poster presentation dissertation

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Poster Presentation

Developing a Poster Presentation

A poster presentation is a visual presentation of your research that often includes a concise display of the abstract, purpose, method, significant literature, results, and graphs or tables. 

Poster Presentation Templates

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21 Poster Presentations

Read time: 8 minutes

This section will outline how to communicate your scientific research in the format of a poster presentation, and provide guidance on designing your poster.

Sections in this chapter

Environment and audience, poster vs. talk, verbal aspect, poster design, virtual posters.

Many conferences have poster presentation sessions along with oral presentations. The poster presentation is a format introduced into the American Chemical Society meetings in the 1970s. This format allows more people the opportunity to present their work since many posters can be scheduled for the same time period and in one large room.

The format of a poster presentation allows for a one-on-one and in-depth discussion between the presenter and viewer. For this reason, poster sessions are often combined with social mixers, where people can walk around and browse the posters.

Theoretically, the poster audience is more broad and diverse, since many disciplines present in one large room. For this reason, your poster should be readable or understandable in less than 5 minutes by someone not in your field, who has only general knowledge of the research area. People browse posters and look for something that interests them, and on average spend around 90 seconds viewing a single poster. However, the people who actually attend your poster will likely be those who are interested in your work or work in a similar area.

Attaching business cards and one-page copies of your poster allow viewers to contact you later and get the information without having to take notes.

Table 21.1. Differences between posters and oral presentations (talks)

Posters are mostly non-verbal and visual, so most of this chapter will discuss poster design. However, the verbal aspect of the poster presentation is where many presenters struggle! The most common mistake is for presenters to launch into a detailed overview of the slides, starting at the introduction and working their way through the poster all the way to the acknowledgements. Even a 5-minute overview is too long at a poster! The issue with this approach is that the viewer cannot listen to you and think critically at the same time, and they lose the autonomy of exploring your visuals at their own pace. Follow these tips for a successful poster presentation:

• If someone shows interest in your poster, smile and introduce yourself, then wait.
• If they start to intently view your poster, let them do this silently without interruption.
• If they turn to you, ask if they would like a short overview of your work.
• Start with the key finding, from your conclusion, and state it in a single sentence.
• Then move on to your motivation and methods and details about the results.
• Make sure to pause and make eye contact, which will let viewers ask questions.
• Ask your viewer questions to gauge their interest and background, and encourage discussion
• Point to relevant things on your poster as you present.

There are some aspects of etiquette to giving poster presentations. First of all, you should be at your poster during the specified times. Socializing with friends should be a lower priority, so if your lab members are hanging around your poster you can politely ask them to give you some space. Stay tuned to social cues from your viewer, and let them view the poster silently if they seem to want that. Lastly, consider waiting until after the presentation for drinks.

Format and Size

Posters should be concise, organized, and self-explanatory: the best way to achieve this is to have a central and obvious message. Beyond that, a poster should be easy to view from 1-2 meters away, which means you should limit text to short paragraphs (<20 lines) or bullet points. Remember that you are not writing a full paper! Any text should be in a simple Sans-Serif typeface ( e.g., Arial, Verdana, Calibri) with adequate spacing, and large enough to easily read. Consider using a different font style for the title and headings than the main text. Follow this guide for minimum text sizes:

Title 100 pt (Verdana, bold)

Authors 36 pt (Arial, bold)

Headings 54 pt (Verdana, bold)

Main text 32 pt (Arial)

References 28 point (Arial)

Instead of text, use figures, graphs, and charts to visually communicate of your work. Make sure the text labels and axes are large enough to easily read, following the guide above.

Check the conference website for instructions on the acceptable dimensions for posters. The typically allowed dimensions are 90 cm (36”) high x  122 cm (48”) wide. There are two ways to create your poster (Figure 21.1): 1) print 12-20 regular slides on 8.5″ x 11″ pieces of paper, and arrange them; 2) create a single large poster sheet, either printed on paper or fabric, to fill the whole space.

Posters have all the components of a paper, organized into sections. These sections are not always separate on your poster (see below ‘Layout’), but they should be present in one way or another. See Table 21.2. for a list of sections and their descriptions.

Table 21.2. Poster sections

Sections in your poster are outlined by headings. Instead of using section titles like “Introduction”, use descriptive headings that tell the viewer the key message of the section (Table 21.3).

Table 21.3. Replacing poster headings with descriptive headings

Layout & design.

A thoughtful layout will provide a natural flow that guides people through your poster.  It is best to arrange your poster in blocks of columns, so that the audience reads from left to right, top to bottom using “reader’s gravity”. You can number each section block or heading to help the reader to follow the flow of the material. 

Posters with symmetric layouts and plenty of ‘white space’ are more visually pleasing, and can also help with flow. Also, place graphics and text to create a symmetrical balance.

Instead of headings like “Introduction”, use descriptive headings to clearly communicate your main points. A lack of headings, plus an asymmetric layout of the material, makes it difficult for the viewer to follow the flow or find a particular section of the poster.

A popular traditional poster format (see Figure 21.2) has a landscape layout and three columns: 1) Introduction and Methods, 25% width; 2) Results arena, 50% Width; 3) Conclusions and Acknowledgements, 25% width. A more modern landscape layout (Figure 21.3) was designed by Mike Morrison , [1] which features a large takeaway sidebar with the key message, and a QR code that links to the paper or a website. This modern poster format also works well in a portrait format (Figure 21.4).

Stick to a theme of 2 or 3 colours, using an accessible colour scheme , and be consistent with the use of colours that have meaning (e.g.,  in legends). Don’t be afraid to use b right colours to attract attention, but if you overuse them you will wear out readers’ eyes. For the body of your poster, use a light coloured background and dark coloured text. Dark backgrounds with light letters can become tiring to read but are often used for headings.

Don’t start from scratch

There are many poster templates available online! Here are some PowerPoint templates and guides:

BetterPosters.blogspot.com landscape template

BetterPosters.blogspot.com portrait template

BetterPosters.blogspot.com Twitter template

Queen’s Chemistry Landscape Poster Template

Queen’s Chemistry Portrait Poster Template

Online conferences and symposia are becoming more common, including virtual poster sessions. Virtual posters can have animations, videos, and audio narration. These posters can take many formats, but one common format is for the RSC Poster  Day on Twitter. They published this guide to creating a version of your poster on Twitter, and how to identify your work using the right hashtag ( e.g., #RSCOrganic, #RSCAnalytical).

Here are some links to the 2020 winners of #RSCPoster Day.

Super excited to share my research on the use of electrochemistry as a tool for drug detection in complex matrices as a #comicsforscience for my first #RSCPoster #RSCAnalytical #RSCPhys #electrochem @DennanyChem @PamelaAllanChem @CarnegieUni @StrathChem @StrathForensics pic.twitter.com/ISzJ55Hbqh — Kelly Brown (@kellybrown_94) March 3, 2020

Excited to share my first #RSCPoster and looking forward to interact with all the #chemtweeps to discuss magnetic photocatalysis 🧲💡 #RSCCat #RSCNano #RSCMat pic.twitter.com/XzwxnIYJyh — Julio Terra, Ph.D. (@_julioterra) March 3, 2020

Here we go again! NEON can deny, oops I mean no-one can deny Hydrogen's BRIGHT future for renewable energy! Here is my fun twist on my LIGHT weight hydrogen storage for mobile fuel cell applications research at @lborouniversity @LboroScience #RSCEnergy #RSCPoster pic.twitter.com/8DzRUHobiA — Lizzie Ashton (@LizzieRAshton) March 3, 2020

• " Critique: The Morrison billboard poster ", Zen Faulkes, April 11, 2019, Better Posters. Accessed 2020-08-31 ↵

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.

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Make Scientific Research Posters that Get Attention

Think of your scientific research conference poster as a networking and communication tool, and not a document or summary. If you can do this, you’ve taken a huge first step in making your scientific research poster a magnet for attendees. And you’ll draw envious glares from the presenters on your left and right.

At scientific and research-related conferences, poster presentations are:

• Your visual backdrop and a compelling statement of your research
• A conversation starter
• Your chance to get attention!

If done well, your poster presentation can:

• Help you make valuable professional and personal connections
• Quickly and compellingly communicate why your work is important
• Set you apart from the crowd!

If your poster’s done poorly, it can achieve nothing. You need to them to stop and take notice, connect with you, not… walk on by.

Make your poster presentation pop. Sizes, fonts, style, tone, tools, and examples follow.

What you’ll learn in this post

• Where scientific posters are used, and why.

• The objective and what to keep in mind when planning and making a scientific research poster.

• How researchers can more effectively use poster presentations to both inform and connect.

• What to put on a scientific poster and what software tools will make it pop.

• Common poster mistakes (especially for ESL/EFL English users) and how to avoid them.

• Specific examples of attractive, effective, and modern posters.

What is a poster session and a poster presentation?

Academic conferences have presentation where people stand behind lecterns and talk about their work. And they have networking sessions, which are commonly called poster sessions .

If you’re a researcher, you’ve likely been there: halls and lobbies full of boards arranged in rows onto which researchers pin their posters – graphical, pictorial summaries of their work. These are chances to promote your work to colleagues and even to the prestigious attendees.

There may be food involved, too. So, in a poster session, people may be walking around with a drink in one hand and a stack of pamphlets and papers in the other.

What do you do at a poster session?

You stand by your poster, for one. And you walk around and look at other posters as you network. Guests also walk around among the posters, stopping to talk with attendees along the way.

Apart from your stage presentation, if you had one, this is your chance for your work to capture interest.

