who have advanced from their collegiate competition are eligible. 
• Previous 3MT winners  (first prize, runner-up, and people's choice) are not eligible to compete a second time.
• The 1st place winner advances to a 3MT competition hosted every March by the Midwestern Association of Graduate Schools (MAGS).
• All finalists may be invited to present to the University's Board of Regents. 
• All University-wide competitors receive a Gold Digital Badge from the Graduate School. 

3MT Competition Rules

• Single static PowerPoint slide. No slide transitions, animations, or “movement” of any description are allowed. The slide is to be presented from beginning of oration.
• No additional electronic media (e.g. sound and video files) are permitted.
• No additional props (e.g. costumes, musical instruments, lab equipment) are permitted.
• Presentations are limited to 3 minutes maximum, and participants exceeding 3 minutes are disqualified.
• Presentations are to commence from the stage.
• Presentations are to be spoken word (e.g. no poems, raps, or songs).
• Presentations are considered to have commenced when a presenter starts her presentation through either movement or speech.
• The decision of the adjudicating panel is final.

3MT Preparation Resources

• Prepare with  the Graduate School's 3MT e-course
• 2023 - Watch competition in its entirety

Who can I talk to about 3MT?

Please contact Dr. Noro Andriamanalina, Assistant Vice Provost, Graduate Student and Postdoctoral Initiatives: [email protected]

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• Apr 11, 2023

How to design an impactful 3MT slide (with examples!)

What can you do in three minutes? Brush your teeth, make a coffee?

How about explain your entire PhD thesis? 😅

Believe it or not, that’s what thousands of people do each year in the Three Minute Thesis (3MT ® ); a global public speaking competition where PhD students explain the scope and impact of their research in, you guessed it, just three minutes . ⏰

And if you’re reading this, perhaps you’re an aspiring 3MT-er yourself, on the hunt for some inspiration to design an impactful 3MT slide to accompany your talk.

Sound like you? Then you’ve come to the right place.

Previously, we gave you some tips and tricks on how to write a winning 3MT script , but in this instalment of our 3MT series, we’re switching gears to cover another very important aspect:

We’ve trawled the internet to discover what actually makes a good three minute thesis slide, and in this blog, we’ll cover some do’s and don’ts to help you design one that’s memorable and impactful. To help bring these concepts home, we’ll also include some examples that we love from past 3MT winners and finalists.

But before we do that, let’s recap some important rules related to the 3MT slide:

So, in short, the 3MT slide obviously needs to be fairly simple. But that doesn’t mean it has to be boring.

Hold up… if the 3MT is a public speaking competition, why is the slide even important? Surely only what you speak about matters, right? WRONG! 🙅‍♀️

The 3MT competition is about so much more than just what you say. It’s also about what you do and what you show And what you show during your 3MT is where your nifty little slide comes in.

Not only is the PowerPoint slide a key component of the 3MT judging criteria , it also helps create a lasting mental image for the judges. After all, you can’t win the 3MT if the audience and judges can’t even remember what your research is about!

So, hopefully we’ve been able to convince you about just how important having a good slide is. But how do you design an impactful 3MT slide, you ask?

Well, here are 5 of our top tips:

Tip #1 : Avoid data dumping 📊

You might be familiar with those boring old PowerPoint presentations that seem to appear at every conference. You know the ones I’m talking about. The ones cluttered with complex graphs, huge tables, and enough numbers to put even the most experienced professors to sleep.

May I present to you… Exhibit A:

Look familiar? Good. Now lock the memory away in a distant room of your mind palace, because that’s exactly what you DON’T want in a 3MT slide (or really, in any slide for that matter…)

Unlike a conference presentation, your 3MT slide should simply act to enhance and complement your script, rather than be used to display complex data and graphs. In fact, I would suggest avoiding the use of any complex graphs and data tables at all, because they just end up detracting attention from what you’re saying.

If you choose to present some important data or statistics in your 3MT slide, consider swapping out graphs with simple infographics , like pie charts or diagrams:

As you can see, simple infographics and eye-catching figures are a much more visually stimulating way to present information, especially compared to data-heavy graphs and tables. And they’re surprisingly easy to make using tools like Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Express .

So, if in doubt, leave complex data out. 🚫

In fact, you’ll find that most successful 3MT-ers show little to no data at all in their slides and intentionally keep them very conceptual, which brings me to tip #2 .

Tip #2 : Keep it conceptual 💡

Perhaps you’re sensing a general theme here… that typically less is more when it comes to a 3MT slide. This allows the focus of the presentation to be on the speaker, the slide simply acting as a visual aid to complement the story . And when it’s a public speaking competition, I’d say that’s pretty important.

In our humble opinion, some of the most effective and memorable 3MT slides are those that present an image or diagram that conveys a single underpinning concept or idea .

You might recall from our ‘ How to Write a Winning 3MT Script ’ blog post, that many successful 3MT scripts incorporate things like humour, analogies , or fictional characters. In these situations, it can be helpful for the contents of the slide to reflect this.

One of my favourite examples of this comes from 2016 Asia-Pacific 3MT Winner, Joshua Chu-Tan , who spoke about his research on gene therapy treatments for age-related macular degeneration (AMD) to target the root of vision loss. In his winning presentation, he says:

Rather than using complex diagrams to show the theory, he opted for this simple, yet extremely powerful image that highlights the impact of vision loss from age-related macular degeneration. And, seeing as this image has stuck in my memory for years, I’d say it was a pretty good choice.

As another example, back when I won the 3MT , I used an analogy to draw parallels between A) cars carrying passengers on a highway, and B) nanoparticles carrying drugs along a blood vessel. So, my 3MT slide portrayed a busy highway with signage to show which hypothetical organs the cars were headed towards:

Basically, the overarching message is to keep it simple.

And that’s all well and good… But where do you even start?

Your first step is to write your 3MT script . Then, once you have your script prepared, use it as a tool to help you brainstorm ideas for your slide. Note whether you’ve used any analogies, introduced any characters, or covered certain concepts, and then based on this information, find or create a visual to match! 🖼 This might be a little different to your usual scientific presentations, where you would normally prepare your slides first, then come up with what you are going to say after, but trust me – it works!

Tip #3 : Choose an eye-catching visual… or make one 👀

In the same way that ‘ the hook’ in your 3MT script helps to pique the audience’s attention, the slide is another important tool to capture their attention and keep them engaged. But to do this, it needs to be eye-catching and interesting .

