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Three Minute Thesis (3MT ® )

Three Minute Thesis is a research communication competition challenging Ph.D. students to present a compelling oration on their thesis and its significance in three minutes or less to a non-technical audience.

3MT is not an exercise in trivializing or “dumbing-down” research, but challenges students to consolidate their ideas and research discoveries so they can be presented concisely to a wider audience.

Eligibility and Rules

Open to all doctoral candidates in good standing who have completed preliminary exams by the nomination deadline.

Nomination Deadline:  Monday, March 4, 2024 (5 pm).

Rules and judging criteria.

Contact your faculty advisor or email [email protected] .

Voiland College Qualifying Event

Date:  March 11, 2024 Time: 1-2:30 pm Venue: ETRL 101 ( map )

• 1st Place: $1,500 Scholarship for Fall 2024
• 2nd Place: $1,000 scholarship for Fall 2024
• 3rd Place: $500 scholarship for Fall 2024

Winner moves on to the WSU Competition.

WSU Competition

Date: March 27, 2024 Time: 1 pm Venue: VBR 305 ( map )

• 1st Place: $3,000 travel stipend
• 2nd Place: $1,500 travel stipend
• 3rd Place: $500 travel stipend

Voiland College Qualifying Event Winners

Zengran Sun Chemical Engineering

Thesis: The Switchable Method to Develop Efficient Catalysts

Devon McCornack Engineering Science

Thesis: Enhancing lateral flow assays (LFAs) with cationic isotachophoresis for bacterial and viral infection differentiation

Mohammad Aghababaei Civil Engineering

Thesis: Practical Modelling of Solute Transport in River Corridors

Arjak Bhattacharjee Materials Science and Engineering

Thesis: Effect of Essential Elements and Naturally Derived Molecules on Improving Biological and Mechanical Properties of Additively Manufactured Calcium Phosphate Based Scaffolds and Plasma Sprayed Coatings

Ashley Vu Mechanical Engineering

Thesis: Essential Elements, Vitamins, and Natural Medicinal Additives in Calcium Phosphate Ceramics for Bone Tissue Engineering

Ayumi Manawadu Civil Engineering

Thesis: Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) of Concrete using Smart Piezo Modules (SPM)

Dishary Banerjee Mechanical Engineering

Thesis: Calcium phosphate ceramics and natural medicine for bone tissue engineering

The College of Education is proud to again host Three Minute Thesis February 26 — 11:00 a.m. PST— Zoom

In 2014, the College of Education hosted a college-level Three Minute Thesis. Provost Dan Bernardo was part of the judging panel. His office then took it university wide starting in 2015, sponsoring the event, while the College of Education has administered it each year.

This year, for the eighth year in a row, the College of Education will hear its best and brightest doctoral students share their research.

Awards are: First Place – $750, Second Place – $500, Third Place – $250, Fourth Place – $100, Fifth Place – $100.

CONGRATS TO JO CRANDALL for winning this year’s 3MT event!

A replay of the event will be available soon. In the meantime, each competitor’s presentation is on their bio.

The starting lineup.

• Pruksapan Bantawtook

• Yustinus Calvin

• Jo Crandall

• Chioma Ezeh

• Amanda McMahon

• Dustin Van Orman

Presentation order

As determined by Random.org

Ellen Taylor

Kanale Rhoden

Presentation

Three-Minute Thesis

About the event.

Research communication competition for doctoral students to present their research in three minutes.

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Three Minute Thesis & 2 Minute Talk Competitions

Compete & win money, three minute thesis (3mt®).

Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) is a research communication competition for doctoral students. The challenge is to c learly present your doctoral thesis to a non- specialized audience in 3 minutes or less , using a single static PowerPoint slide.

• The first – place winner of the Tri-Cities 3MT ® competition will receive $ 500 and go on to compete in the all WSU 3MT ® finals . Learn more about the all WSU 3MT® competition.
• The second – place winner of the Tri-Cities 3MT ® competition will receive $ 300.

