UA to Host Annual Three Minute Thesis Competition

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Fifteen graduate students at The University of Alabama will compete for a chance to win scholarships and monetary awards in the final competition of this year’s Three Minute Thesis.

The UA Graduate School is hosting the competition, now in its fourth year at UA, Nov. 15 from 6-7:30 p.m. in room 1000 of North Lawn Hall.

The Three Minute Thesis is an engaging, interdisciplinary academic competition that celebrates the exciting research being conducted by graduate students.

Developed by The University of Queensland, the competition challenges students who are pursuing their master’s degree or doctorate to present a compelling oration on their thesis or dissertation topic, explaining its significance using language appropriate to a non-specialist audience, in just three minutes.

Each audience member who attends the final competition will receive a ballot, and the audience will vote for the “People’s Choice Award.”

The scholarships and awards will be used to support the students’ research and conference travel. This year’s competitors represent an array of academic departments and disciplines.

In the 2015 competition, Anjana Venkatesan, of Groveport, Ohio, won a $1,000 scholarship from the UA Graduate School, a $500 research and travel grant from the Graduate Student Association and a trip to the Council of Southern Graduate Schools regional Three Minute Thesis Competition in Charlotte, North Carolina, for her presentation titled “The Everglades and Beyond: Understanding Wetland Carbon Dynamics.”

The competition also serves as a professional development exercise that gives students the opportunity to clarify and crystalize their research ideas and discoveries while honing their presentation and communication skills.

Additionally, their outstanding work will be shared with the broader community through a special film that capsulizes the competition and includes behind-the-scenes features and biographic backstories on participants. The program will be created by the Center for Public Television & Radio and will be broadcast in the spring of 2017.