We’ve noticed that most winning 3MTs have slides that generally fall under one of two categories: images or diagrams .

These are usually photographs or illustrations that complement the script in some way — containing a reference to the concept, analogy or character(s) that were introduced in the script.

For example, let’s say you introduced a fictional character in your 3MT script. By visually showing this character in your slide, it helps the audience form a connection with them and taps into their sense of empathy. Let’s look at an example:

As you can see, using this photograph makes for a really effective and impactful slide because it elicits a strong emotional response. Come on… how can you not love that adorable little face, right? 🥺

However, the images don’t have to be of people to be effective – they can also be more conceptual.

For instance, one 3MT finalist spoke about their research on detecting diseases, like cancer, based on characteristic molecules present in the breath. In their slide, they showed an illustration of breath molecules exiting the lungs and mouth to be caught in a net:

Not only is this image a great reference to the net analogy used, but we (as the audience) are able to get a basic idea about the research concept based on the slide alone, which really helps it stick in our memory!

Of course, while we’ve highlighted some great examples, you should choose whatever image speaks to you and your research. Some useful resources to find images for your 3MT slide include iStock Photo and Adobe Stock Photos (making sure to provide attribution where required), or you can even be extra creative and take your own photo, or create your own image ! 📸

Aside from images, schematic diagrams can be another great way to conceptualise and visualise your research. However, to be effective as 3MT slides, the diagrams need to be simple and easy to understand.

Ideally, they should be short, and the outcomes immediately recognisable . Avoid using complex diagrams that you’ve directly copy-pasted from a paper, as these generally take a lot more time and concentration to understand.

A good example of a diagram for a 3MT slide was used by the 2020 Asia-Pacific 3MT winner , whose research focused on the development of a liquid glue to help measure electrical signals from plants as a way to measure their health:

In this example, it’s easy to understand what the research is about, what’s being measured, and what the desired outcomes are, thanks to the clear illustrations and emotive flower drawings.

So, if done well, diagrams can be a really powerful tool to conceptualise your research. If you want to try and create one yourself, there are lots of useful tools you can use, like Adobe Illustrator , Canva , or BioRender , to name a few.

Get creative!

Tip #4 : Minimise text 💬

When it comes to presentations, there’s nothing worse than being in the audience, staring at a PowerPoint slide, only to find a wall of text staring back at you. Not only is it super distracting, but aesthetically, it also leaves much to be desired.

And let’s be honest, if the audience is reading your slide, then they’re not listening to you… and vice versa. Which, for the 3MT, is a very big problem.

To prevent this, try to avoid including large bodies of text on your 3MT slide . See if you can verbally communicate the information instead, or alternatively, replace the text with an image that conveys the same message. After all, they say a picture speaks a thousand words.

If you really need to include some text, as in the case of simple diagrams, try to keep it to a minimum and limit yourself to 15 words maximum.

Any text you do include should use a font size that can be easily seen from the back of the room (i.e., 24 pt. minimum). And, while they sometimes have their time and place, try to avoid using any cursive, funky, or hard-to-read fonts . Comic sans, I’m looking at you. 😒

Tip #5 : Negative space is your friend 🔲

You might be tempted to fill every visible inch of your PowerPoint slide with images, diagrams, or just something to compensate for the very little time you have to present your 3MT.

Though, you’d be doing yourself a disservice if you did, because a little negative space can go a long way towards designing a great 3MT slide.

But what is negative space? Put simply, it’s the empty space around and between objects.

Leaving some negative space in your slide gives the audience some breathing room and helps them focus on what’s important .

For photographs, this might mean choosing an image that has one focal point. This doesn’t necessarily mean the background needs to be plain, but it may simply be out of focus to allow the objects in the forefront to stand out.

For diagrams, this means leaving some empty space between sections so that there’s a clearer distinction between them, or reducing the number of sections entirely.

Here are some great examples of 3MT slides that use negative space to draw our attention to a particular person or object:

By leaving some negative space, our eyes are immediately drawn to one particular focal point, letting us focus on what’s important: You.

The take-home message 📝

And that brings us to the end of the second blog for our 3MT series!

The 3MT slide can truly make or break a 3MT presentation, but the right one can take it to the next level. And, by following these simple tips, you’re well on your way to designing a slide that captures your research in an effective and impactful way:

Avoid complex graphs and data

Keep it conceptual

Choose an eye-catching image or diagram, or make one

Keep text to a minimum, and

Don’t be afraid of negative space

So get creative! And remember, if you want to learn more about how to create amazing graphics, or how to up your public speaking skills, we’d love to show you how in our in-person science communication workshop s or online courses!

Contact us here to find out more. 🤩

Cintya Dharmayanti

Dr Tullio Rossi

Related Posts

How to write a winning 3MT script

5 epic science communication conferences for your travel bucket list

The history of science communication methods and their evolution over time

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22 The 3 Minute Thesis

Read time: 2 minutes

This chapter will provide an overview of the 3 Minute Thesis oral presentation format.

Sections in this chapter

What is it.

• 3MT examples

The three-minute thesis (3MT) is a new format of research presentation that builds on the classic “elevator pitch”. The challenge in this type of presentation is to explain your research to an intelligent non-specialist audience in under 3 minutes with limited visual aids. Often there are specific rules for the visual aid: a single 4:3 slide, no animations or video, and no props.

For a successful 3MT talk, you need to follow completely different rules from normal scientific presentations. You can skip common things like introducing yourself, thanking all your lab mates and colleagues, or funding. You typically don’t show data unless it is presented in a very simple figure.

Because of the challenge involved with presenting years of detailed research in only three minutes, Universities hold cross-faculty 3MT competitions. The first was founded by the University of Queensland, Australia, where you can find many great resources and videos .

The tips below were adapted from “10 Hints for Improving Presentations for the Three Minute Thesis” by Danielle Fischer at Charles Darwin University ( Full PDF here ):

• Don’t introduce yourself, don’t do acknowledgements, don’t show data.
• Start by introducing how your research relates to the bigger picture. Try to think of why any person might be interested in your work.
• Only include relevant things on your slide and make sure images are good quality. Carefully design your slide, don’t overcrowd it or use too much colour.
• Use simple and familiar analogies.
• Speak with an excited and engaged manner.
• Don’t wear anything distracting.
• Use body language: smiling, gestures, movement, and eye-contact.
• Finish by bringing the audience back to the big picture.
• Practice and get feedback from a wide variety of people.
• Use your time, but don’t go over it.