Two Minute Talk (2MT)

Two Minute Talk (2MT) is a communication competition for master’s students. The challenge is to c learly present your master’s thesis research or non-thesis focus to a non- specialized audience in 2 minutes or less, using a single static PowerPoint slide.  

• The first-place winner of the Tri-Cities 2MT competition will receive $200.
• The first-place winner of the Tri-Cities 2MT competition will receive $100.

Wednesday March 6 th , 202 4 | Collab Hall 202 |  3 p.m. – 4 p.m.

Only Tri-Cities students can compete in this Tri-Cities event. Attending the event is free and open to all. This event is sponsored by Research and Graduate Programs.

You must register in advance to compete. The deadline to register is 5 p.m. on February 29th.

Please review all rules and eligibility for 3MT® here.

Only actively enrolled thesis or non-thesis master’s students are eligible to compete in the 2MT; competition rules and judging criteria are the same as the 3MT.

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March 29: Three Minute Thesis returns

Three Minute Thesis (3MT) will return to Washington State University’s annual Showcase, on March 29 at 1 p.m. in The Spark Atrium. This year’s 3MT will also be streamed online. Prizes, in the form of travel awards for research conferences, will be $3,000 for the winner, $1,500 for second place and $500 for third.

James Asare, a doctoral student from the College of Education, won last year’s contest, in which doctoral students present their research/scholarship concisely — in no more than three minutes — to a non-specialist audience.

Provost and Executive Vice President Elizabeth Chilton said 3MT is a highlight of Showcase.

“It’s critical that researchers everywhere, particularly WSU graduate students, can communicate their work in a way that is understandable and compelling to a wide audience,” Chilton said. “This unique competition allows our doctoral candidates to practice taking their complex research and translating it into a concise and easily understandable message. I encourage our university community to attend this year’s 3MT event to hear our student’s impactful work.”

Each college, or campus, that wants to send a representative to the main event, hosts its own event first. The winners from the respective events then qualify for the university-wide competition. This year, the following committed to participating:

• Carson College of Business
• College of Agricultural, Human, and Natural Resource Sciences
• College of Arts and Sciences
• College of Education
• College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences
• College of Veterinary Medicine
• Voiland College of Engineering and Architecture
• WSU Tri-Cities
• WSU Vancouver

3MT began at the University of Queensland (Australia) in 2008. In spring 2014, the WSU College of Education hosted the first 3MT event at WSU; in 2015, the contest expanded to all colleges.

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Three-Minute Thesis Competition

Doctoral students present their research against the clock.

In the spring of 2015, 13 Carson College doctoral students competed in the Three-Minute Thesis (3MT®) research communication competition sponsored by the WSU Office of the Provost. Students had three minutes to present a concise, compelling summary of their thesis, explaining its significance to a non-specialist audience. Each college held its own challenge, with the winners advancing to the University competition

FIRST PLACE

Xun xu, ph.d. operations & management science.

Xun Xu won the Carson College competition, earning $300 for his research presentation focusing on supply chain coordination and service operations. He advanced to the University competition and placed fourth. Xu’s dissertation “Coordinating a Tourism Supply Chain Using Pricing and Cooperative Advertising Strategies” analyzes a tourism supply chain containing a theme park, local hotels, and multiple travel agents using a game theory approach. He specifically focuses on sales of travel packages that include theme park tickets, air travel, and accommodations. His results demonstrate that profits can be further increased by incorporating pricing of both the hotel rooms and the theme park into a coordinated decision.

To watch a video of Xu’s presentation, visit 3mt.wsu.edu/business/xunxu.

SECOND PLACE

Jonathan jackson, ph.d. operations & management science.