As a researcher, you’re probably not used being a salesperson. You may also be scared to death of speaking with strangers, especially VIP scientists.

That’s OK, you have your poster to do some of the work for you. It’s your key that unlocks engagement.

What’s the goal of a poster?

A poster’s goal is to get the attention of passersby at scientific conferences. It’s a big paper board and a networking tool.

Simply put, a presentation poster is a graphical representation of your recent work – an article or a work in progress, or even a proposal. Printed on a big board.

More than that, it’s an engagement tool. To get people to stop, look, and engage, the poster should be treated like a presentation slide, rather than a document.

A good poster is attractive, clear, and when it gets interest, its mission is accomplished.

When people stop, you can approach them, because you’re the researcher. You can start dialog and connect. The poster is what made this happen.

What a poster is NOT

We edit many posters at Edanz. We fix up the English to a high level, of course. But frankly, many of these research posters are rather dull, even when they are presenting interesting science that people will want to discuss. The authors only see them as super-sized abstracts with a figure or two added.

Often they squeeze in too many words and lots of numbers and data. Many of these posters are have problems with formatting, making them hard to read and understand.

A conference poster is not a place to present all your data and give deep analysis. It doesn’t need every single detail of your latest article.

It does, however, need a logical structure and some visual appeal.

A poster is not to communicate every detail of your research, but rather to attract people’s attention and start conversation. Keep that in mind as you prepare it.

So then, what do you put on a research poster and how do you make it?

What goes on a poster for a poster presentation?

The overall structure and flow of a poster presentation is much like a research paper.

Key elements of a poster

As the late Paul Arden, a renowned creative director, said:

“The more strikingly visual your presentation is, the more people will remember it. And, more importantly, they will remember you.”

It’s true of ads and it’s true of scientific posters. Your poster should contain text and visuals. How you use them will determine its success.

Text in a poster

A poster typically includes the following text:

• Title of your work
• Authors and affiliations
• Introduction/background
• (optional) Questions/knowledge gap
• Materials, Materials and methods, or Patients
• Conclusions
• References for proper attribution
• Acknowledgements

As with a manuscript, and what our professional editors always recommend, much of the same applies for a poster presentation.

The key difference is that you don’t have to strictly adhere to grammatical rules. A few sentence fragments are fine. Bullet points are recommended.

But you still have to keep it academic. No slang or emojis, yo. ?

As for length, 300–800 words as a general rule. Any more than that and your font will probably become too small to read or there will be too much text jammed into your sections.

Despite the consensus being on around 300–800, some argue for even as low as 100–150, on the grounds that very few people actually read posters word for word anyway. If you have one solid main point, you might try this approach, and instead let your images and formatting do the main communicating.

Do your best to:

• Keep your wording as short and “plain” (understandable to a wide audience) as possible.
• Use the active voice (“We found…”) not the passive voice (…was found by…).
• Use language suitable for your audience; meaning you can use specialized terminology if they’ll understand it.
• Use ordered lists when possible – bullets (like this list) and numbers.
• Spell out any uncommon acronyms the first time you use them, unless they’re very common (such as HIV-AIDS or NGO).

We’d be happy to assign a pro editor to help you with this.

Visual elements of a poster

You accompany the text with visuals. Please use visuals. An all-text poster is no better than printing out your abstract in jumbo size.

Would a full-text billboard get your attention? Unlikely. It’s an eyesore. The same is true of a full-text or 95% text poster.

A couple of useful questions as you start

These will help you decide what to put In and in what format:

• What’s the most important finding that I want to communicate? (More than 1 is OK, but try to limit it.)
• How can I visually share my research with the conference attendees (e.g., charts, graphs, photos, diagrams… holograms!)?

Layout and visually effective posters

After you’ve decided what you’ll put in your poster (text and images), you need to plan your layout.

Sketch it out

It’s good to start with a sketch. You can simply do this by hand, in your Apple Notes or Google Keep, or in any number of increasingly available SaaS and local software packages.

If you’re confident, you can also just dive into your main software (see below). Whatever works best for you. If you’re collaborating with colleagues, a cloud-based platform will let you work collectively and from a distance.

Horizontal or vertical

Most poster presentations are horizontal, but it’s not a rule. If your conference doesn’t have specific guidelines, these are the most common sizes.

Make it flow logically

English is read left to right and top to bottom. So the text should follow that flow as well.

Normally, your title and the authors and affiliations will go at the top of your presentation poster. Then use headings (H2, H3, H4, etc. if you’re using Word Styles/HTML) to break it up. Those headings will simply be the abstract-type structure listed above. But you can add specific subheadings to them.

It’s not a journal submission , so you can make the rules, unless the conference has provided a template and/or specific guidelines.

Columns, alignment, spacing

Typically, a scientific conference poster will have 2–4 columns. These should be aligned, though it’s OK if visuals cross over multiple columns. Try to keep the text as aligned as possible though.

Left justification is generally easier to read, while headings may look better if they’re centered.

Leave white space between subsections and around images.

Those examples show quite a lot of text. That may or may not be necessary for you. You can also view these as slides or blocks. Using that approach you can make each section a slide in PowerPoint or Google Slides, and then paste them together to form your poster.

Here’s another take on structure, with a couple of vertical options:

The above two are rather conventional choices, and you can’t go wrong with them. But this is the 21st century and if there are no guidelines, you can be even braver. You can, dare we say, disrupt. Keep reading.

Colors and fonts

Your background should be plain white or a very subtle gradient that’s not distracting. Your text should be clear and easy to read. Any charts or graphics should be understood quickly and not include any unnecessary elements.

The standard fonts for English text are Arial and Times New Roman. Fonts are not something to toy with on your research poster. Other safe options are:

• And if you insist on being a bit unique with your font, Lato, Noto Sans, Poppins, and Merriweather will set you apart but maintain a mature look.

Avoid using Century font, as it seems to be the default on MS Word in Japan and possible other Asian countries. We’re not sure why, but it’s a rather clumsy and “uncool” font. Just use one of the above suggestions.

And finally, resist the urge to be cute and funny. That means absolutely do not use Comic Sans, a script font, or anything decorative. You might get a chuckle from a few viewers, but 90% will not be impressed. Guaranteed.

A special note to Asia-based authors:

Do not write English text in an Asian font.

We see this all too often on papers and manuscripts. Asian fonts are designed with different spacing to accommodate wider characters. This gives English text a blocky, imbalanced, and unnatural feel. This can create discomfort and even lead to bias.

• For Chinese authors, avoid SimSum and others.
• Japanese authors – avoid MS Mincho, MS Gothic, and others.
• And Korean authors – don’t use Malgun.

Use matte paper and attach this to the board. Alternatively, you can even print on canvas or cloth for a classy effect. This also lets you fold it into a suitcase or roll it into a tube for easier transport.

Avoid silk because it can sag and warp. It’s not durable enough.

Above all, avoid glossy surfaces, because they can reflect the light. Then no one can read your poster. This includes lamination. It may protect your paper, but it only hurts the readability.

“Fabric posters are a great idea. Typically I use cotton. Spend a bit extra to get yours printed on fabric. It’s much more convenient than traveling with a poster tube and you’ll save yourself some sanity at the conference.” — Jacqueline Tudball , PhD Edanz Author Guidance Consultant

What should you NOT put on your presentation poster?

A viewer might only spend a minute or two looking at your poster, so they should be able to quickly sense of it and what you’re trying to say.

Big no-nos are:

• Too many images, tables , or graphs – use the main one with a brief explanation
• Text that’s too small to read – check if you can easily read the body from from 1 m away and the headline from at least 3 m away
• Too many references – just cite what’s important regarding the information in your poster
• Competing eye-catching images – one is enough
• A picture that doesn’t say anything; your images have to communicate a core message
• Light text on a dark background; it hurts the eyes
• Glossy covering, or printing on glossy paper

What software should you use to make a research poster?

Use software you’re comfortable with, or use this as an opportunity to lift your design skills. If you’re working with others on your poster, all the major software packages have cloud-based options . But some are clearly better than others.

And if you dream of being a design wizard but your actual skills have other ideas, most of the tools below offer handy poster templates to get you started.

PowerPoint is also a very useful tool for making poster presentations. Set the page size before starting and add in your elements. You can either do this on a single slide or make each section a separate slide, then print and paste them to form your poster.

With the MS 365 suite, you can make your PowerPoint cloud-based so your whole research team can work on it no matter where they are. Just be aware that MS 365 still trails Google Workspace for ease of use. It’s hard to work on things at the same time on MS 365. The whole MS suite is also pay-to-use, unlike Google.

Here’s a terrific compilation of free PowerPoint poster templates.

Google Slides

Like Google Docs and Sheets are to MS Word and Excel, Google Slides is Google’s cloud-based version of PowerPoint. It’s cloud-based, so you your project will be PC- and place-independent, and your team can work on it collectively in real time. You can also import PowerPoint ppt/pptx files and they’ll generally convert with no problems at all.

Perhaps best of all, it’s free. And you’ll be compromising very little vs. PowerPoint. For the more design-talented, Adobe may be your best bet.

Adobe Illustrator

Adobe Illustrator is a long-standing program for both image manipulation and poster design. It’s now part of the Adobe Creative Cloud suite, which also includes Photoshop.

In Illustrator can set the page size for your poster beforehand and use templates to create a base.

As this software was design for a wide range of publishing functions, it’s easy to move things around. If you’re used to it and comfortable with it, use it. Just be aware that .ai files may not be compatible with other software. It’s also paid. So your whole team will need it and need to be comfortable with it if they’re going to be working on the poster design.