These are some 3MT slides made by previous CHEM 803 students.

There are many resources online about preparing a 3MT presentation. Below are some links to helpful videos, award-winning 3MT talks, and the many resources provided by Queen’s University.

Helpful Videos

These videos were prepared by are owned by Australian National University.

3MT: three tips to help you prepare a winning presentation

3MT: the three most common mistakes

Award-winning 3MT

These are videos of some award-winning 3MT talks. The first one has the best title,  it’s simple and concise!

Wind turbines and climate change – Rosemary Barnes

Hypoxia-activated pro-drugs: a novel approach for breast cancer treatment – jasdeep saggar, the development of anti-body-drug conjugate to specifically target and soften the crystalline lens in vivo – gah-jone won.

Check out the Queen’s University 2020 Competition results, where you’ll find two award-winning 3MT talks from our Chemistry Department by Morgan Lehtinen and Alastair Kierulf. [ In the video at this link, click “Playlist” to find their talks ]

Principles of Scientific Communication Copyright © 2020 by Amanda Bongers and Donal Macartney is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

Share This Book

• Schedule 2024
• Judging Criteria
• Eligibility
• Resources for Participants
• Testimonials
• 2023 Finalists
• 2022 finalists
• 2021 Finalists
• 2020 Finalists

• Winners of the 2024 3MT competition

Participate or join the fun in this year’s 3MT

Questions about participating in 3MT?

Latest News

• Graduate students compete in the Finals
• Watch the Semi-Final events
• Arts graduate student wins UBC 3MT competition
• Watch the 2023 UBC 3MT competition

Florida State University

FSU | The Graduate School

Main navigation Pulldown

The graduate school, three minute thesis (3mt™).

The Three Minute Thesis (3MT™) is a research communication competition developed by The University of Queensland, Australia. The exercise develops academic, presentation, and research communication skills and supports the development of students' capacities to effectively explain their research in language appropriate to an intelligent but non-specialist audience.

Doctoral students have three minutes to present a compelling oration on their dissertation topic and its significance. 3MT™ encourages students to consolidate their ideas and crystalize their research discoveries.

Congratulate the 2023 3MT Winners!

1st Place:  Hyosoon Yim

Sport Management Promoting Sport Participation among Older Adults: Application of the Socioemotional Selectivity Theory

2nd Place:  Tania Sultana

Biomedical Sciences ZIKV NS3 Drives Assembly of a Viroplasm-Like Structure (VLS)

3rd Place:  Meng Tian

Communication The Stereotypes of Female eSports Players

People's Choice:  John Akintola

Chemistry and Biochemistry Functional Polyelectrolyte Complexes

2023 3MT Competition Finalists!

Sima Sabbagh

Neuroscience Unmasking the Architects of the Brain: Marvelous FMRP

Art Education Art May Facilitate Community Building to Alleviate Chinese International Students' Alienation

Andre Juliao

Condensed Matter Experimental Physics Nb3Sn for Axion Detection

Hemant Goswami

Molecular Biophysics Development of an Ultrasensitive and Rapid Virus Detection Method Based on CRISPR-Cas Enzyme

Toshiaki Kanai

Physics  Quantum Computer on Solid Neon 

Qiushan Liu

Developmental Psychology Investigating Strategy Flexibility in Algebra

Click here to read the FSU News Article

Click here to see the 2023 3MT Competition Gallery

Your graduate research. 3 minutes. 1 slide.

Why Participate?

Skills development for research candidates Participating in 3MT develops academic, presentation and research communication skills, while developing research candidates’ ability to effectively explain their research in language appropriate to a non-specialist audience.

Building external relations for the university 3MT winners go on to represent FSU at regional and national competitions which provides an excellent networking and professional development opportunity. 

Are you eligible?

Currently enrolled doctoral students at Florida State University are eligible to participate in the 3MT™. 3MT® presentations must represent the primary research the student has conducted in their graduate program.

Master's students are not eligible.

What are the prizes?

• 1st Place -  $1,000
• 2nd Place -  $750
• 3rd Place -  $500
• People's Choice (selected by the audience): $250

What are the judging criteria?

At every level of the competition each competitor will be assessed on the judging criteria listed below. Each criterion is equally weighted and has an emphasis on audience.

Comprehension and content

• Presentation provided clear background and significance to the research question
• Presentation clearly described the research strategy/design and the results/findings of the research
• Presentation clearly described the conclusions, outcomes and impact of the research

Engagement and communication

• The oration was delivered clearly, and the language was appropriate for a non-specialist audience
• The PowerPoint slide was well-defined and enhanced the presentation
• The presenter conveyed enthusiasm for their research and captured and maintained the audience’s attention

What are the rules?

• A single static PowerPoint slide is permitted (no slide transitions, animations or 'movement' of any description), and the slide is to be presented from the beginning of the oration and remain in view for the duration of the oration.
• No additional electronic media (e.g. sound and video files) are permitted.
• No additional props (e.g. costumes, musical instruments, laboratory equipment) are permitted.
• Presentations are limited to 3 minutes maximum, and competitors exceeding 3 minutes are disqualified.
• The decision of the judging panel is final.

Helpful Resources

• Click here to view the Three Minute Thesis Virtual Competition Handbook.

3MT Recording/Editing Links

• OpenShot Editing Video
• Kapwing Website
• 3MT Workshop Recording of Kapwing Editor: this video is a demonstration of the software
• Kapwing Tutorial
• FSU Canvas Support Center Tutorial : Best Practices for Student Video Production (iMovie and Movie Maker)
• Vimeo Website

Past 3MT™ Competitions

Fall 2023 3MT™

Doctoral student in Sport Management, Hyosoon Yim took first place at this year's 3MT competition and won $1,000. Read more .

Fall 2022 3MT™

Doctoral student in Science Education, Dionne Wilson took first place at this year's 3MT competition and won $1,000. Read more .

Fall 2021 3MT™

Doctoral student in Art Education, Chris Omni took first place at this year's 3MT competition and won $1,000.  Read more.

Fall 2020 3MT™

Mark Duslak (Educational Leadership & Policy Studies) and Matthew Martenson (Nutrition, Food, and Exercise Sciences) finished first this year. Read more.

Fall 2019 3MT™

Judges selected Alyssa Henderson (Physics)and Sara Jones (Biomedical Sciences) as this year’s first-place winners. Read more.