Jonathan Jackson placed second in the Carson College competition, winning $150 for his presentation “Quantity Discounts, Capacity Decisions, and Channel Structure Choices in Supply Chains.” Jackson’s research identifies several areas for future quantity discount research to help bring together the current academic literature and the needs of practitioners from both buyers’ and suppliers’ perspectives. His results may also help purchasing managers make appropriate procurement decisions when ordering multiple products simultaneously, each with its own quantity discount schedule and with the presence of a common resource constraint (e.g., warehouse space).

To watch a video of Jackson’s presentation, visit 3mt.wsu.edu/business/jonjackson.

PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARD

Tyler stumpf, ph.d. hospitality & tourism business management.

Tyler Stumpf won the $100 People’s Choice Award for his presentation “Navigating the Elusive Industry: A Grounded Investigation into Hotel Business Management in a Developing Pacific Island Country.” His research develops a grounded theory on how to design and maintain a workable hotel business model in a developing Pacific Island country that does not have a workable tourism business model, and where ease of doing business is low. The results reveal how foreign and local hotel entrepreneurs structure transaction cost, economizing business arrangements with each other by effectively working within institutional constraints.

To watch a video of Stumpf’s presentation, visit 3mt.wsu.edu/business/tylerstumpf .

Three-Minute Thesis Grand Finale winners announced

Doctoral researcher Denis Ruto was awarded first place for his 3-minute thesis presentation on “Sustainable Nutrient Management Opportunities for Small Communities with Wastewater Lagoons.”

The Office of Graduate Education and Life announced the winners of the annual  Three-Minute Thesis Competition , which was held on April 3 during WVU Graduate Student Appreciation Week and Research Week.

Story by WVU Today Photos by WVU Today

Benjamin M. Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources

For the first time in WVU 3MT competition history, two doctoral students tied for first place. Denis Ruto, from the Statler College , and Paige Zalman, PhD candidate from the College of Applied Human Services, received the same scores to win. Zalman also won the People’s Choice Award. 

Even though Ruto acknowledged that it was a great challenge to narrow down his dissertation and research to under three minutes, he impressed the judges on his presentation titled “Sustainable Nutrient Management Opportunities for Small Communities with Wastewater Lagoons.” 

Meanwhile, Zalman scored points with both the judges and audience members with her presentation on “Exploring Music Major Mental Health Using Photovoice and Narrative Inquiry.” She emphasized the importance of qualitative methodologies that can help people better understand the nature of problems people are researching today.

Second place was awarded to Kayla Steinberger, an immunology specialist in the School of Medicine, for her presentation on “Hypoxia Regulates Vessel-Modifying Macrophages and Vice Versa in Tumors.” She emphasized that, as a future scientist, it’s important to know how to best communicate her science to the public, so she takes every opportunity to get in front of people and “make stuff that's really hard, sound really easy.” 

Vaishakhi Suresh, an industrial and management systems engineering student in the Statler College, received third place for her research presentation on “Exploring the Challenges of Handling Mass Fatalities during the COVID-19 Pandemic.” When asked why she entered the competition, Vaishakhi said, “It's a great opportunity to talk about her research to the rest of the WVU community.” She was also excited to meet other students in different fields and learn more about their research.

This year’s judges included Ming Lei, senior associate vice president in the Office of Research and Graduate Education and vice dean of research in the School of Medicine; Rachel Morris, biology doctoral student in the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences; Mikylah Myers, associate dean of artistic and scholarly achievement in the College of Creative Arts; Patricia Slagel, assistant director of advising and student operations of graduate programs in the John Chambers College of Business and Economics; and Daniel Totzkay, assistant professor of communication studies in the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences. 

The internationally renowned 3MT competition, originally founded by the University of Queensland in Australia, challenges doctoral students to present their research topic and its significance in three minutes using a single PowerPoint slide. Competitors develop academic, presentation and research communication skills while gaining experience pitching their research succinctly to a non-specialist audience. 

Grand Finale prizes include: 

• First Place Prize: $1,000 

• Second Place Prize: $750 

• Third Place Prize: $500 

• People’s Choice Prize: $250 

Read more about all ten grand finale finalists and learn more about the WVU 3MT Competition.