Adobe InDesign

Adobe InDesign has actually been around for over 20 years. But it’s taken a long time to gain a loyal following. Many professional designers now swear by it for its rich suite of options.

Especially for publications, when working with larger amounts of text, InDesign may be the best large-scale commercial software around.

Publishers and design agencies often use it in combination with Adobe InCopy, which the text-based roles such as copywriters and editors can use more easily and with less instruction.

You can find a handy PDF here on making posters in InDesign.

This a less-conventional choice but even design novices can turn out visually appealing designs on Canva .

While not near the complexity and power of the Adobe programs, Canva’s appeal is how very user-friendly it is, as well as its pre-baked features such as templates, color pallets, fonts, and a drag-and-drop interface.

Canva is free for basic use. A paid membership of about $10/month opens up a huge library of images and other options for you to use.

What not to use

Even if you’ve been using MS Word since you learned to read and write, it’s not the best choice for a poster presentation.

Can you do a poster presentation on Word? Sure.

Will be it easy to move objects to just where you want them, work with multimedia, adjust resolution and colors, and print out a clear and compelling poster? No, it won’t.

Word has a tendency for things to falls apart when the document structure gets too complex and with multiple elements.

It’s also designed foremost for handling text. Stick with tools like Word, MY manuscript , and Google Docs for writing your manuscripts and for increasing your publication rate . Then use one of the other recommendations above for designing your poster.

Whatever you use, print and adjust

Whatever software you use, print out your poster, pin it to the wall, and look at it from 5 or 6 meters away. It will look totally different than it did on your computer screen.

Adjust accordingly.

Examples of good posters

You’ll find different good elements in these examples.

This first one is a straight and clean design, Times New Roman font, plenty of white space, three defined columns and a reasonable amount of text. It also has photos to balance out the simplistic charts.

This next one really ups the game. The text sections are pastel blocks and contain ample text. There’s comfortable white space. But what really grabs you is that fish!

You’ll need to up your design game to match this one. Or simply hire a designer to make it pop.

Insider PhD tips on making winning research posters

Finally, some tips for your poster presentation, in no particular order.

• Before you start, check the conference info or ask the conference secretariat directly if there are guidelines.
• If want to communicate more info than you can put on the poster, print out A4- or letter-sized supplements and hand them out to people who are interested.
• Keep sponsors and names to a minimum. It’s about the science, first and foremost.
• Make sure all visual have a short legend to explain them.
• The background and text should have contrast, but watch out for color clashes. Google “color contrast checker” for ideas on good color combinations. Canva also offers many recommended pairings.
• Always take your own pins, tape, Velcro, etc.

Hope that helps. When you want to be sure your poster’s message is in superb scientific English, contact us for an edit.

To explore the publication process, including post-publication and publicizing your work, take an expert-designed course at the Edanz My Learning Lab .

RECOMMENDED COURSE: How to Give a Poster Presentation ?

RECOMMENDED COURSE: Presenting and Discussing Your Research

104: How to Give a Perfect Poster Presentation

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It’s a tragic fact: many jaw-dropping, eye-opening, and heart-pounding research results never makes an impact on the scientific community.

And it’s partly your fault.

By “your,” of course,  I mean all of us.  Because when we waste the opportunity to share our results in their best light at a scientific conference or poster session, our viewers may overlook this valuable insight.

But we can do better!  With a little planning, collaboration, and hard work, we can make even a humble poster presentation a vehicle for inspiring the next discovery and building our scientific network.

Let’s get started!

Poster Perfect

A poster session is a unique opportunity for a young scientist.

As a viewer, you get the chance to engage in a casual conversation with other scientists, often one-on-one, about a topic that interests you.  It’s an opportunity to ask for clarity, pose a question, or offer ideas without an audience of 200 staring at the back of your head.

As a presenter, you get all of those benefits, as well as an opportunity to build your network and identify collaborators.  You also get many chances to practice your ‘pitch’ as new visitors step up every few minutes.  It will sharpen both your skill as a communicator and your research plan.

And while there are probably some guidelines for being a good poster-viewer, in this episode, we focused our discussion on the best ways to prepare and present a poster.

Before You Begin

As with any presentation, answering a few questions before you get started will save you hours in front of the computer.

Know Your Audience

If you are presenting to the Microbiology Conference, you may want to include more detailed background information than if you’re presenting to other experts in your sub-field at a Malaria Symposium.  Space is limited, and thinking ahead about what your audience may, or may not, know will help you prepare for the proper range of visitor experience.

Start Early

You may be a wizard of poster creation and can put off your design until the night before you fly to the conference, but that’s a bad idea.  Instead, leave extra time before printing share your file with collaborators for review.  They need time to look over your work and offer feedback before it’s committed to (gigantic) paper.

Practice, Practice, Practice

You’ll also need time to practice presenting the poster.  More on this later, but sometimes the act of presentation lets us see where we have gaps or mistakes in the logic or design.  It’s a good idea to practice with people from outside your lab because if they are already familiar with your work, they won’t notice when you skip steps or fail to explain a concept clearly.

Find Your Story

It may sound odd, but poster presentation is a form of story-telling.  The best posters make that story clear and concise.

Even if you have multiple projects in the lab, choose ONE to present in your poster.  Start by jotting down a central question you’re trying to answer, or a hypothesis your lab is testing.  Keeping this key idea in mind as you prepare the presentation will give you a firm structure on which to hang the other elements.

Making a Poster

There are a couple of broad guidelines to keep in mind as you create your poster.

First, remember that the poster is a visual form, and space is limited.  That means you should avoid printing long paragraphs of text.  Instead, use the space to display graphs, images, and figures, with a few bullet points or figure legends to help the viewer track the story.

Second, stick with a ‘standard’ layout.  Your viewers have been trained for years to look for titles at the top and conclusions on the bottom right.  You make viewing your poster harder by moving these elements around.

Third, maintain consistency within your poster.  Stick with one or two fonts, and be sure that headings, bullets, and figures are matched in style, weight, and size.

Finally, give your work some breathing room.  White-space is important, and will make the poster more readable.

Poster Pieces

Manuscript titles are often formulaic and a bit dull as they describe the basic findings of the research paper, but your poster title can be more creative.  The goal is to catch a viewer’s attention while also letting them know what they’ll see when they visit.

Again, remembering your audience, include enough information to help them understand your main question or hypothesis.  Avoid paragraphs, and include a figure or diagram if you can.

Hypothesis / Main Question

This section is an absolute must, so don’t forget it!  It lets the viewer instantly understand what the poster is about and what they can expect to learn if they follow you through to the conclusion.

Again, a diagram or figure works great here.  Use this section to help the viewer understand your experimental approach to the question.  You don’t need to detail every last step – save that for the paper you publish!

This is where the action is.  Remember – you don’t need to include every experiment you’ve ever done.  Just describe the results that help address the main question/hypothesis.

Use descriptive figure titles that help the viewer understand your conclusion.  “Gel of Protein X” doesn’t help anyone, but “Protein X is Up-Regulated After Drug Treatment” tells them what they should expect to see in the scan. 

Cut out extraneous information or parts of the image, and use arrows or boxes to help direct attention to the relevant parts.

Double check this section for readability – axes and labels can often be too small to read from a four-foot distance.

Conclusions

Another chance to draw a diagram!  Or use 2-3 bullet points to help summarize what you’ve found.

Other Sections

Some posters include acknowledgements or future directions.  These are optional and might make sense on a case-by-case basis.

Every poster should include the author’s contact info, though!  This allows people to reach out even if you’ve stepped away from the poster, and helps collaborators keep in touch after the meeting.

Presenting a Poster

Crafting the perfect poster is only half the battle, now it’s time to describe that work from start to finish.

Timing is Everything

Walking a viewer through your presentation should take roughly five to seven minutes.  That doesn’t seem like a long time, but it’s an important target.  Many presenters take too long to share the poster, leaving the audience bored, uncomfortable, and searching for a way out.

By telling your story in five minutes, you let the audience guide the conversation.  If they’re satisfied with your description, or bored out of their minds, they can move on to another poster.

If they’re excited and want to learn more, they can ask questions or probe the results more deeply.

Act Like an Actor

As you present, remember that you mustn’t turn your back on your audience!  You’ll be tempted to turn to look at the poster yourself, closing off the conversation.  Instead, keep an open stance and point out relevant sections off to your side.

Also, check your enthusiasm.  Too many poster presenters seem bored, tired, or listless.  If they don’t think their work is exciting, why should their audience?! 

Stop a moment to notice your energy level, and try to step it up as you present.  Make eye contact, welcome new viewers as the approach, and modulate your voice. 

Your enthusiasm for your work can be contagious.

Tailor Made

Because most poster presentations occur one-on-one, it’s imperative that you actively tailor your pitch to the person standing in front of you.

When they step up, you can briefly ask about their background or interest in the subject.  If they’re a neophyte, you’ll want to avoid jargon and check that they’ve understood each section before moving on. If they’re an expert, they may want to skip straight to the results!

Be aware of their cues and body language, and let them help steer the conversation.

That’s it! Now you’re a poster-presenting-pro!  Go make a splash at your next poster session, and be sure to share YOUR tips and ideas for poster presentation in the comments below.

For more information on attending conferences, check out Episode  097: Conference Like the Pros – How to Plan, Network, and Win

I’m Getting Seasick

This week, we sample a very special ethanol that has probably traveled farther than we have. 

Jefferson’s Ocean Bourbon  spends its time in a barrel bobbing around on a research ship as it sails around the world!  Supposedly, all of that rocking, equatorial heat, and sea spray mimics the way bourbon tasted when it was shipped back from the New World.  

Best part: you get to read the Captain’s Log of each batch’s journey!