Fall 2018 3MT™

Doctoral student in biological science, Eve Humphrey took first place at this year's 3MT competition and won $1,000. Read more.

Fall 2017 3MT™

For the first time, a student from the College of Education, Shannon Gooden (Teacher Education), won the $1,000 prize. Read more.

Fall 2016 3MT™

Madhuparna Roy (Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering)won first place in this year's competition. Read more.

Fall 2015 3MT™

Aniket Ingrole (Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering) won first place in the 3MT™ competition. Read more.

Fall 2014 3MT™

Kimberly Smith (Neuroscience) won first place in this year's 3MT™ competition. Read more.

View the past 3MT competition galleries

UMD Three-Minute Thesis Competition

The 3MT competition challenges students to communicate the significance of their research projects to a non-specialist audience in just THREE MINUTES! The University of Maryland Graduate School invites graduate students from all disciplines to compete in the annual Three-Minute Thesis Competition (3MT). 

The 2024 3MT competition will take place in March and April. The first-round college-level competitions occurs in March.  Winners from the first-round competitions win a college-level prize and advance to the final round 3MT competition.  The final-round competition is on Wednesday, April 17, 2024, 1:00 pm in the Stamp Student Union, Charles Carroll Room .

Join us in-person or log watch live on Youtube ! 

If joining us in persion, please let us know by completing this April 17th 3MT Attendee Form .

The 3MT finalists are:

• Erin Hill, Psychology
• Hsin Jaw, Criminology and Criminal Justice
• Diego Silva, Applied Economics
• Amanda Brucchieri, Entomology
• Raquel Gama Lima Costa, Chemical Physics
• Tytrice Faison, Geology
• Nicholas Mennona, Physics
• Robert Salerno, Entomology
• Twesh Upadhyaya, Physics
• Faraz Burni, Chemical Engineering
• Het Mevada, Mechanical Engineering
• Robert Morris, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
• Anirudh Nakra, Electrical and Computer Engineering
• Nick Schwartz, Materials Science and Engineering
• Shrey Shah, Bioengineering

Participation in the 3MT competition provides students with...

• Experience in presentation skills and public speaking
• Practice talking about their research to a non-specialists audience
• Better perspective about how their research fits into the larger picture
• An opportunity to learn how to showcase their work to prospective employers
• Networking opportunities with students and faculty on campus
• An overall positive experience that promotes academic and professional growth
• Recognition and prizes

2024 3MT Guidelines  

Preparing your 3MT presentation:

Read the 3MT guidelines carefully. Take advantage of some of the 3MT resources available.   Consult with your  college-level 3MT contact  to learn more about your college-level competition. Attend a 3MT Workshop (below) View 3MT presentation from 2023 on this  YouTube Recording .

Important Dates for 3MT Participants

View the  History and Overview of the 3MT Competition  for more information.

Graduate College

Three Minute Thesis

What is 3mt.

The University of Iowa’s Three Minute Thesis (3MT) is a research communication competition that challenges graduate students to clearly and concisely articulate complex research to non-specialist audiences. Contestants represent a diverse array of disciplines and areas of study and reflect the passion and thirst for discovery common among all of Iowa's graduate students.

Participating in the Graduate College’s public scholarship competitions helps students develop communication skills, allows them to share and take pride in their work, and offers the chance to compete for prizes. You can view the presentations of all of our finalists on the  3MT spotlight page .

ELIGIBILITY:  Participants must be currently enrolled in a Masters or PhD degree program that requires the student to conduct their own research. You can prepare for the competition by following the steps below.

Step 1: Register for Info Session

Join our webinar on August 9th at 1:00pm to learn more

Step 2: Register for 3MT

Sign up to compete in the Fall 2023 Competition on October 5th and 6th

Step 3: Attend the Workshops

Sign up and take advantage of these 3MT training opportunities

2023 3MT Timeline

Each contestant who advances to the final competition will win a $250 cash prize. There will be additional prizes for:

• $1,000 dollars for 1st place (decided by judges) and the option for funds to travel to the Midwestern  Association of Graduate Schools (MAGS)  
• $500 for honorable mention (decided by judges)
• $250 for the "People's Choice" winner, selected by the audience ballot
• Gain everlasting glory for your college with the 3MT Dean's Cup 

Participation

Registration Deadline:  Monday, October 2, 2023, by 11:59 PM CT Students: To compete, you must register. After the registration deadline passes you will receive an invitation to join the 3MT ICON course that will include instructions on how to participate in the preliminary competition. 

Judging Criteria

Comprehension & content.

• Did the presentation provide an understanding of the background to the research question being addressed and its significance?
• Did the presentation clearly describe the key results of the research including conclusions and outcomes?
• Did the presentation follow a clear and logical sequence?
• Was the thesis topic, key results and research significance and outcomes communicated in language appropriate to a non-specialist audience?
• Did the speaker avoid scientific jargon, explain terminology and provide adequate background information to illustrate points?
• Did the presenter spend adequate time on each element of their presentation - or did they elaborate for too long on one aspect or was the presentation rushed?

Engagement & Communication

• Did the oration make the audience want to know more?
• Was the presenter careful not to trivialize or generalize their research?
• Did the presenter convey enthusiasm for their research?
• Did the presenter capture and maintain their audience's attention?
• Did the speaker have sufficient stage presence, eye contact and vocal range; maintain a steady pace, and have a confident stance?
• Did the PowerPoint slide enhance the presentation - was it clear, legible, and concise?

Winners will be determined by a panel of judges using the official 3MT competition rubrics to judge the presentations. Judges will be invited from the University of Iowa faculty and staff, previous 3MT winners, and the local community.

Volunteer to be a judge at any of the qualifying rounds

PAST WINNERS SHOWCASE

Check out past 3MT competition results and finalists

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Graduate School Updates>

The latest COVID-19 news and information is available at  Penn State's Coronavirus Information website . 

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Update

On March 11 th  the University announced that beginning March 16 th  instruction for all students will be moving to a remote delivery format. Graduate students enrolled in resident courses should plan on participating remotely, and not coming to campus specifically for face-to-face instruction. Learn more at gradschool.psu.edu/covid19 .

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Three Minute Thesis

•  /  Career and Professional Development
•  /  Three Minute Thesis

The Three Minute Thesis (3MT) is an academic research communication competition developed by the University of Queensland (UQ), Australia. Through the competition, graduate and professional students can hone their academic and research presentation skills and their ability to effectively explain their research to a general audience. Each competitor has three minutes to speak and can use only one presentation slide.

