Preparing an Oral Presentation of Your Research Mehmet Tevfik DORAK Robert Stempel College of Public Health and Social Work Department of Environmental & Occupational Health September 19,

Outline Basics of Oral Presentation Learning from mistakes Effective Presentations Emphasizing the right Advanced Topics Final Checklist: Dos and Donts 2

Routine Stuff Know your audience Follow the same order as a manuscript Use the oral part of the presentation to fill in the missing details of the slides Use spoken and written words together (do not read verbatim from the slides) Keep the level of detail to a minimum Be brave: discuss the limitations of your study Conclusions: do not just sum up the results, provide an interpretation End: Make it obvious 3

Basics of Oral Presentation The following annoy people: - No sign of enthusiasm or excitement - Wrong color scheme, small font, invisible items - No intention to be heard kind of behavior - No regard for the audience - Attempt to overwhelm the audience with information / knowledge Then, dont do it! 4

Basics of Oral Presentation No sign of enthusiasm or excitement Looking like a nervous wreck -practice more Not enjoying what you are doing -change your field Tired, sick or pre-occupied -cancel, postpone, explain, apologize No time for presentation -dont do it If you are not enthusiastic, how will the audience be? 5

Basics of Oral Presentation Wrong color scheme 6

Basics of Oral Presentation No intention to be heard kind of behavior Speaking low -speak up Speaking away from the audience -speak towards the audience Faint and off-putting slides -get better in making slides Mean what you do, achieve what you aim! 7

Basics of Oral Presentation No regard for the audience No enthusiasm, speaking low, looking away No contact with the audience -maintain eye contact Not enough preparation, sloppy mistakes -prepare better Talking to the wrong audience -know your audience before you prepare The audience is your customer; treat them well. 8

Basics of Oral Presentation Sloppy mistakes Spelling errors Punctuation errors Alignment errors Capitalization errors Font and boldface errors Scientific errors However trivial they may be, such errors work against you on the subconscious of the audience (and the judges). 9

Basics of Oral Presentation Attempt to overwhelm the audience with information / knowledge The idea is not to show them how much you know or how little they know Your aim is to communicate your findings You want to make sense to the audience Keep it simple, keep them interested 10

Basics of Oral Presentation 11

Basics of Oral Presentation What was wrong with the previous slide? 12

Basics of Oral Presentation Visual Aid Rules Keep it simple Minimize words Use large fonts List key points Use exact phrasing Use color It did not blend in! 13

Outline Basics of Oral Presentation Basics of Oral Presentation Learning from mistakes Effective Presentations Emphasizing the right Advanced Topics Final Checklist: Dos and Donts 14

Effective Presentations What to include and what not to include How to start and how to end a presentation Order of a presentation Answering questions 15

Effective Presentations What to include and what not to include outline some background, rationale, aims methodsRESULTS implications, conclusions Not a lot of theory No individual or group advertisement 16

Effective Presentations How to start and how to end a presentation Do not just read out the title (again!), it is already on the screen Do not finish with a data slide Do not let the Chair remind the audience that you have finished Finish with a bang, which should be an exciting Interpretation & take home message Inviting questions is not your job! 17

Effective Presentations Order of a presentation TitleOutline Background (introduction) MethodsResults Discussion, including limitations Conclusions, including a take home message (Acknowledgements) Keep signposting throughout the presentation 18

Effective Presentations Outline & Signposting 19

Effective Presentations Results The most important component of your research You will be judged by the quality of your results 20

Effective Presentations Answering questions No harm in saying I dont know the answer or I did not think about this before Beware of people with big egos, and be prepared Solutions: deferral to the break; acknowledging the criticism; sticking with the content (not the tone) Beware of people who must ask questions Treat everyone like a gentleman (you know why) 21

Outline Basics of Oral Presentation Basics of Oral Presentation Learning from mistakes Effective Presentations Effective Presentations Emphasizing the right Advanced Topics Final Checklist: Dos and Donts 22

Advanced Topics Symphonic structure -resolution of a dissonant chord, recapitulation ruleArticulation -go and see a play by professionals Dont forget to breath -learn diaphragm breathing 23

Advanced Topics Symphonic structure Exposition - Development - Recapitulation (+/- Coda) Dont forget what you have set out to talk about, and revisit it at the end to tie the knot! Create suspension to keep people interested Mention something and tell them you will explain later 24

Advanced Topics Articulation 25

Advanced Topics Dont forget to breath 26

Advanced Topics Dont forget to breath 27

And finally: Work on the subconscious Keep unity in mind Color scheme, including background Have a recurrent theme on each slide if possible Font and size Dont pick and mix from different sources without some coherence Be consistent Consider symmetry, alignment, proportionality 28

And finally: Work on the subconscious 29

Outline Basics of Oral Presentation Basics of Oral Presentation Learning from mistakes Effective Presentations Effective Presentations Emphasizing the right Advanced Topics Advanced Topics Final Checklist: Dos and Donts 30

What to Do and What Not to Do - Do not sit! Stand and walk around always in eye contact - Radiate energy and interest, not lethargy - One slide per minute is the rule of thumb - Do not waste time complaining about lack of time when there is indeed only little time to do the job - Do not ramble on, focus on main arguments 31

What to Do and What Not to Do - Vary your voice, and pause occasionally to make emphasis - While preparing, rehearse in front of a mirror - Record your rehearsal and listen to yourself - Do not memorize what you are going to say - Do not overload your slides, list only key points, and let your voice do the rest 32

What to Do and What Not to Do - Make sure each slide has a full self-explanatory title of its own - Avoid dark background if you can, consider lighting of the room - Keep signposting - Be consistent with everything (background, lists, punctuation, capitalization, font/size/color) (background, lists, punctuation, capitalization, font/size/color) - Dont try to be fancy (ever changing background, distracting background, transitions, excessive clip art, animations or videos) - Do not exceed your time limit; they may pull the plug off - Thank the audience at the end 33

Outline Basics of Oral Presentation Learning from mistakes Effective Presentations Emphasizing the right Advanced Topics Final Checklist: Dos and Donts 34

Check the Rubric! 35

Preparing an Oral Presentation of Your Research Mehmet Tevfik DORAK Robert Stempel College of Public Health and Social Work Department of Environmental & Occupational Health Sept 19, 2013 Thank you for Your Attention! 36

Preparing an Oral Presentation of Your Research Appendix: Additional Resources 37

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