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How to: Poster Presentations: What is a research poster?

What is a research poster?

• Parts of a Research Poster
• Template and Examples
• Talking About Your Poster

A research poster is a summary of your research.

It is typically built with

• with some blocks of text
• combined with graphs, tables & images

It draws an audience in to ask questions and engage with your work and your findings.

A research poster is often an ACTUAL poster .

Sometimes, it is digital and appears on a screen...like a single-slide PowerPoint.

The researcher (that’s you!) is often nearby to present the content on your poster and answer questions from attendees.

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How to Prepare for a Poster Session

• Introduction to Poster Sessions
• Components of a Poster Presentation
• Designing Your Poster
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Components of a Poster Session

Presentation.

Prior to the poster session, you should prepare and practice a 1-2 minute "elevator pitch" or "lightning talk" about your research project. In preparing for your presentation, think about how much information can reasonably be conveyed in 1-2 minutes. Since your poster already contains a lot of information, your presentation should aim to complement and highlight the information on the poster, not repeat it. Present information that provides context for the information on your poster, while following the organizational structure of the poster. 

One simple approach is to think about a unique experience or insight that adds a human element to your research. What makes your project interesting? How did you become involved in this work to begin with? A brief anecdote may be useful, and can serve as a way to catch people's attention and get them interested in learning more about your research.

In preparing your presentation, it's important to think about your anticipated audience. Are you presenting at a conference likely to be attended by specialists in your field, or are you presenting at a multidisciplinary event that will be attended by people with different backgrounds and levels of expertise? In either case, a good rule of thumb is to minimize your use of jargon or overly technical language, and this is particularly important for events that will draw a more general audience. Try practicing your presentation for a friend who doesn't have any background in your area of research. If they find your presentation difficult to follow, this is a good indicator that you should work on simplifying your language to make the information more accessible. 

Finally, think about what sorts of questions people may have for you. If you are able to practice in front of someone, encourage them to ask you questions about your research. And don't worry if you don't know the answer to someone's question. Thank them for your question, and offer to the follow up with them later after you've had some time to think it over. 

While your presentation is arguably the most important element of a poster presentation, the poster itself is generally what catches people's attention. This portion of the guide discusses the role that your poster plays in presenting your research. For information about formatting and designing your poster, see the Designing Your Poster page . 

The role of the poster is to provide a visual outline of your research project. It should not aim to represent the project in full detail. It may be helpful to think of your poster as a highlight reel of your research project. It is important to strike a balance between including enough information so that the poster is informative, while avoiding including too much information as this can make your poster difficult for people to take in, or create information overload. Aim to strike a balance between text and visuals. The question of what types of visuals are appropriate will depend on the details of your project, but some possibilities are data visualizations (e.g. charts or graphs) or photographs. 

The best approach may be to think of your poster as a visual aid for your presentation. So in preparing your poster, consider what you can cover in your presentation, and how this might be enhanced by visual material that you can include on the poster. What might it be useful to refer to on your poster in the course of giving your presentation? Visuals are especially useful when they can convey information that is difficult to express with text alone. 

The final component of a successful poster presentation is a handout. While handouts are generally not required, they can be beneficial for a number of reasons. First, they provide you with more space with which you can convey additional information, information that may be important to convey, but not quite important enough to include on your poster. Handouts also serve as a way to help attendees remember you (so be sure to include your name and contact information!). 

In most cases you should limit your handout to a single sheet of paper which can contain information on both sides. On one side, consider including an image fo the poster. This will help attendees associate the handout with their interactions with you during the session. Color printing can be expensive, so it's alright to use a black and white image of the poster so long as it's clear and legible. You can always include a URL to a full color image of the poster online. In addition to supplementary information, you can use the handout to list URLs for your website, or any place online where people can learn more about your research. 

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How to prepare an effective research poster

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• Lucia Hartigan , registrar 1 ,
• Fionnuala Mone , fellow in maternal fetal medicine 1 ,
• Mary Higgins , consultant obstetrician 1 2
• 1 National Maternity Hospital, Dublin
• 2 Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Medicine and Medical Sciences, University College Dublin
• mhiggins{at}nmh.ie

Being asked to give a poster presentation can be exciting, and you need not be daunted by the prospect of working out how to prepare one. As Lucia Hartigan and colleagues explain, many options are available

The long nights are over, the statistics have been run, the abstract has been written, and the email pops into your inbox: “Congratulations! You have been accepted for a poster presentation.”

All that work has been worthwhile. Your consultant congratulates you and your colleagues are envious of your having a legitimate excuse to go away for a couple of days, but now you have to work out how to prepare a poster. Do not despair, for you have many options.

Firstly, take this seriously. A poster is not a consolation prize for not being given an oral presentation. This is your chance to show your work, talk to others in the field, and, if you are lucky, to pick up pointers from experts. Given that just 45% of published abstracts end in a full paper, 1 this may be your only chance to get your work out there, so put some effort into it. If you don’t have access to the services of a graphic designer, then some work will be entailed as it normally takes us a full day to prepare the layout of a poster. If you are lucky enough to have help from a graphic designer, then you will need to check that the data are correct before it is sent to the printer. After all, it will be your name on the poster, not the graphic designer’s.

Secondly, check the details of the requirements. What size poster should you have? If it is too big, it may look arrogant. If it is too small, then it may seem too modest and self effacing. Should it be portrait or landscape? Different meetings have different requirements. Some may stay with traditional paper posters, so you need to factor in printing. Others present them electronically, but may have a deadline by which you need to have uploaded the poster. When planning a meeting the organisers work out how many poster boards there will be and then the numbers, so follow their requirements and read the small print.

Then make a template. It can be tempting to “borrow” a poster template from someone else, and this may buy you some time, but it is important to check what page set-up and size have been selected for the template. If it’s meant for an A2 size and you wish to print your poster on A0 paper, then the stretching may lead to pixillation, which would not look good.

Next, think about your layout. Use text boxes to cover the following areas: title (with authors, institution, and logo), background, methods, results, and conclusions. Check that the text boxes are aligned by using gridlines, and justify your text. Use different colours for titles, and make sure you can read the title from 3 metres away. Some people will put their abstract in a separate box in the top right hand corner underneath the title, and then expand a little in the other areas. That is fine, so long as you follow the golden rule of writing a poster: do not include too much text. One study showed that less than 5% of conference attendees visit posters at meetings and that few ask useful questions. 2 The same research found that, in addition to the scientific content of a poster, the factors that increase visual appeal include pictures, graphs, and a limited use of words. 2 The ideal number of words seems to be between 300 and 400 per square metre.

Now make it look pretty and eye catching, and use lots of graphics. Outline text boxes or fill them with a different colour. If you can present the data using a graph, image, or figures rather than text, then do so, as this will add visual appeal. If you want to put a picture in the background, and it is appropriate to do so, fade the image so that it does not distract from the content.

Fonts are important. Check whether the meeting has set criteria for fonts; if they have, then follow them. You do not want to stand out for the wrong reason. If there are no specified criteria, then the title should be in point size 72-84, depending on the size of the poster. The authors’ names should be either the same size, but in italics, or else a couple of sizes smaller.

If you are including the hospital logo, don’t take a picture that will not size up properly when enlarged. Instead, obtain a proper copy from the hospital administrators.

References can be in small writing. No one is likely to read them, and you are including them only to remind yourself what you learnt in the literature review. One intriguing possibility is the use of a trigger image to link the poster to online content. 3

Finally, there are also things you should not do. Don’t leave your figures unlabelled, include spelling errors, use abbreviations without an explanation, or go outside the boundaries of the poster. Don’t be ashamed that you “only” have a poster. At a good meeting you may find that the comments from passers by are an amazing peer review. We have presented at meetings where world experts have given feedback, and with that feedback we have written the paper on the flight home.

Competing interests: We have read and understood the BMJ Group policy on declaration of interests and have no relevant interests to declare.

• ↵ Scherer RW, Langenberg P, von Elm E. Full publication of results initially presented in abstracts. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2007 ; 2 : MR000005 . OpenUrl PubMed
• ↵ Goodhand JR, Giles CL, Wahed M, Irving PM, Langmead L, Rampton DS. Poster presentations at medical conferences: an effective way of disseminating research? Clin Med 2011 ; 1 : 138 -41. OpenUrl
• ↵ Atherton S, Javed M, Webster S, Hemington-Gorse S. Use of a mobile device app: a potential new tool for poster presentations and surgical education. J Visual Comm Med 2013 ; 36 (1-2): 6 -10. OpenUrl

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Poster Presentations

• Size, Layout, and Text

Elements of a Poster

Change size in powerpoint, using the ruler, grid, and guides in powerpoint, more powerpoint training, template resources, font choice, text alignment.

• Colors and Images

Your poster should include these elements:

• Author(s), with affiliations and emails

If your poster is a representation of a research study, you will want to include the following sections:

• Introduction or objective
• Conclusions and/or discussion
• Acknowledgements

If your poster is a representation of an event or other kind of project, you may want to forego formal abstract sections in favor of the 5 Ws:

• Who (introduce the author, organization, or community)
• What (what did you do? how did you do it?)
• Where (where did you do it?)
• When (when did it take place?)
• Why (what are the outcomes, implications, or future possibilities?)

To change the size in Powerpoint:

• Go to the Design tab and choose "Slide Size" (it's on the right size of the ribbon)
• Choose "Custom Slide Size"
• Change "Slides sized for:" to "Custom"
• Fill in your desired width and height. 

Click the View tab to see checkboxes that will allow you to turn on the Ruler, Grid, and Guides (click the image below to see a screenshot).