The Graduate School will be hosting the 2024 Three Minute Thesis competition in partnership with the Graduate and Professional Student Association and the Graduate School Alumni Society .

Watch the Final Round

3MT at Penn State in 2024 

Penn State’s first University-wide 3MT Competition will take place over two rounds. To compete, graduate students must upload a video presentation during the submission period (January 8–February 9) and be available for the final, in-person round on Saturday, March 23, on the University Park campus.

Competitor Information

Learn more about eligibility requirements, the upcoming timeline, prize money, and more.

Judge Information

Learn about remote judging for the opening round, who can be a judge, judging criteria, and more.

Prizes 

• First Place: $1,000
• Second Place: $500
• People's Choice: $500

Competition Format

Opening Round — Video Format expand_more

Open call to any Penn State graduate or professional student conducting research to submit three-minute videos. Submissions will be judged by alumni, graduate students, postdoctoral scholars, faculty, staff, and others. The top 10 students get invited to the final round as well as a free lunch at Penn State’s annual Doctoral Alumni Recognition Luncheon hosted by the Dean of the Graduate School. 

Final Round — In-Person Format expand_more

Saturday, March 23  10:00-11:15 a.m.  Penn Stater Hotel and Conference Center 

The final round will be live streamed from the University Park campus and will include a people’s choice prize selected by virtual and in-person audience ballots. Winners will be announced shortly after the competition.

Regional and National Competitions expand_more

The top-scoring Ph.D. student from Penn State’s final round will be invited to the regional 3MT competition hosted by the Northeast Association of Graduate Schools in April 2024 (exact date to be determined). Winners of the regional competition are invited to the national competition hosted by the Council of Graduate Schools. Students in master's and professional degree programs are eligible to participate in Penn State's competition but are not eligible for the regional or national competitions.

Why participate?

Megan Rossi, past 3MT winner at the University of Queensland, discusses how the 3MT competition helped her career.

Contact  

Direct all questions about Three Minute Thesis at Penn State to: [email protected] .  

Three Minute Thesis, Graduate Exhibition, or Both?

In spring 2024, Penn State graduate students can participate in two major research and scholarship communication events, the Three Minute Thesis and the  Graduate Exhibition . Students are welcome to participate in both but should be aware that each event has its own application process and deadlines.

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The Three Minute Thesis Competition  

An 80,000 word ph.d. thesis would take 9 hours to present. their time limit...3 minutes. special thanks to our sponsor riverstone for supporting this event.  .

The 2024 3MT Competition is taking place in February and April! Thirty applicants will be selected to compete. Applications are now closed.

3MT Overview

Three Minute Thesis (3MT ® ) celebrates the exciting research conducted by PhD students around the world. Developed by  The University of Queensland (UQ) , the competition cultivates students’ academic, presentation, and research communication skills. Presenting in a 3MT competition increases their capacity to effectively explain their research in three minutes , in a language appropriate to a non-specialist audience. Competitors are allowed one PowerPoint slide , but no other resources or props.

The 8 th  annual 3MT competition took place in March 2023. We had 32 students compete and witnessed some fantastic presentations. We can't wait to see what our new and returning participants bring in 2024. To help students prepare for the 3MT we offer a workshop series that will guide students through the whole process-- developing the talk, creating the slide, and practicing the presentation. view all the 2023 preliminary and final round presentations

Past Participants

The UNH Graduate School Media Channel hosts videos of the 3MT competitions from every year! Browse the channel at the link below to find 3MT presentations from participants across a range of disciplines and subjects. You can find direct links to the videos of our award winners from each year in the "Past 3MT Winners" section on this webpage as well.

UNH Graduate School Media Page Official 3MT Website

2023 3MT Winners

2024 3MT Competition Schedule

Preliminary Round 1 - February 27th from 3-5pm, MUB Theater I Preliminary Round 2 - February 28th from 3-5pm, MUB Theater I 3MT Final Round - April 8th from 4-6pm, MUB Theater II (followed by a reception from 6-7pm)

Preparing for your 3MT

Upcoming workshop open to all UNH graduate students and postdocs

Introduction to the Three Minute Thesis (3MT) Come for an overview of what the Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition is and what makes a good 3MT, from content to audience to the way you present your research, orally and visually. Attendance can be in-person or virtual. 

When : December 13, 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM Where : Hamel Recreation Center room 107C or via Zoom

Register here

Past 3MT Winners

• 1 st place: Melanie Smith ,  Master's Student in Marine Biology
• 2 nd place: Manjot Rekhi , PhD Student in Earth and Environmental Science
• 3 rd place: Diana Reyes Gomez , PhD Student in Agricultural Sciences
• People's Choice Award: Ava Boutilier , Master's Student in Biochemistry
• 1 st place: Sathya Jagadeesan ,  PhD student in Chemical Engineering
• 2 nd place:  Nikolai Matukhno , Master's Student in Mechanical Engineering
• 3 rd place & People’s Choice Award:  Nick Pollak , PhD candidate in Chemistry
• 1 st place: David Heit , Msc Wildlife and Conservation Biology
• 2 nd place: Via D'Agostino , MFA Fiction Writing
• 3 rd place: Hannah Lightcap , PhD Psychology
• People’s Choice Award: Jess Flarity , PhD English Literature
• 1 st place: Jordan Pierce , MS Oceanography
• 2 nd place: Allison Giannotti , PhD Composition & Rhetoric
• 3 rd place: Isaiah Paolo Atienza Lee , PhD Molecular and Evolutionary Systems Biology
• People’s Choice Award: Danial Mirzaiyanrajeh , PhD Civil & Environmental Engineering
• People’s Choice Runner Up: Kerry Dykens , MS Oceanography
• 1 st place: Sidney Birch , PhD Molecular & Evolutionary Systems Biology
• 2 nd place & People’s Choice Award: Zane Relethford , PhD Chemistry
• 3 rd place: Katherine Ineson , PhD NRESS
• 1 st place: Jovana Milosavljevic Ardeljan , PhD Education
• 2 nd place: Devon O'Rourke , PhD Molecular and Evolution Systems Biology
• 3 rd place & People’s Choice Award: Kaitlyn Belknap , M.S. Genetics
• 1 st place: Drummond Biles , PhD, Mechanical Engineering
• 2 nd place: Meagan Wengrove , PhD Ocean Engineering
• 3 rd place: Ryan Stevens , PhD Natural resources
• People’s Choice Award: Rev. Holland Prior , MFA Creative Nonfiction
• People’s Choice Runner Up: Jovana Milosavljevic Ardeljan , PhD Education
• 1 st place & People’s Choice Award: Lesley Atwood , PhD Agroecology
• 2 nd place: Susan Deily Swearingen , PhD History
• 3 rd place: Maria Marin Jarrin , PhD Oceanography
• A single static PowerPoint slide is permitted. No slide transitions, animations, or "movement" of any description are allowed. The slide is to be presented from the beginning of the oration.
• No additional electronic media (e.g., sound and video files) are permitted.
• No additional props (e.g., costumes, musical instruments, laboratory equipment, etc.) are permitted.
• Presentations are limited to 3 minutes maximum and competitors exceeding 3 minutes are disqualified.
• Presentations are to be spoken word (e.g., no poems, raps or songs).
• Presentations are to commence from the front of the theater.
• Presentations are considered to have commenced when a presenter starts their presentation through either movement or speech.
• The decision of the adjudicating panel is final.