Contact: Paige Nesbit Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources 304.293.4135, Paige Nesbit

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3 Minute Thesis Competition Returns to USU

Graduate students at the uniformed services university (usu) competed in a 3 minute thesis competition on april 3., april 8, 2024 by ian neligh.

Graduate students at the Uniformed Services University (USU) once again battled the clock as they presented their big ideas during the 3 Minute Thesis Competition on April 3. 

“This event helps students with learning how to convey knowledge to the public, practice with public speaking, and working on explaining their work,” says Summer Paulson, Graduate Student Council President and a member of this year’s 3 Minute Thesis competition planning committee. “Any thesis project from a graduate student can be presented, regardless of which of the USU Ph.D. graduate programs they hail from.”

Prizes were awarded to Air Force 2nd Lt. Cecelia Mangione for both first place and People’s Choice, to Marana Rekedal for second place and Mydirah Littlepage-Saunders for third place.

Starting at USU in 2018, the 3 Minute Thesis originally began at the University of Queensland, Australia, in 2008. The competition is now held at universities around the world.

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Monday, April 08, 2024

Three-Minute Thesis Grand Finale winners announced

The Office of Graduate Education and Life announced the winners of the annual Three-Minute Thesis Competition , which was held on April 3 during WVU Graduate Student Appreciation Week and Research Week.

For the first time in WVU 3MT competition history, two doctoral students tied for first place. Denis Ruto, from the Statler College, and Paige Zalman, PhD candidate from the College of Applied Human Services, received the same scores to win. Zalman also won the People’s Choice Award. 

Even though Ruto acknowledged that it was a great challenge to narrow down his dissertation and research to under three minutes, he impressed the judges on his presentation titled “Sustainable Nutrient Management Opportunities for Small Communities with Wastewater Lagoons.” 

Meanwhile, Zalman scored points with both the judges and audience members with her presentation on “Exploring Music Major Mental Health Using Photovoice and Narrative Inquiry.” She emphasized the importance of qualitative methodologies that can help people better understand the nature of problems people are researching today.

Second place was awarded to Kayla Steinberger, an immunology specialist in the School of Medicine, for her presentation on “Hypoxia Regulates Vessel-Modifying Macrophages and Vice Versa in Tumors.” She emphasized that, as a future scientist, it’s important to know how to best communicate her science to the public, so she takes every opportunity to get in front of people and “make stuff that's really hard, sound really easy.” 

Vaishakhi Suresh, an industrial and management systems engineering student in the Statler College, received third place for her research presentation on “Exploring the Challenges of Handling Mass Fatalities during the COVID-19 Pandemic.” When asked why she entered the competition, Vaishakhi said, “It's a great opportunity to talk about her research to the rest of the WVU community.” She was also excited to meet other students in different fields and learn more about their research.

This year’s judges included Ming Lei, senior associate vice president in the Office of Research and Graduate Education and vice dean of research in the School of Medicine; Rachel Morris, biology doctoral student in the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences; Mikylah Myers, associate dean of artistic and scholarly achievement in the College of Creative Arts; Patricia Slagel, assistant director of advising and student operations of graduate programs in the John Chambers College of Business and Economics; and Daniel Totzkay, assistant professor of communication studies in the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences. 

The internationally renowned 3MT competition, originally founded by the University of Queensland in Australia, challenges doctoral students to present their research topic and its significance in three minutes using a single PowerPoint slide. Competitors develop academic, presentation and research communication skills while gaining experience pitching their research succinctly to a non-specialist audience. 

Grand Finale prizes include: 

• First Place Prize: $1,000 

• Second Place Prize: $750 

• Third Place Prize: $500 

• People’s Choice Prize: $250 

Read more about all ten grand finale finalists and learn more about the WVU 3MT Competition.

For more information, contact Betty Mei at  [email protected].