1. Alora Korb Graduate Assistant, i3 Suite College of Graduate Studies
3 Minute Thesis Guide
Alora Korb
Graduate Assistant, i3 Suite
College of Graduate Studies
i3 Graduate Suite – College of Graduate Studies

2. i3 Graduate Suite – College of Graduate Studies
What is it?
A 3 minute presentation of your research that focuses on the WHAT, HOW, and WHY
What you are doing
How you are doing it
Why it is important or why you’re studying it
Sounds pretty similar to your abstract, right?
No results yet? No worries! 
Judging criteria does not explicitly mention results
BUT can be beneficial edge if you have them!
Remember – it’s a competition!
1st place, 2nd place, & People’s Choice (voted by the audience) receive monetary prizes and award plaques
Winner of the doctoral competition also goes to Conference of Southern Graduate Schools regional competition (Spring 2016)
i3 Graduate Suite – College of Graduate Studies

3. i3 Graduate Suite – College of Graduate Studies
Good Presentations
Engage the audience! (Remember, they vote for “People’s Choice” award!)
Explicitly connect research to “the real world”
Speak clearly and comprehensively
Remember, the audience does not speak your discipline’s language
No “academic” language
Choose words wisely
Active verbs, shorter words & sentences
No jargon or acronyms
Pace yourself and find your own rhythm
Consciously slow your talking speed
Practice your material and delivery often! Familiarity with your script (and topic) will help the presentation flow more naturally and easily
i3 Graduate Suite – College of Graduate Studies

4. i3 Graduate Suite – College of Graduate Studies
3MT® Winner Videos
Need a visual for good presentations?
Check out 3MT® videos
from around the world!
Many universities in the U.S. also have their own competitions – you can find their winner videos online too!
Youtube or Googling “3MT® winner videos” will help.
i3 Graduate Suite – College of Graduate Studies

5. i3 Graduate Suite – College of Graduate Studies
The 3 Cs
Concise Concrete Connective
Strive to be
i3 Graduate Suite – College of Graduate Studies

6. i3 Graduate Suite – College of Graduate Studies
The 3 Cs
Concise
Identify the core of the idea and keep that the focus
Simplify as much as possible!
Exercise
Complete this sentence in 50 words (or less): “The purpose of my research is…”
Your story has a beginning, middle, and end
Cohesion - connect your ideas
Think circular. Start one place…
if you branch off, remember to come back
i3 Graduate Suite – College of Graduate Studies

7. i3 Graduate Suite – College of Graduate Studies
The 3 Cs
Concrete
Try to use a metaphor to explain your research method, topic, or key problem
Exercise
Think of the following:
Remember the chorus of your favorite song
Remember the house where you spent most of your childhood
Remember the definition of “truth”
Remember the Mona Lisa
Remember the definition of watermelon
Which ones are most vivid?
i3 Graduate Suite – College of Graduate Studies

8. i3 Graduate Suite – College of Graduate Studies
The 3 Cs
Connective
Emotional engagement - relate to others on an emotional level
Versus simply presenting ideas abstractly or merely statistically
Well-placed humor
Spark curiosity through
Surprising or unexpected aspects of your research
Story-telling
A “hook”
i3 Graduate Suite – College of Graduate Studies

9. i3 Graduate Suite – College of Graduate Studies
Visuals
Allowed 1 single, static PowerPoint slide
No use of additional electronic media (sound/video files)
Limit of 3 minutes maximum (or else disqualification!)
No additional props (costumes, instruments)
i3 Graduate Suite – College of Graduate Studies

10. i3 Graduate Suite – College of Graduate Studies
Questions?
Extra resources
3MT® website
TAMUCC’s 3MT ® website
This excellent PDF
Any other questions?
Contact us at
Or stop by our i3 Graduate Suite office located in the library
Room 220 (2nd floor)
i3 Graduate Suite – College of Graduate Studies