Judging Criteria

3 Minute Thesis presentations are judged using the following criteria:

Comprehension and Content

• Did the presentation provide an understanding of the background to the research question being addressed and its significance?
• Did the presentation clearly describe the key results of the research including conclusions and outcomes?
• Did the presentation follow a clear and logical sequence?
• Was the thesis topic, key results and research significance and outcomes communicated in language appropriate to a non-specialist audience?
• Did the speaker avoid scientific jargon, explain terminology and provide adequate background information to illustrate points?
• Did the presenter spend adequate time on each element of their presentation - or did they elaborate for too long on one aspect so that other aspects of the presentation felt rushed?

Engagement and Communication

• Did the oration make the audience want to know more?
• Was the presenter careful not to trivialize or generalize their research?
• Did the presenter convey enthusiasm for their research?
• Did the presenter capture and maintain their audience's attention?
• Did the speaker have sufficient stage presence, eye contact and vocal range; maintain a steady pace, and have a confident stance?
• Did the PowerPoint slide enhance the presentation - was it clear, legible, and concise?

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Physics Ph.D. candidate wins 2024 Three Minute Thesis competition

3/22/2024 By | Katya Hrichak , Cornell University Graduate School

“I want you to remember a time when you were in a setting where you felt like you didn’t belong. I want you to remember how you felt in that setting, maybe isolated or out of place, and how much you felt like you wanted to continue going back to that setting—probably not much. These feelings are all too familiar for undergraduate women pursuing their studies in science, and in physics specifically,” began Meagan Sundstrom, a doctoral candidate in physics at the ninth annual Cornell University Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition.

Alongside seven other finalists, Sundstrom presented her dissertation research in just three minutes on March 20 to a panel of judges and an audience from across campus while additional friends, family, advisors, and lab mates watched online. In the first in-person Cornell 3MT since 2019, presentations were judged by how clearly and compellingly students summarized their research to a general audience, using only one static slide.

Sundstrom’s presentation, “Recognizing and Removing Barriers for Women in Physics,” earned her first place and $1,500. Second place and $1,000 was awarded to information science doctoral student Sterling Williams-Ceci for her presentation, “AI Helps us Write – but at What Cost?”

After nearly 60 in-person and 70 virtual audience members cast their ballots, votes were tallied and the People’s Choice Award and $250 were presented to biomedical and biological sciences doctoral candidate Sharada Gopal for her presentation, “Worming Our Way to a Longer Life.”

This year’s judges included Jane Bunker, director of Cornell University Press; Joe Ellis, director of online degree program development at eCornell; David Lodge, the Francis J. DiSalvo Director of the Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability; and Bob Riter, patient advocate for the Cornell Community Cancer Partnership. Organization of the competition and coaching of presenters was provided by the Graduate School Office of Career and Professional Development.

“As grad students, there are a lot of opportunities to give your elevator pitch at conferences and more professional settings to more senior people in your field, and I thought this would be a really cool opportunity for me to try to tailor that pitch to a more general audience—how would I describe my research to my family and friends?—so that was fun,” said Sundstrom.

Being able to “zoom out” and view her topic from a different perspective was also helpful for Sundstrom, who is currently writing her dissertation and appreciates having both formulated a storyline and thought about the broader impacts of her work.

Williams-Ceci similarly enjoyed the chance to speak to a different type of audience than she is used to addressing.

“I hadn’t really had an opportunity in grad school to try communicating to a broad audience, it’s always just to my lab, so I wanted to practice having a chance to really tell a story and not just go through the slides,” she said. “It really helped me know for a fact that I can tell a convincing story about a project that I’ve done.”

Gopal shared that the 3MT was a fun way to combine her longtime artistic interests with her science.

“It seemed like such a fun event. I did a lot of theatre in college so I thought, ‘What can I do artistically here?’ and this seemed like a good mix of my scientific interest and my artistic theatre interests,” she said, adding that she also benefitted from looking at the bigger picture of her work and its impacts.

The 3MT competition was first held in 2008 at the University of Queensland and has since been adopted by over 900 universities in over 85 countries. 3MT challenges research degree students to present a compelling story on their dissertation or thesis and its significance in just three minutes, in language appropriate to a non-specialist audience.

Cornell’s Graduate School first hosted a 3MT competition in 2015 and the event has grown steadily since that time. As the winner of Cornell’s competition, Sundstrom will now go on to compete in northeast regional competitions.

“Our Three Minute Thesis final round is a highlight of the year for those of us in the Graduate School—literally we talk about it all year long,” said Kathryn J. Boor, dean of the Graduate School and vice provost for graduate education. “We look forward to it because it’s just plain fun, and it’s an opportunity for us to watch and learn from our accomplished and creative graduate researchers.”

“I could not possibly be more proud of the work we saw,” she said.

Read the story on the Cornell University Graduate School website.

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/images/cornell/logo35pt_cornell_white.svg" alt="3 minute thesis"> Cornell University --> Graduate School

Computer science and statistics ph.d. candidates win three minute thesis competition.

For the first time in Graduate School history, two doctoral candidates tied for first place in the eighth Cornell Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition, held on March 30, on Zoom.

Yurong You, a doctoral candidate in computer science, and Kim Hochstedler, a doctoral candidate in statistics, wowed the judges and took home co-first place for their presentations, “Can Autonomous Vehicles Learn from Their Own Memories?” and “The Heart of Misdiagnosis,” respectively. Each were awarded the top prize of $1,500.

