The Three Minute Thesis
The 3MT competition will teach you how to communicate effectively to specialists and non-specialists alike, preparing you to present your research at scholarly conferences and to take part in both academic and professional job markets.
The competition also promotes the value of doctoral research to a wider community and strengthens scholarly engagement and collaboration across the disciplines.
Eligible students must be active School of Graduate Studies Ph.D. candidates who have successfully passed their qualifying exams by the date of their first 3MT presentation.
Interested students are strongly encouraged to attend a 3MT information session as well as the 3MT preparation workshops*. Students will need to register for the competition online and participate in the preliminary round.
The top eight candidates from the preliminary rounds will advance to the final round of competition, which will take place on Tuesday, March 26, 2019, at the Kathleen W. Ludwig Global Village on Douglass Campus.
Top presenters will receive cash prizes:
- $500 for first place
- $250 for the runner-up
- $250 for the audience choice
The first place winner will be invited to compete in a regional 3MT competition hosted by the Northeastern Association of Graduate Schools (NAGS).
*Please note that 3MT Preparation workshops are not mandatory for interested participants. However, it is strongly recommended that students attend one of our workshops. Students that are not interested in 3MT but would like to further develop their scholarly presentation skills are welcome to attend either workshop.
Contact Assistant Dean Ramazan Gungor to determine eligibility
If you’re planning to participate in this year's 3MT competition, we encourage you to check out these videos for helpful information.
See the most common mistakes video
Rules
Student presenters are permitted a single, static power point slide to enhance their presentation, and the slide cannot contain any sound or video files.
Presenters are strictly limited to three minutes of presentation time. No props of any kind are permitted, and notes cannot be used during the presentation.
Presentations must be spoken word and must commence from the stage. Presentations are considered to have commenced when the speaker starts the presentation through movement or speech.
The decision of the adjudicating panel is final.
Judging Criteria
A panel of non-specialist judges will evaluate all student presentations.
Presentations will be evaluated based on comprehension, content, engagement, and communication.
3MT 2020 WINNERS & FINALISTS
Please join us in congratulating our 3MT 2020 Winners and finalists! To view video recordings of student presentations, please click here.
1st Place Winner:
Christina Verhagen, Earth & Planetary Sciences
3MT Title: Magnetic Clocks in Crater Rocks
2nd Place Winner:
Franklin Halprin, Planning and Public Policy
3MT Title: The Bear Truths: Power, History, and Conflict in New Jersey Black Bear Policy
3rd Place Winners:
Rachel Dickler, Education
3MT Title: Using Artificial Intelligence to Support Struggling Students in STEM
Sasha Leidman, Geography
3MT Title: The Mystery of Greenland’s Dark Streams: How Microbes Melt the Greenland Ice Sheet
Finalists:
Analia Albuja, Psychology, How Does Discrimination Affect Bicultural People?
Kate Douthat, Ecology and Evolution, Can a Ditch by the Side of the Road Save Butterflies?
Robert Dowden, Kinesiology and Health, “Long Reads” Show Exercise Alters “Who’s There?” in Gut Bacteria
Serena DeStefani, Psychology, The Space Within
Shilpaa Mukundan, Biomedical Engineering, Bioengineering Miniaturized Tuberculosis (TB) Structures for Drug Discovery
Vinam Puri, Pharmaceutical Science, Topically Getting Rid of Nail Fungus
STUDENT TESTIMONIALS
3MT is a valuable experience for student participants. Past SGS students described their experiences stating:"This is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to express the complete research work in limited time to layman audience which otherwise I would have never thought of doing!"
"The condensed format really made me think carefully about what parts of my project are the most important. Putting together my presentation helped me refine my "elevator pitch" for conferences and interviews and it also helped me become a more concise speaker as I got a lot of practice editing out unnecessary phrases from my 3MT drafts."
"It helped me to organize my thoughts in a concise and logical manner, which was important for writing my full length thesis."
"It was both a unique experience and a challenging quest that uninhibited me to share my passion for all my work and my efforts."
Additional resources
If you need more information, use the resources below:
Ramazan Gungor at the New Brunswick/Piscataway campus
Doreen Badheka at the Newark campus
Find out more on the 3MT website
STUDENT TESTIMONIALS
3MT is a valuable experience for student participants. Past SGS students described their experiences stating