Ten graduate students will compete for cash prizes and the opportunity to represent Auburn University against other universities during Auburn’s Three Minute Thesis competition from 2-3 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 13, in the auditorium of The Hotel at Auburn University & Dixon Conference Center.
Three Minute Thesis, or 3MT, is a research communication competition that challenges graduate students to effectively communicate their research and its significance to a non-specialist audience in only three minutes. The concept was developed in 2008 by the University of Queensland in Australia and has quickly spread across the world.
“3MT is a very valuable exercise because it forces graduate students to eliminate the academic jargon and relate their research in terms people can understand,” said George Flowers, Dean of the Graduate School. “It’s a great professional development tool for the students, but 3MT is also a wonderful showcase of some of the groundbreaking research being conducted at Auburn University.”
The ten students competing in 3MT were the top competitors during a series of preliminaries held the week of Oct. 28 to Nov. 1.
A five-person panel will judge the competitors based on communication style, comprehension and engagement. The winner, runner-up and People’s Choice Award winner — determined by audience voting — will receive cash prizes. The winner will also have the chance to represent Auburn at the Conference of Southern Graduate Schools’ inaugural 3MT competition in San Antonio, Texas, in February 2014.
Auburn’s 3MT is co-sponsored by the Graduate School and the Graduate Student Council. The competition is free to attend and open to the public.
For more information about 3MT, including a list of competitors and their presentation topics, visit the website athttp://graduate.auburn.edu/current-students/three-minute-thesis-competition/.
Last modified: December 19, 2016