Ruler : Allows you to see the dimensions of your slide. You'll see a vertical and horizontal ruler.

Grid : By default, the gridlines are 1 inch apart. Right click in white space of your poster to get more options for spacing. This enables precise alignment.

Guides : By default, you'll get one horizontal and one vertical guide placed in the center of your poster. Right click on a guide to add more guidelines, or to delete one. You can use Guides to invisibly define columns of your poster, margins, and more. This gives you manual control, alternatively, you can use Smart Guides (see below).

Smart Guides : Powerpoint has a built-in system for showing you alignment as you move objects around. The video below demonstrates what Smart Guides look like.

Once you've got your slide layout set, you'll want to start creating Shapes and Text Boxes. Here are some tips and tricks for working with objects:

• Use Ctrl+D to duplicate any object.
• Then you can format them all at once, identically!
• You can also group them, for easier movement and alignment (right click to see the Group option).

Most posters are landscape (horizontal) orientation. The title/author(s) will be across the top, with 3–4 columns below that contain the rest of the poster elements. Make sure you leave plenty of white space in your design—a poster crammed full of text and images is very difficult to read.

Here is an example of a 2 column poster layout using the 5 Ws for headings (who, what, where, when, and why):

Use the links below to download this template and other similar templates in two sizes: 24x36 and 36x48. These templates include a variety of placeholder elements for photos and figures.

• 2 column Powerpoint template, size 24x36
• 3 column Powerpoint template, size 24x36
• 3 column Powerpoint template, size 36x48
• 4 column Powerpoint template, size 36x48

Below are some additional web resources where you can search for templates. Keep in mind that you may need adjust the size of a template for your own poster. Alternatively, you can use the resources on this page to design your own layout in Powerpoint.

• David Geffen School of Medicine poster templates Although this is labeled for the sciences, the information can be used in many disciplines.
• Penn State poster template
• PhD Posters
• MakeSigns.com poster templates
• The body of your poster should have a minimum 24 point font . Viewers should be able to read your smallest text from a few feet away.
• The title of your poster should have a 50+ font size, depending on the size of your poster and the length of the title.
• Do not use all uppercase letters for the title or body of the poster.
• Avoid using more than 2 or 3 different fonts in one poster.
• Stick with basic fonts like Times New Roman or Georgia for serif, or Arial or Helvetica for sans-serif. Avoid elaborate, difficult-to-read, or cartoon-like fonts.

• In general, left-align your text boxes (with the possible exception of your title and any image captions). Avoid centering the text on your whole poster.
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How Do I Prepare for a Successful Defence?

Vivas and Presentations

• First Online: 19 October 2023

Cite this chapter

• Sue Reeves   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-3017-0559 3 &
• Bartek Buczkowski   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-4146-3664 4  

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Once you have submitted your dissertation, you may be asked to do a defence of your dissertation. This could be in the form of an oral presentation, a poster presentation of your findings, or you could be invited to a viva voce. Vivas, as they are usually known, are particularly common for research degrees such as MPhils or PhDs and are essentially a verbal defence of your thesis that is conducted in an interview style format. At a minimum, the viva is a way of checking you authored the thesis yourself and understand the detail, but it is also an opportunity to discuss your research findings and interpretations in depth with experts. Preparation is key for defending your thesis in a viva or a presentation format. With a bit of groundwork, you could even enjoy the discussion, after all the thesis is the culmination of all your hard work, and no one knows it better than you.

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Ratcliffe R (2015) How to survive a PhD viva: 17 top tips. https://www.theguardian.com/higher-education-network/2015/jan/08/how-to-survive-a-phd-viva-17-top-tips. Accessed 3 Mar 2023

Further Reading

Levin P, Topping G (2006) Perfect presentations. Open University Press

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Smith P (2014) The PhD viva: how to prepare for your oral examination. Macmillan, New York

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Reeves, S., Buczkowski, B. (2023). How Do I Prepare for a Successful Defence?. In: Mastering Your Dissertation. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-41911-9_14

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Digital Education Office blog for students

Posters and Presentations

Written by amy preston, student digital champion and mres student in physiology and pharmacology.

Introduction to Posters and Presentations  

Presenting your research, whether part of your undergraduate dissertation or postgraduate research degree, is a huge part of academia. However, it’s often difficult to know where to start when making posters or presentations. There are a few different ways that you can approach them, so hopefully this post will give you some ideas!

The main thing to keep in mind for a poster is that it needs to be clear and rely on visual representation of your research. There are multiple tools you can use to make a poster. PowerPoint is useful, especially for posters in landscape orientation. You can also use Microsoft Word or Publisher, but these can be a bit trickier to use. Sometimes research groups will pay to use Adobe Illustrator which allows for figure-making as well. But it is up to you, and you don’t need to pay for expensive software if you don’t have the means to do so.  

The majority of the poster should be focused on your methods and results, so make sure to keep the introduction concise and have a few short conclusions and future directions at the end to summarise. Depending on your course or the conference you are presenting at, you will likely have a specific format to follow – including orientation and size. Usually, posters are A0 size and portrait orientation, so make sure you adjust your font size to accommodate this – a good rule of thumb is 24pt font for main body text and at least twice this size for your heading if your poster is A0. If your poster format is portrait, it can be helpful to split the poster into two columns if you have quite dense figures, but this isn’t essential if your data doesn’t fit this way.  

Presentations

Many of the same principles from posters apply to presentations and talks. Aim to make them clear, easy to follow and visually appealing. One way to help the audience follow along is to introduce each aim separately followed by its related methods and results (this is shown below). Or, depending on your data and how it fits together, you can introduce the aims all at once, then go through methods and results that follow on from each other. For example, if you found an unexpected result, what methods did you try next to further understand it and what did you find? Try to tell a story through your presentation.

Making good quality figures

An effective figure should be clear and not too busy. It can be really helpful to demonstrate your methods with figures, especially in posters to save words, or for presentations where the audience may not have the same specialist background as you. You can create simple methods figures using tools like Microsoft PowerPoint and Visio ( which are available in the Microsoft Office package with the university ) or use free tools with pre-made components and better freedom for drawing figures like BioRender and Inkscape. Think about how you can break down complex concepts in to easier-to-manage chunks, to help your reader see the big picture.

BioRender website

General tips to remember

• More visual cues, less words
• The main bulk of a presentation should be your methods and results – don’t take up too much space with the introduction, focus on your project
• Unless asked to, don’t put your abstract in your presentation – you will be wasting valuable words by repeating yourself
• Make your aims stand out – it really helps the understanding of the reader if they can refer back to them
• Keep the font big, and save words by using bullet points
• For each slide or poster section, use descriptive titles to help the reader follow along
• Don’t assume knowledge of your subject area – although there will be physicists at a physics conference, their area of research may be very different to yours!

Useful resources

• https://www.sciencegraphicdesign.com/blog/how-do-you-make-your-first-scientific-poster
• https://biorender.com/
• https://inkscape.org/
• https://blog.addgene.org/early-career-researcher-toolbox-free-tools-for-making-scientific-graphics
• https://www.york.ac.uk/hrc/postgraduate/opportunities/poster-competition/design-tips/

Hopefully you feel more confident presenting your own work, but above are some useful resources that help me when starting a new poster or presentation – good luck!

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Academic Presentations and Posters

Reccomendations and resources.

Last updated: August 2023

General Presentation Advice: (presenting academic research, communicating to a lay audience)

• Presenting with PowerPoint

Designing Posters for Specific Disciplines

• Poster Design Information from UNC Sources
• Using PowerPoint to design posters
• Using InDesign or Illustrator to design posters
• UNC Computer Labs with Design Software
• Poster Templates
• Poster Examples
• Printing Resources at UNC-Chapel Hill
• Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science (Stony Brook University)
• 12 Tips for Scientists Writing for the General Public (American Scientist)
• Presenting in the Sciences : A Guide (Tulane University Library)
• Houston, We Have a Narrative- Why Science Needs Story (book) - Randy Olson,The University of Chicago Press
• Poster Presentations: Tips and Tricks (Inside Higher Ed: Gradhacker)
• There's a movement for better posters at science conferences (Inside Higher Ed)
• On Research Presentations at Conferences (Inside Higher Ed)
• Communicating Research to a General Audience (Inside Higher Ed: Gradhacker)
• Making Data Talk: A Workbook (Communicating Public Health Data to the Public, Policy Makers, and the Press) - National Cancer Institute
• How to write for a non-academic audience: Communicating about research is more important than ever - American Psychological Association

• How to Prep for a Presentation (Lifehacker)
• Art of the Conference Paper- advice from a graduate student (Inside Higher Ed)
• Giving a Good Scientific Presentation (American Society of Primatologists)
• Effective Presentations for Chemists and Other Scientists (Lab Manager Magazine)
• Preparing Effective Oral Presentations (University of Kansas)
• Informative Speaking (Colorado State)
• Dos & don'ts of giving a good 15 minute talk (Australian National University)
• The Art of Communicating Effectively
• Impromptu Talks: Addressing a nonscientific audience (NC State)
• Ten Secrets to Giving a Good Scientific Talk
• Designing Effective Oral Presentations (Rice University)
• Dazzle 'em with Style: The Art of Oral Scientific Presentation (Book)
• How to Give a Bad Talk- Oral Presentation Advice (UC Berkeley)
• How NOT To Give a Scientific Talk (York University)
• Presentation Zen (Garr Reynolds)
• Presentation Skills (Decker Communications)
• Presentation Tips (Garr Reynolds)

Presenting with PowerPoint:

• Effective Virtual Presentations
• Effective Hybrid Presentations
• How to build a slide deck in PowerPoint that isn’t god awful
• PowerPoint Accessibility Tips - Penn State Accessibility Group
• 48 Effective PowerPoint Presentation Tips
• Tips for Making Effective PowerPoint Presentations
• 5 Ways to Make PowerPoint Sing! (And Dance!)
• Simpler is Better in Presentation Slides
• PowerPoint Does Rocket Science--and Better Techniques for Technical Reports (Edward Tufte)

• Oral Presentations and Writing for PowerPoint (George Mason University)
• Some Tips for Preparing a Research Presentation (Swarthmore)
• Learning from Bill Gates & Steve Jobs (Presentation Zen)
• Life After Death by PowerPoint (Funny video clip: How NOT to do PowerPoint )
• 14 Tips for Better Presentation Slides (Viget Labs)
• PowerPoint Is Evil (Edward Tufte in Wired Magazine)

Visual Communication & Design

• Effective Communication with Visual Design (Association of American Universities)
• 11 Design Tips for Beautiful Presentations
• 10 tips on how to make slides that communicate your idea, from TED's in-house expert
• Selecting the correct font size for slides

Academic Poster Design

• #betterposter: There's a movement for better posters at science conferences. But are they really better? - Inside Higher Ed
• Better Posters - A resource for improving poster presentations
• Create a More Impactful Scientific Poster with UX Design Tips - Mike Morrison, YouTube
• How to Create a Better Research Poster in Less Time - Mike Morrison, YouTube
• Visual and UX design principles can improve the effectiveness of poster sessions - Derek Crowe
• How to Choose the Best Layout for Your Scientific Poster (Animate Your Science)
• A Graphic Design Revolution For Scientific Conference Posters (Forbes)
• How to make an academic poster (Annals of Medicine and Surgery)
• How to design an award-winning conference poster (Animate Your Science)
• Poster Perfect- How to drive home your science with a visually pleasing poster (The Scientist)
• How to design an effective scientific poster - The Planetary Society
• Designing conference posters - excellent tips and examples (Colin Purrington)
• Better Posters: A resource for improving poster presentations (Blog from DoctorZen)
• Conference Posters (Organizing Creativity)
• So, Your Poster Got Accepted--Now What? (recorded webcast from the Natonal Library of Medicine)
• The Scientist's Guide to Poster Design (Katie Everson, University of Alaska Fairbanks)
• Creating Effective Poster Presentations: An Effective Poster- excellent overall (NC State)
• The Basics of Poster Design- useful for all disciplines
• Designing Effective Posters- online tutorial (Kansas University)
• Intro to Designing Conference Posters (University of Minnesota)
• Neuroscience Poster Design
• Presenting Conference Papers and Posters in the Humanities (Texas Tech University)
• Developing Poster Presentations in the Social Sciences (George Mason University)
• Poster Presentations in the Natural Sciences (George Mason University)

Poster Design Information from UNC Sources:

• Research Poster Creation (Carolina Population Center)
• Designing Effective Posters (Health Sciences Library)
• Poster Design and Printing Resources (UNC School of Pharmacy)

Poster Design Software

• Advice on Designing Scientific Posters (Microsoft PowerPoint)
• How to create beautiful and effective academic posters in PowerPoint (BrightCarbon)
• Creating a research poster in PowerPoint (Indiana University)
• Designing Effective Posters Using Powerpoint (UNC-Health Sciences Library)
• Designing Effective Posters Using Powerpoint 2016/2011 for Macintosh (UNC-Health Sciences Library)
• Creating a Poster in PowerPoint (University of Washington)
• Creating Posters with PowerPoint (Northwestern University)
• Designing Effective Posters Using InDesign (UNC-Health Sciences Library)
• Designing a Poster with Adobe Illustrator (Whitman College)

UNC Computer Labs with Design Software:

• List of all ITS campus computer labs
• ITS Virtual Computing Lab (VCL)
• UNC Library Data Services
• Health Sciences Library Media Design Services
• Medical Campus/Health Sciences Library Computer Labs
• SILS Lab Facilities and Equipment
• House Undergraduate Library Design Lab
• University Libraries Media Resources Center Media Lab
• School of Journalism Park Multimedia Lab
• School of Education Technology Services

Poster Templates:

• Poster Templates (UNC-Health Sciences Library)
• Google template search
• Poster Example Files (UC Davis)
• PowerPoint Poster Templates (Wake Forest University)
• PowerPoint Poster Templates (Penn State)
• PowerPoint Poster Templates (Rice University)

Poster Examples:

• Poster Sessions Flickr Group (Colin Purrington)
• Academic Poster Examples (UC Davis)
• http://www.flickr.com/photos/89596909@N05/sets/72157631922038937/
• Pimp My Poster Flickr Group
• Poster Examples (NC State)
• Washington NASA Space Grant Consortium

Printing Resources:

• PhD Posters (UNC on-campus pick up)
• Lab Poster Service (located in Chapel Hill, NC)
• FedEx Office Print & Ship Center
• MegaPrint- PosterSession.com
• UNC Print Stop and Copy Center
• Health Sciences Library Media Design Studios: Poster Printing
• UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy- Poster Printing
• UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center Digital Imaging Facility
• UNC Computer Science - large format color printer (plotter and 11×17 printer)

How to Do a Poster Presentation

Introduction.

It has been well-documented that, in recent years, there has been a shift within educational institutes from a lecture-driven ” instruction paradigm ” (Webb et al., 2006) towards a multiple assessment technique called ” learning paradigm ” (Barr & Tagg, 1995). This changing paradigm has given importance to assessment tools that can check multiple skills and competencies on a particular topic in a short duration of time. Therefore, the importance of presentations and, more recently, poster presentations , has become increasingly crucial within the academic world. Although poster presentations, according to Lipson & Teodorescu (2007), are assessment tools that are slightly different from ordinary presentations, they do require different skills due to the subtle differences. The aim of this article is therefore to understand the dynamics of effective poster presentation in the light of skills and methods that should be used to achieve high grades for students.

What is a Poster?

Posters are usually A3-sized presentations that are used to summarise the lifecycle of a project; highlight key findings, and/or provide critical analysis. Dunphy & Simmons (2001) have argued that poster presentations are the most time-effective form of information dissemination. It has also been suggested by Saunders (2001) that poster presentations provide a platform to put one’s ideas and messages in the public domain, therefore opening it to wider scrutiny and peer review. There is a school of thought within psychological studies that argues that no matter how similar a group of individuals is, there is still diversity in their perspectives, thinking and learning styles (John, 2003). Therefore when information is presented in a concise manner, summarising all the major points in the form of a poster, the subtle differences in perspectives of the audience help in raising concerns, underlying assumptions and limitations that might have been ignored by the presenter due to being very close to the project, personal bias, and lack of in-depth analysis.

Structure of Poster

It has been highlighted by Welch & Waehler (1996) that most successful posters provide a brief statement of introduction, method, subjects, procedures, results and conclusions. It is recommended in the light of literature and observation that the structure of poster presentations should involve the following critical points:

• Title of the poster which is attention grabbing yet indicating the topic holistically.
• Aim of the poster presentation that summarises what the poster is trying to achieve.
• Introduction to the subject area and the sub areas providing contextual knowledge to the audience usually includes references to scholarly material that falls in the subject domain
• Identification of gaps in the literature, critical analysis and the justification of research, the project and area of interest
• Objectives that need to be addressed or were addressed during the course of the research
• Stages and tasks that are carried out to reach the findings and conclusions
• Evaluation of the work and project, along with key performance indicators

Power of Visuals

A spoken message is reinforced with well-designed visual support, as according to Yemm (2006), audience retention level jumps from 14% to 38% when presenters augment their arguments with visuals. It has been argued by Taylor (1998) that poster presentations are like variety acts, as their aim is to capture audience attention for a brief period of time, therefore they should be concise and distinctive, with a strong brand-like character that can be achieved by using strong visuals like diagrams, pictures, colours and fonts. The use of visuals, according to FCP (2006), helps in the conceptualisation of the context, complex issues and solutions is an important step towards making audiences understand the “messy” situations. In the light of research conducted by Christis (2005) based on soft systems thinking and methodology, it can be reflected that “rich pictures” were found to be a better medium than linear expressions in order to conceptualise the complexity of situations and their explanations.

It should also be noted that development of these visuals is a pragmatic task, as Bryant (1989) has rightly pointed out that selection of the key points, characteristics and interrelations is a crucial skill in the development of effective diagrams, frameworks and pictures for effective presentation. Taylor & DaCosta (1999) have also highlighted that the use of diagrams and frameworks encourages a holistic rather than reductionist thinking of any situation and research, thus delivering an in-depth knowledge of the topic. The longitudinal study conducted by Nalbone & Aberson (2003) involving an audience of poster presentations and aimed at highlighting the best aspects of effective posters, has also highlighted the importance of visuals. The study concluded by segregating the aspects of effective posters into four categories, which include:

• A visual presentation that includes the use of large print, high-quality graphics, and appropriate use of colour
• Clarity and brevity of language with accompanying graphics highlighting the poster’s main points
• Elaboration of specific aspects of topics through diagrams and frameworks
• Characteristics adopted by the presenter during the presentation.
• Therefore it is recommended that poster presenters should emphasise the visual appearance of the poster, including large fonts, diagrams, frameworks and colours, yet it should have a professional appearance.

Presentation Skills

In order to communicate effectively, it has been found that an intelligently designed poster highlighting and summarising the important aspects of the topic should be accompanied by effective presentation skills. It has been highlighted by Burden (1992) that presentations are not just a tool to deliver information to a large group of people but it is a medium to persuade them, change their mind, receive feedback and allow help in taking appropriate actions. Bergin (1995) has argued that in posters all the contents are presented in one go; therefore the presenter should provide a concise but step-by-step explanation of each aspect highlighted in the poster.