Alongside six other finalists, Hochstedler and You presented their dissertation research in just three minutes to a panel of judges and a virtual audience from across campus and around the world. Presentations were judged by how clearly and compellingly students summarized their research to a general audience, using only one static slide.

Second place and $1,000 was awarded to entomology doctoral candidate Lidia Komondy for her presentation, “Seeing is Believing, if You Know Where to Look,” and after nearly 100 audience members cast their ballots, votes were tallied and the People’s Choice Award and $250 were also presented to You.

This year’s judges included Eldora Ellison, Ph.D. ‘94, a member of Cornell’s Board of Trustees; Kim Wagner ‘85, a member of Cornell’s Board of Trustees; Bruno Shirley, an Asian literature, religion, and culture doctoral candidate and 2022 first place winner; and Matt Ranieri ‘06, M.S. ’09, Ph.D. ‘13, president of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Alumni Association.

“The presentations were fascinating and came from finalists with expertise in so many impressive and diverse research topics. It was amazing to see how impactful these research projects were to the world,” said Komondy. “This experience helped me realize how important scientific research is outside the lab and how important it is to keep the public updated on the implications of our research findings.”

Each of the winners agreed that participating in the 3MT was a great way to practice talking about their research in a way that engages and excites individuals outside of their fields and that the experience will influence the way they share their research going forward.

“The best way to explain things is to stand in the audience’s shoes and use simple words,” said You. “Participation in 3MT will undoubtedly shape my future presentations.”

Hochstedler said, “As I continue to communicate my research in future presentations and projects, I think these lessons of how to connect with an audience and explain my work succinctly will remain valuable. I now feel very prepared for the next family reunion when people ask me what I’m working on at Cornell!”

The 3MT competition was first held in 2008 at the University of Queensland and has since been adopted by over 900 universities in over 85 countries. 3MT challenges research degree students to present a compelling story on their dissertation or thesis and its significance in just three minutes, in language appropriate to a non-specialist audience.

Cornell’s Graduate School first hosted a 3MT competition in 2015 and the event has grown steadily since that time.

“The 3MT is an excellent way for our doctoral students to practice communicating complex ideas to a broader audience, which is a skill beneficial not only for their time as students but for when they enter the professional world as well,” said Kathryn J. Boor, dean of the Graduate School and vice provost for graduate education. “We are so proud of each and every one of this year’s finalists.”

2023 3MT Finalists

Watch the 2023 three minute thesis competition finale..

Co-First Place and People’s Choice Award: Yurong You , computer science doctoral candidate

Watch Yurong You’s presentation .

Presentation Title: “Can Autonomous Vehicles Learn from Their Own Memories?”

Special Committee Chair: Killian Weinberger and Bharath Hariharan

Area of Research: Machine learning, computer vision

Biography: Yurong You is a Ph.D. candidate in computer science, advised by Prof. Kilian Q. Weinberger and Prof. Bharath Hariharan. Before he came to Cornell, he received his bachelor’s degree from Shanghai Jiao Tong University (ACM honors class). His Ph.D. research focuses on enhancing 3D perception for autonomous vehicles, particularly through innovative methods.

Favorite Thing About Cornell: Amazing people at Cornell!

Co-First Place: Kimberly Hochstedler, statistics doctoral candidate

Watch Kimberly Hochstedler’s presentation .

Presentation Title: “The Heart of Misdiagnosis”

Special Committee Chair: Martin Wells

Area of Research: Correcting for misclassification/misdiagnosis in medical studies

Biography: Kim Hochstedler is a Ph.D. candidate in statistics. She received her M.S. in biostatistics from the University of Michigan in 2020 and graduated with her B.S. in statistics and psychology from Carnegie Mellon University in 2018. Her research involves developing statistical methods for misclassified outcome data in healthcare and criminal justice settings.

Favorite Thing About Cornell: The ice cream.

Second Place: Lidia Komondy, entomology doctoral candidate

Watch Lidia Komondy’s presentation .

Presentation Title: “Seeing is Believing, if You Know Where to Look”

Special Committee Chair: Brian Nault

Area of Research: Precision agriculture, insect vector ecology, integrated pest management

Biography: Lidia Komondy is a Ph.D. candidate in the field of entomology. Her research focuses on the vector ecology of insect-transmitted plant pathogens and the use of precision agricultural tools to solve modern problems in the ecological sciences. She hopes that her research will help alleviate the escalating challenges that growers are facing.

Favorite Thing About Cornell: The Big Red Barn!

Fangming Cui, psychology doctoral candidate

Watch Fangming Cui’s presentation .

Presentation Title: “An Upside to Disappointment in Close Relationships: Evidence for a Motivational, Relationship-Promoting Role”

Special Committee Chair: Vivian Zayas

Area of Research: Close relationships, emotion, motivation

Biography: Originally from China, Fangming is a Ph.D. candidate in psychology with an emphasis on social psychology. Her research mainly focuses on the downstream consequences of diverse emotional expressions in close relationships. She is fascinated with the idea of the “positivity of negativity,” wherein negative emotional expressions can, at times, exert positive relational outcomes.

Favorite Thing About Cornell: Taverna Banfi brunch and salads at the Terrace restaurant.

Sharada Gopal, biomedical and biological sciences doctoral student

Watch Sharada Gopal’s presentation .

Presentation Title: “Worming Our Way Through a Longer Life”

Special Committee Chair: Siu Sylvia Lee

Area of Research: Aging

Biography: Sharada Gopal am a third-year graduate student in Dr. Sylvia Lee’s lab, where she studies the molecular mechanisms that regulate aging. Originally from Bangalore, India, Gopal came to Cornell for her master’s degree before transitioning to the BBS program to pursue a Ph.D. Beyond her research, she enjoys swimming in Ithaca’s picturesque lakes, singing, and cooking.

Favorite Thing About Cornell: The BBS community.

Yuexing Hao, design and environmental analysis doctoral student

Watch Yuexing Hao’s presentation .

Presentation Title: “AI-Enhanced Patient-Centered Clinical Shared Decision-Making (SDM): A ‘Black Box’ Study with Older Adults”

Area of Research: Health intelligence, human-computer interaction

Biography: Yuexing Hao is a Ph.D. student in design and environmental analysis with a concentration in human centered design at Cornell University. She earned two computer science degrees from Rutgers University (B.A.) and Tufts University (M.S). Currently, her research focus is on health intelligence and human-computer interaction.

