UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Graduate students looking to highlight their scholarly achievements, compete for monetary awards and recognition, and hone their research communication skills are now able to register for second annual Penn State Three Minute Thesis competition, hosted by the J. Jeffrey and Ann Marie Fox Graduate School
Registration to compete is open through Friday, Oct. 25, to all degree-seeking graduate students at any Penn State campus.
Penn State community members, including graduate students, post-doctoral scholars, faculty and staff, are also invited to register as a judge by the Oct. 25 deadline for the event's first round.
The Three Minute Thesis (3MT) is an academic research communication competition developed by the University of Queensland (UQ), Australia. Each competitor has three minutes to speak and can use only one presentation slide to effectively explain their research to a general audience.
The competition will take place over two rounds. Judging for the opening round, which is a video format, will take place Nov. 4-8. The Fox Graduate School will be hosting the final round in partnership with the Graduate and Professional Student Association (GPSA) and the Fox Graduate School Alumni Society on Saturday, March 29, 2025, livestreamed from the Nittany Lion Inn on the University Park campus.
A small group of invited judges will evaluate the final round presentations and award first and second place. One competitor will also receive a People’s Choice award, sponsored by the GPSA, which will be decided based on in-person and online audience voting.
The Fox Graduate School will also be hosting an upcoming two-part online workshop series in collaboration with two faculty members, Marcy Milhomme, associate teaching professor for continuing education in communication arts and sciences, and Andy Gustafson, associate clinical professor of accounting, that is designed to prepare students for the 3MT competition and set graduate students up for success with future presentations. Sessions will take place Sept. 25 and Oct. 2, followed by Oct. 8 and 15.