One of the main objectives of the symposium is to showcase the excellent research and scholarly work that postdocs conduct at the University of Kentucky (UK) and share it with the campus community at large. As such, postdocs are invited to present their work at the Postdoc Poster Session, Postdoc Talk Competition, and the Postdoc Lightning Talk Competition.  

Postdoc Poster Session

The Postdoc Poster Session is an opportunity for postdocs to share their research in a relaxed atmosphere with fellow researchers on campus. Posters are encouraged to be accessible to a broad academic audience including graduate students, postdocs, and faculty from a wide spectrum of disciplines.  

Winners will be selected before the poster session on abstract quality by the SOPS executive committee. 

Prizes: $200 for 1st place, $150 for 2nd place, $100 for 3rd place, $50 for 4th place

Postdoc Talk Competition

The Postdoc Talk Competition is an opportunity for postdocs to showcase and present their research or scholarly work to a scientifically diverse and educated audience in 10 minutes. 

Winners will be selected by a panel of faculty judges based on speaker's proficiency in communication, enthusiasm, language, visuals, and articulation of research. For more details see the scoring rubric here: Postdoc Talk Competition Scoring Rubric

Prizes: $300 for 1st place, $200 for 2nd place

Postdoc 3MT Competition

The Postdoc 3MT Competition is an opportunity for postdocs to tell an appealing story about their research or scholarly work to a general audience (i.e. non-specialist audience) in 3 minutes or less with a single static slide. The Three-Minute Thesis (3MT) format was developed in 2008 by the University of Queensland in Australia and is now practiced at universities around the globe. It is very different than other academic exercises in research distillation, such as pitches and lightening talks, and is intended to help researchers communicate effectively with a non-specialist audience. 

Winners will be selected by a panel of 3MT experts based on speaker's proficiency in communicating and engaging with a non-specialist audience. For more details see the scoring rubric here: Postdoc 3MT Competition Scoring Rubric

Prizes: $200 for 1st place, $150 for 2nd place, $100 for 3rd place, $50 for 4th place

Abstracts

All submitted abstracts will be considered for the Postdoc Poster Session. Participation in the Postdoc Talk Competition and Postdoc 3MT Competition is highly encouraged!  

Your abstract should speak to a diverse scientific audience beyond your specific field of research or scholarly work. Please include authors and structure with subheadings (Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion). Abstract text should be no more than 250 words, abstract title should be no more than 25 words.

When submitting your abstract, if you wish to participate in the competitions, you will be prompted to provide alternative titles for the Postdoc Talk Competition (should speak to a scientifically diverse and educated audience) and Postdoc 3MT Competition (should speak to a general audience).