Favorite Thing About Cornell: P.E classes! I took ice hockey, squash, water skiing, and yoga, all of which were fantastic experiences.

Sangwoo Park, biophysics doctoral candidate

Watch Sangwoo Park’s presentation .

Presentation Title: “Sugar Barrier on the Cancer Cells”

Special Committee Chair: Matthew Paszek

Area of Research: Glycobiology, immunotherapy, biophysics

Biography: Sangwoo Park is from Changwon, South Korea. His current research focuses on developing new immunotherapies targeting the cancer cell glycocalyx. He has developed an optical microscopy method to understand the physical properties of glycocalyx. The ultimate goal of his research is to find treatment methods to eradicate cancers.

Favorite Thing About Cornell: Wineries and hiking.

Susannah Sharpless , English language and literature doctoral candidate

Watch Susannah Sharpless’s presentation .

Presentation Title: “How Did Maritime Trade Shape the Imaginations of American Women Writers?”

Special Committee Chair: Shirley Samuels

Area of Research: 19th-century American Literature

Biography: Susannah Sharpless is a Ph.D. candidate studying nineteenth-century literature. Her dissertation is titled, “‘Subtle Cargoes’: The Terraqueous Romantic in Nineteenth-Century Women’s Writing.”

2023 Final Round 3MT Competition

The live virtual Three Minute Thesis Competition Final Round took place at 3:00 pm ET on March 30, 2023. Eight finalists competed for first and second prize in the judging and People’s Choice Award winner. A post-event reception was held at the Big Red Barn starting at approximately 4:30 pm ET, and was open to the Cornell community and families and friends of the finalists and judges.

Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) is a competition to help doctoral students develop and showcase their research communication skills. Cornell’s 3MT challenges graduate students to present their dissertation as a compelling story in just three minutes, with one slide, in language appropriate to a non-specialist audience.

Preliminary Round Events

• All competitors submitted a recorded presentation of their talk by noon ET on Monday, March 13, 2023 in order to compete in the Preliminary Rounds that selected finalists.
• We thank all of our wonderful preliminary round presenters for participation in the 2023 competition. Those who are still enrolled as doctoral students next year are welcome to enter the competition again.
• Thank you also to our preliminary round judges, including Evelyn Ambríz, Merry Buckley, Anitra Douglas-McCarthy, Christine Holmes, Janna Lamey, Nathan Lindberg, Heidi Marshall, and Christian Miller.
• Registration was opened from February – March 13, 2023, and an information was held on March 6. View the information session recording .
• Need assistance recording your video submission? Timeslots were available on Thursday, March 9 to record your preliminary round video in the Big Red Barn greenhouse with the help of a Barn staff member. Recording equipment was provided.

If you should have questions or concerns regarding the 3MT Competition, please email us at:  [email protected] . 

Graduate Education

Office of graduate and postdoctoral education, 12 grad students named as finalists for 2024 three minute thesis competition.

Mar 26, 2024

After six intense preliminary rounds, twelve exceptional scholars have emerged from a pool of 65 talented candidates, earning their place as finalists in Georgia Tech's highly anticipated annual Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition. On Friday, April 5, 2024, these finalists will hit the stage, harnessing their research expertise, to deliver compelling presentations in a three-minute format.

Congratulations to the following twelve finalists:

Karina Bhattacharya MID Industrial Design 

Vinodhini Comandur, Ph.D. Aerospace Engineering 

Mo Jarin, Ph.D. Environmental Engineering 

Anamik Jhunjhunwala, Ph.D. Biomedical Engineering 

Valeria Juarez, Ph.D. Biomedical Engineering 

Alexandra Patterson, Ph.D. Bioengineering 

Jeffrey Pattison, Ph.D. Aerospace Engineering 

Kantwon Rogers, Ph.D. Computer Science 

Mallika Senthil, MS Biomedical Engineering 

Wenting Shi, Ph.D. Chemistry and Biochemistry 

Shreyas Srivathsan, Ph.D. Aerospace Engineering 

Raghav Tandon, Ph.D. Machine Learning 

This year’s 3MT competition takes place on Friday, April 5, 2024, at 5:30 p.m. in the Atlantic Theater in the John Lewis Student Center. The entire Georgia Tech community is encouraged to attend the competition, which occurs as the finale of the 2024 Grad Student Appreciation Week. 3MT will also be streamed online and can be viewed at https://gatech.zoom.us/j/98696536715 .  Audience members and online viewers can vote for their favorite presenter to win the People’s Choice Award.  

Ph.D. winners can win up to $2,000 in research travel grants. The master's winner will receive a $1,000 research travel grant.   

Tech’s 3MT competition is coordinated by the Office of Graduate Education in partnership with the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL), The Naugle Communications Center, and the Language Institute.  

For more information, visit grad.gatech.edu/3mt . 

Brittani Hill | Marketing and Communications Manager 

Office of Graduate and Postdoctoral Education 

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Wednesday, March 27, 2024

Office of Graduate Education and Life announces Three-Minute Thesis finalists

Ten doctoral students will compete in the grand finale beginning at 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 3, in the Mountainlair Ballrooms as five faculty and staff members judge for first, second and third place winners. 

The WVU community is also invited to attend and vote for the People’s Choice Award.

The internationally renowned 3MT competition, originally founded by the University of Queensland in Australia, challenges doctoral students to present their research topic and its significance in three minutes using a single PowerPoint slide. 

Competitors develop academic, presentation and research communication skills while gaining experience pitching their research succinctly to a non-specialist audience. 

The 2024 finalists are as follows: 

Haidar Aldaach, Civil Engineering, Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources

Syeda Nyma Ferdous, Computer Engineering, Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources 

Tanner Hoffman, Plant and Soil Sciences, Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Design 

Brian Leonard, Chemical Engineering, Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources 

Kushal Naharki, Plant and Soil Sciences, Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Design 

Kinsey Reed, Plant and Soil Sciences, Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Design 

Denis Ruto, Environmental Engineering, Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources 

Kayla Steinberger, Immunology, School of Medicine 

Vaishakhi Suresh, Industrial and Management Systems Engineering, Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources 

Paige Zalman, Higher Education, College of Applied Human Services 

Grand finale prizes include $1,000 for first place, $750 for second place, $500 for third place and $250 for the People’s Choice Award.

Find more information on the 3MT competition.

For questions, contact Betty Mei at [email protected].