Therefore it should be noted that poster presentations should also not be taken as one-way communication of information, rather should be used as a platform to involve the audience intrinsically, i.e. by making them react, think and compare (Robbins, 1997); and extrinsically, i.e. by making them discuss, find out more, and take certain courses of action (Bergin, 1995). The literature has shown that this combination of both intrinsic and extrinsic communication during the course of the presentation provides an opportunity for in-depth feedback on the topic, which can be seen as key learning points for the future of the project or research. The literature review has highlighted that, in order to induce intrinsic communication while conducting a poster presentation, the following three points (Robbins, 1997) should be considered:

• Audience: Learning about the background of the audience is a pre-requisite for conducting a presentation. This will help in creating a content that is understandable by everyone and therefore can be used to involve them. The presenter should look out for the body language and warning signals from the audience during the course of the presentation (Ehrenborg, 1997).
• Content: The content should be designed by keeping the audience, time limits, and important aspects of the topic in mind. Drawing upon Nalbone & Aberson (2003), it should be noted that content should be concise yet explain the main concerns of the audience.
• Performance: The performance of the poster presentation is the overall communication of the message and the quality of feedback. It has been suggested that interpersonal skills play a vital role in boosting the performance of a presentation.

On the other hand, the literature has also highlighted key steps towards achieving the extrinsic communication while conducting a poster presentation. These are popularly known as five Ps of an effective presentation (Bergin, 1995), and are listed as follows:

• Preparation: Preparing and rehearsing the presentation is of utmost importance as the presenter has to leave their comfort zone and face in-depth scrutiny from the crowd. Yemm (2006) has given the 90:10 rule for effective presentation, i.e. spend 90% of the time preparing for 10% of the presentation time.
• Purpose: The content should always be clear and focused on the main aim and specific objectives of the poster presentation. The purpose of the presentation is to satisfy the needs of one’s audience, therefore, defining what one wants to achieve from the presentation is a very good idea, e.g. inform the audience, persuade the audience, receive feedback, or change their opinions.
• Presence: The presence includes non-verbal channels, so one needs to use a combination of sound, touch, visuals, etc. to make one’s presentation interesting, to get the audience to take more of an active role, and sustain their concentration by providing variety. Thus body language, the room, showing a sample, description through pictures, tone, pace, sound effects, music and evoking a feeling through words all can be very tactical and interest-raising for the presentation.
• Passion: It is of utmost importance that the presenter feels enthusiastic about the topic and uses voice tones and gestures to strengthen their passion for the topic. Based on passion, Kushner, (1996) has highlighted three basic types of presentations, i.e. red, blue or grey. Red presentations charge the atmosphere and you can feel the presentation. Blue presentations are analytical, logical and intellectual. While grey presentations try to be safe and are cautious, traditional and accommodating. It is highly recommended that the presenter should have a blue type presentation for academic purposes.
• Personality: The personality includes confidence and circle of excellence (Burden, 1992). Although personality traits and characteristics vary greatly across individuals, it is recommended that the presenter should feel confident and use the knowledge of the topic to generate personal charisma.

Theorists and practitioners alike have shown receiving feedback after presentation an important part of the overall phenomenon. But it should be noted that, due to the very nature of poster presentations, this importance is even greater. Briscoe (1996) has highlighted the fact that feedback is the source of judging the gap of the presenter’s self perception and what the audience has perceived. Therefore, feedback not only reflects the effectiveness of communication, but it provides others’ perspectives and thoughts on the topic, which should be subsequently used to improvise. It has been suggested by Taylor (1998) that it is very important that the presenter takes feedback positively because it is a judgement of behaviour not the person; observation not inference; sharing ideas not giving advice; and exploring alternative perspectives not providing solutions. It is the diversity of thoughts induced through feedback that eventually leads to improvised analysis, research and projects.

This article has provided the recommendations for conducting effective poster presentations. Students are expected to understand and demonstrate their combined skills of conceptualisation, presentation, and receiving feedback in the light of interpersonal skills. It can be concluded in the light of discussion presented in this article that, in order to have an effective poster presentation, students are expected to be pragmatic and analytical in thinking, while creative and passionate in presenting.

Barr, R & Tagg, J. (1995), From teaching to learning – A new paradigm for Undergraduate Education, Change 27, No. 6, Nov/Dec, pp. 13-25

Bergin, Francis J. (1995), Successful presentations, Prentice-Hall.

Bryant J. (1989), Problem Management, John Wiley: Chichester.

Briscoe, Mary Helen (1996), Preparing scientific illustrations: a guide to better posters, presentations, and publications, Springer

Burden, Ernest (1992), Design presentation: techniques for marketing and project proposals, McGraw-Hill

Christis, Jac (2005), Theory and practice of soft systems methodology: a performative contradiction?, Systems Research & Behavioural Science, Jan/Feb2005, Vol. 22 Issue 1, p11-26, 16p, 3 diagrams

Dunphy, Steven; Simmons III, F. Bruce (2001), INCORPORATING A PROMOTIONAL TOOL IN BUSINESS SIMULATIONS: THE POSTER EXERCISE, Marketing Management Journal, Fall2001, Vol. 11 Issue 2, p132-136, 5p

Ehrenborg, Jöns (1997), Powerful presentations: 50 original ideas for making a real impact, Kogan Page

FCP (2006), Closing the Gap Between Knowledge and Behavior: Turning Education into Action, Financial Counseling & Planning, 2006, Vol. 17 Issue 1, p73-90, 18p

John Clark (2003), Effective Communication, Stress News Vol. 15 No. 3

Kushner, Malcolm L. (1996), Successful presentations for dummies, IDG Books Worldwide

Lipson, Randy; Teodorescu, Tina (2007), Winning More Business By Using Presentations As Part Of A Solution Roadmap, American Salesman, Feb2007, Vol. 52 Issue 2, p18-23, 6p

Nalbone, David P.; Aberson, Christopher L. (2003), Psychology Poster Presentations: Analysis of Characteristics and Recommendations for Improvement, North American Journal of Psychology, 2003, Vol. 5 Issue 2, p171, 10p

Robbins, Jo (1997), High-impact presentations: a multimedia approach, Wiley

Saunders, Kent T. (2001), Teaching Methods and Assessment Techniques for the Undergraduate Introductory Finance Course: A National Survey, Journal of Applied Finance, 2001, Vol. 11 Issue 1, p110, 3p

Taylor MJ, DaCosta JL. (1999) Soft issues in IS projects: lessons from an SME case study

Systems Research and Behavioral Science 16: 263–272

Taylor, Ken (1998), Help your audience visualize your message, Selling, Apr98, Vol. 5 Issue 9, p10

Webb, Carol; Lettice, Fiona; Lemon, Mark (2006), Facilitating learning and innovation in organizations using complexity science principles, Emergence: Complexity & Organization, 2006, Vol. 8 Issue 1, p30-41, 12p

Welch, A. & Waehler, C. (1996), Preferences about APA poster presentation, Teaching of Psychology, 23 (1), pp. 42-44

Yemm, Graham (2006), Presentation paranoia PREVENTION AND CURE, Management Services, Autumn2006, Vol. 50 Issue 3, p10-12

Free Editable Poster Presentation Examples

Poster presentations are a popular presentation format for research and clinical findings. These presentations effectively communicate the research data and concepts to the audience using a balanced combination of visuals and text. We will also look into a few poster presentation examples to see how they help communicate with the audience perceptively and concisely.

1. What is a Poster Presentation?

A poster presentation is a short, concise yet clear way of communicating your research, study findings, concepts, and ideas. There are two most critical elements in any poster presentation example: a poster and a brief explanation.

Creating a poster presentation starts with analyzing and evaluating information or synthesizing ideas to present all necessary data and facts. The properties of an effective poster presentation are:

• The flow of information is well-organized and easy to follow.
• The text is easy to read, as a large font is used, and the information is not cluttered.
• Allows to convert to a mind map or a timeline diagram from the Gantt chart
• The balanced use of visuals, text, colors, and graphics makes the poster presentation attractive without losing its functionality.

2. The Poster Presentation Examples

Poster presentations include a part of the information from the research paper or the main text. So, it is crucial to pick the right amount and type of information, which is part of the analysis phase. Let us review some poster presentation examples to understand the salient features of well-made poster presentations.

Example 1: Nursing Poster Presentation Example

This nursing poster presentation example shows a nursing research paper's findings in a well-organized manner. It uses columns and rows to break down the information into different segments to make the text more readable. It also uses graphics, including graphs, bars, and charts, to show the relevant data and figures.

You can see that the flow of the information is very smooth and very understandable. The audience can quickly go to the section they want to read without skimming through the information for the required text.

Example 2: Medical Poster Presentation Example

The medical poster presentation example presented here is the perfect sample to product the summary of a medical research paper in organized and readable layout. It is a clinical case study with learning objective and case presentation. The case presentation also includes an image placeholder to explain the problem more clearly. The other important section in this poster presentation example are nutritional intervention, topic discussion and references.

Example 3: Research Poster Example

This editable research poster example is an excellent tool for any project team to produce their findings and information. The format is straightforward because it breaks down information into many sections. You can quickly put in the relevant information in every section without formatting issues. The title contains the logo, poster title, and author information. The later areas include project introduction, goals, and description. The central section presents the evaluation strategy, findings, and reference literature. We have the conclusion and implication, acknowledgment, and contact information in the concluding paragraph.

