12th Annual UGA Three Minute Thesis (3MT™) competition
3MT™ is a professional and highly engaging international research communication competition. Better known by the acronym 3MT, the competition requires contestants to explain their thesis or dissertation topic and its significance in three minutes or less using only a single static presentation slide.
The competition supports their capacity to effectively explain their research in three minutes, in a language appropriate to a non-specialist audience. This event is free and open to the public.
The final competition was held Wednesday, April 5, 2023, at the University Chapel.
Watch the full show here.
Three Minute Thesis (3MT™) is an academic competition developed by The University of Queensland (UQ), Australia.
(l to r) Ron Walcott, Vice Provost of Graduate Education and Dean of the Graduate School; Chisom Okoli, Runner Up Winner; Yan Su, People’s Choice Winner; Karen Gonzalez, Grand Prize Winner; Finalists: Molly Stevens, Donovan Cantrell, Sofia Ruiz, Quin Feng, Mikayla Dycus, Savannah Downing, Hayley Joyell Smith; S. Jack Hu, Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost
2023 Winners:
Grand Prize Winner: Karen Gonzalez – Institute of Bioinformatics, “Humans vs Viruses”
Runner Up Winner: Chisom Okoli – Department of Nutritional Sciences, “Equity in Wellness: Development of an eLearning Training to Improve Healthy Beverage Consumption in Black Families of Young Children”
People’s Choice Winner: Yang Su – Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, “The Bacteria Glycans, Trojan Horses in Disguise”
2023 Finalists:
Donovan Cantrell – Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, “The Cellular Recycler”
Savannah Downing – Department of Communication Studies, “Diffractive Re-membrance of The Radium Girls”
Mikayla Dycus – Department of Animal and Dairy Science, “Saving Moolah: Linking the Gastrointestinal Microbiome to Feed Efficiency in Angus Cattle”
Qian Feng – Institute of Plant Breeding, Genetics, and Genomics, “More Than a Water Bomb: Bring Aroma Back to Tomato”
Karen Gonzalez – Institute of Bioinformatics, “Humans vs Viruses”
Chisom Okoli – Department of Nutritional Sciences, “Equity in Wellness: Development of an eLearning Training to Improve Healthy Beverage Consumption in Black Families of Young Children”
Sofia Ruiz – Department of Theatre and Film Studies / MFA in Performance, “Uncovering Herstory: Lauren Gunderson’s Silent Sky”
Hayley Smith – Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources, “Reimagining Human ‘Waste’ as a Natural Resource”
Molly Stevens – Department of Classics, “Vintage 536 or After the Worst Year, What Happened to Booze?”
Yang Su – Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, “The Bacteria Glycans, Trojan Horses in Disguise”
2023 Judges:
Neal Quirk, Chair of the University of Georgia Foundation Board of Trustees, Partner at Quirk & Quirk LLC
Stuart Rayfield, Vice Chancellor for Leadership and Institutional Development for the University System of Georgia
Lora Smothers, Founder and Director of the Joy Village School
About
The exercise develops academic, presentation, and research communication skills and supports the development of students’ capacities to effectively explain their research in language appropriate to an intelligent but non-specialist audience.
Master’s and doctoral students have three minutes to present a compelling oration on their thesis or dissertation topic and its significance. 3MT™ is not an exercise in trivializing or ‘dumbing-down’ research but forces students to consolidate their ideas and crystalize their research discoveries.
Eligibility
Currently enrolled master’s and doctoral students at the University of Georgia will be eligible to participate in 3MT™. Graduates are not eligible. Students must present on the research that will culminate in either their master’s thesis or doctoral dissertation. Previous winners of the 3MT™ competition are not eligible to participate.
Prizes
- Winner: $1,000
- Runner-up: $750
- People’s Choice: $500
Rules
- A single static PowerPoint slide is permitted. No slide transitions, animations or ‘movement’ of any description are allowed. The slide is to be presented from the beginning of the oration.
- No additional electronic media (e.g. sound and video files) are permitted.
- No additional props (e.g. costumes, musical instruments, laboratory equipment) are permitted.
- Presentations are limited to 3 minutes maximum and competitors exceeding 3 minutes are disqualified.
- Presentations are to be spoken word (eg. no poems, raps or songs).
- Presentations are to commence from the stage.
- Presentations are considered to have commenced when a presenter starts their presentation through either movement or speech.
- The decision of the judging panel is final.
Judging Criteria
Comprehension & Content
- Presentation provided clear background and significance to the research question
- Presentation clearly described the research strategy/design and the results/findings of the research
- Presentation clearly described the conclusions, outcomes and impact of the research
Engagement & Communication
- The oration was delivered clearly, and the language was appropriate for a non-specialist audience
- The PowerPoint slide was well-defined and enhanced the presentation
- The presenter conveyed enthusiasm for their research and captured and maintained the audience’s attention
Interested in learning more about how to make the most of your 3 minutes? Here’s a guide that that will help you to prepare and deliver an effective 3MT™ presentation.
