Three Minute Thesis

1. A single, static PowerPoint slide is required. No slide transitions or animations are permitted. The slide will be visible throughout the student’s presentation. Examples of presentation slides will be provided to registrants.
2. Students are allowed a single index 3x5” index card for notes, though they are encouraged to present without.
3. No additional electronic media (e.g., sound or video files) are permitted.
4. No additional props (e.g., costumes, musical instruments, laboratory equipment, pointers) are permitted.
5. Presentations must be held within the three-minute time limit to remain in qualification.
6. Presentations are to be spoken word (e.g., no poems, rapping, songs, etc.).

We require that participants use Kaltura to record presentations for the preliminary round. Kaltura recordings can be shared with friends, colleagues, and advisors for feedback.

Resources for using Kaltura to record your 3 Minute Thesis presentation:

1. Recording your screen and webcam with Kaltura Capture
2. Editing videos using the Kaltura Video Editor
3. Knowledge Base instructions for editing captions in Kaltura
4. The Kaltura Knowledg Center for General Questions

Watch examples of 3MT presentations

Our 3MT Kaltura channel also includes short videos about preparing your script and slides:

• Introduction to elevator pitches
• Principles of argumentation and persuasion
• Three Minute Thesis: Condensing 6 years of research into 3 minutes

Brandi Smith, Director of Career Coaching in the University Graduate School, will be hosting three 3MT Primer events in January, 2026. These events will allow participants to formulate, refine, and practice their 3MT submissions.

Session 1: Monday, January 26th, 10am-noon

Session 2: Tuesday, January 27th, 2-4pm

Both sessions will be held in E174 of Wells Library.

1. Did the presentation provide an understanding of the background to the research question being addressed and its significance?
2. Did the presentation clearly describe the key results of the research, including conclusions and outcomes?
3. Did the presentation follow a clear and logical sequence?
4. Was the thesis topic, key results, research significance, and outcomes communicated in language appropriate to a non-specialist audience?
5. Did the speaker avoid scientific jargon, explain terminology, and provide adequate background information to illustrate points?
6. Did the presenter spend adequate time on each element of their presentation - or did they elaborate for too long on one aspect, or was the presentation rushed?

1. Did the oration make the audience want to know more?
2. Was the presenter careful not to trivialize or generalize their research?
3. Did the presenter convey enthusiasm for their research?
4. Did the presenter capture and maintain their audience's attention?
5. Did the speaker have sufficient stage presence, eye contact, and vocal range, maintain a steady pace, and have a confident stance?
6. Did the PowerPoint slide enhance the presentation—was it clear, legible, and concise?

Students can request an appointment with a career coach via Handshake. Questions about 3MT may be directed to Trevor Verrot.

1st Place: Leigh M. Levinson, Snitches Get Unplugged: Teens' Privacy Concerns with Robots, Cognitive Science & Informatics 

2nd Place: Joshua M. Watkins, Cannabinoids and Breathing: A Safer Alternative for Chronic Pain?, Psychology & Neuroscience

People's Choice: Antonia A. Bacigalupa Albaum, Navigating Discourses on the Purpose of Higher Education, Educational Leadership & Policy Studies 

1st Place: Maria Pope, A Party in the Brain: Finding group interactions between brain regions, Neuroscience & Informatics 

2nd Place: Youngheun Jo, Your brain's traffic is you: Communication between brain regions as brain "fingerprints", Computational and Cognitive Neuroscience

People's Choice: Haddie DeHart, Defining the Mechanisms of Cancer Specific Transcription Factor, tGLI1, Cell, Molecular, and Cancer Biology 

1st Place: Austin R. Medlin, (T)rauma vs. (t)rauma: Impact of differential early life traumatic stress magnitude on CVD risk, Epidemiology & Biostatistics 

2nd Place: Katherine I. Barrus, Police Understanding and Perception of African American English, Criminal Justice 

3rd Place: Priyamvada Modak, Contactless Delivery of Stimulation to Deep Brain Neurons in Humans, Psychological and Brain Sciences 

Check out the #Hoosier3MT submissions for 2023.

• 1^st Place: Nabojit Kar, Alloy Nanoparticles for Sustainable Energy, Chemistry 
• 2^nd Place: Taylor Woodward, Cope without Dope: Stress and the Body's Natural Cannabis-like Chemicals, Neuroscience/Psychology ​
• People’s Choice: Mohammad Azhar Mehfooz, Fighting Bacteria with Gold, Chemistry 

Check out the #Hoosier3MT submissions for 2022.

• 1^st Place: Vic Overdorf​, Queer Alcatraz​, College of Arts and Sciences, Gender Studies​
• 2^nd Place: Ashley Jammel Brooks​, Understanding our Universe​, College of Arts and Sciences, Physics​
• People’s Choice: Bruna Kalil Othero Fernandes​, Brazilian Palimpsest: National Identity in Three Acts​, College of Arts and Sciences, Department of Spanish and Portuguese

Check out the #Hoosier3MT submissions for 2021.

• First place: Vishakh Iyer, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences and Program in Neuroscience, Improving opioid pain relief while reducing its unwanted side-effects using a cannabinoid drug
• Second place: Kathryn Michelle Benavidez Westrich, Department of Anthropology, It takes guts: Hormone-microbe interactions in howler monkeys
• People’s Choice Award: Amani Gashan, School of Education, Literacy, Culture, and Language Education, Heritage languages in the United States