Example 4: App Poster Presentation Example

This app poster presentation example also deals with health behavior theory analysis. You can take inspiration from this template and show your research findings using this research poster example. It combines text and visuals to present the data and information attractively and effectively. It makes efficient use of tables to deliver the data, while some graphics and charts are also used to give information in an easy-to-understand manner.

Example 5: Scientific Poster Presentation Example

This scientific poster presentation example is a template focused on presenting the summary of research in an easily readable format. The template starts with a logo and introduction to the study, and a list of authors. The later parts include abstract, introduction, results, discussion, and other relevant sections. Another distinguishing feature of this poster presentation example is the detailed guidelines presented in each area. So, even a beginner can create an effective poster presentation using this template and guidelines.

Example 6: Psychology Poster Presentation Example

This document's psychology poster presentation example shows a scientific poster that produces the relevant information in a very effective and well-organized layout. The layout is immaculate yet collects a good amount of data without clutter. You can see a pie chart and a lot of bullet text. The central part of this research paper example is exciting. It has two parts, each with a circle in the center and four sections. It gives inspiration for presenting a large amount of text interestingly.

Source: EdrawMax Online

Example 7: Science Poster Presentation Example

This science poster presentation example uses columns to divide the content into manageable parts. The content division makes it easy to read, easy to edit, and makes going to specific information straightforward. Colorful headings and background color make this template attractive without distracting the flow of information and losing focus on the text.

Example 8: Good Poster Presentation Example

A good poster presentation example must be editable, well laid out, well organized, and guidelines for the poster presentations. The main sections are an introduction, method, results, conclusions, and bibliography. This example can also see placeholders for charts, graphs, and figures. The use of the right size of the font, proper text format, and proper use of graphics makes any poster presentation an excellent tool for communication.

Example 9: Mathematics Poster Presentation Example

Mathematics poster presentation examples are based on graphs, charts, and maps to show the statistics, mathematical functions, and data. Mathematicians need less amount of text and rely more on data presentations. This example shows how to include numerous charts and graphs in one poster presentation without losing any value in information and readability. It uses classic blue and a good size font for the contained text.

3. Online Scientific Poster Maker

A poster presentation example must present the information and data in an engaging, readable, and attractive layout. It is essential to communicate your important information effectively without losing anything to the structure. An online scientific poster maker is a tool that allows you to create scientific posters in less time and with all essential elements. EdrawMax Online is a great candidate for your best scientific poster maker because it has an easy-to-use editor, great font and layout toolkit, and an excellent collection of templates. You can use the professionally made scientific poster templates for inspiration and a quick start. These templates are fully customizable, so you can add your text and graphics to create an attractive scientific poster. Also, you can import your data easily with a few clicks and export your poster in many file formats.

4. Key Takeaways

Scientific posters and poster presentation examples are more complex than other posters because their information needs to be accurate and complete. Also, the text, data, and graphics must be visible even from a distance. Therefore, an excellent scientific poster maker like EdrawMax allows you to create a perfect poster presentation easily and quickly. A good choice of charts, graphs, and data representation also contributes towards a more effective poster presentation. You cam find more science diagrams or poster presentations in the Templates Community .

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APA Citation Style, 7th Edition: Posters & Conference Sessions

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Citing Conference sessions, Poster abstracts, and Poster presentations

Conference sessions, poster abstracts, and poster presentations follow a significantly different format than other types of APA references.

• The author of the work is always listed first.
• Next, the FULL date of the conference is listed in the date area, so if a conference is held over several days, you need to list the date the conference starts, through the date the conference ends.
• Next add the title of the work and put it in italics, then add (in square brackets), whether it's a [Poster session], a [Poster abstract], or a [Conference session] and then add a period.
• In the source area share 1) the name of the conference or organization - or both (comma), 2) the name of the city or town the conference was held (comma), 3) the abbreviation of the state or the region (depending on the country) (comma), 4) the country the conference was held.
• Lastly share the URL of the WORK (not the conference in general) as a live hyperlink. 

Examples: 

Conference session : .

Hinck, J., Brewington, J., & Harding, K. (2018, September 12-14). Nurse educators - Making a difference in self and others to strengthen networks and partnerships [Conference session]. National League for Nursing, Chicago, IL, United States.  https://tinyurl.com/37bx7uku  

In-Text Citation (Paraphrase):

(Hinck, et al., 2018). 

Poster Abstract :

Jackson, C., McCalmont, J., Ward, J. Solanki, E., Seguin, R., & Perry, C. K. (2017, October 10). Mujeres fuertes y corazones saludables: Adaptation of the Strong Women - Healthy Hearts (SWHH) program for rural Latinas using an intervention mapping approach [Poster Abstract]. 2017 Oregon Public Health Association Annual Meeting, Portland, OR, United States.  https://tinyurl.com/y2panrdm  

(Jackson, et al., 2017). 

Poster Presentation :

NOTE: Because the poster presentations of this conference were presented in a journal, there are actually two ways you could cite this particular poster abstract, either way is acceptable in APA .  

Option 1 - Referencing ONLY the poster abstract itself : 

Leckenby, S., & Acklaghi, H. (2017, November 19-23). Is point-of-care troponin enough in decision making process in emergency departments [Poster Presentation]. ACEM ASM 2017 "Impossible is Just a Perspective" Darling Harbour, Sydney, Austalia.   https://tinyurl.com/cpkjbsu5

(Leckenby & Acklaghi, 2017). 

Option 2 - Referencing the poster abstract within the actual journal & supplement that printed the conference abstract : 

Leckenby, S., & Acklaghi, H. (2018). Is point-of-care troponin enough in decision making process in emergency departments [Poster Presentation]. Emergency Medicine Australasia, 30 (S1), 43-44.  https://doi.org/10.1111/1742-6723.12962  

Carrie Forbes, MLS

Page References

Citation information has been adapted from the APA Manual (7th Edition). Please refer to page 332-333 of the APA Manual (7th Edition) for more information.

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summernights.org

Creating a topnotch dissertation proposal poster, introduction.

Posters are extensively used in the academic field. For a fact, a number of conferences include presentations of posters in their current programs. What is more, posters in research sum up research or data in a succinct and impressive approach in order to aid properly publicize it and come up with substantial discussion.

How can you construct an exceptional poster for your dissertation proposal?

Before anything else, it is fundamental to learn more about what dissertation proposal poster is. This pertains to a combination of a concise text that is mixed with pictures, graphs, tables as well as other presentation formats. Indeed, the researcher needs to stand by the poster demonstration at a conference while other participants could come and take a glance at the presentation and afterwards collaborate with the author.

Where do you start?

When working on a poster, take in mind that it is very valuable to be able to answer questions such as how you could visually share your research with the participants of the conference; what is the most astounding, engrossing and substantial findings from your research work, what form of data could you communicate at the time of your discussion which shall highly complement your poster and if it is useful to make us of images, photos, graphs and charts?

When creating your poster, you have to make sure that you only include vital data that is readable. The title must draw the interest of your target attendees and must be short. The word count should roughly be 300 by up to 800 words. In the same way, it is a must to use fonts, color and graphics effectively; your text must be to the point and pointed out clearly.

Aside from these, make use of headlines, numbering as well as bullets so that it is going to be easy to read. The layout should be clean and consistent. Do not forget to include your name, acknowledgments as well as your institutional affiliation.

Overall, a poster presentation incorporates graphics and text to present the project in a manner that is prominently accessible and engrossing. Moreover, this enables you to demonstrate your work to a larger audience of other scholars and also to discuss and obtain feedback from responsive viewers.

The formats in presenting posters actually vary from discipline to discipline. Whatever the format may be, take into account that your poster should clearly convey what you did, why you did it, how you did it and what your work actually contributes to a greater field of human knowledge and in the area of study.

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Graduate School Achievement Awards

Outstanding dissertation awards.

Dr. Raghav Jha Communication Sciences and Disorders, Ph.D. Committee Chair: Dr. Erin G. Piker “Effects of age on Amplitude-modulated cVEMP Temporal Modulation Transfer Function”

Dr. Elizabeth Narehoo Strategic Leadership Studies, Ph.D. Committee Chair: Dr. Benjamin Selznick “Leading a Community Promise: A Mixed Method Study Exploring the Dynamics of Adaptive Leadership and Student Success”

Outstanding Thesis Awards

Megan Moore Communication and Advocacy, M.A. Committee Chair: Dr. Kathryn Hobson “Conversations with the “Queens of Lez,” “ChapStick Lesbians,” and Fellow Femmes; A Qualitative Exploration of Queer Femmeness, Femme Sex, and Femme Relationships”

Rysa Thomas Biology, M.S. Committee Chair: Dr. Rocky Parker “Energy homeostasis in an extreme vertebrate: relationships between life-history status and the molecular stress response in red-sided garter snakes”

Civic Engagement Award

Doruntina Maliqi Communication and Advocacy, M.A.

Community Engagement Award

Joshua Orndorff Strategic Leadership Studies, Ph.D.

Showcase of Graduate Student Scholarship & Creative Activity Awards

Graduate student presenters were awarded top honors from a jury of faculty.

Top Oral Presentation Award

Hannah Greer-Young Master of Music, M.M. The JMU Lab Band Initiative

Top Poster Presentation Award

Gabrielle Gieringer Physician Asst Studies, M.P.A.S. The effect of gut-directed hypnotherapy on alleviating symptoms of IBS in adults  

Graduate Student Association Impact Awards

Oluwafemi Ayoola Kinesiology, M.S.

Ruth Hurley Doctor of Nursing Practice, D.N.P.

Award Winners by Year

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