York University will for the first time host 3MT (Three Minute Thesis) Ontario, a research competition that gives graduate students across the province three minutes to present their research to a panel of judges.
The event runs Thursday, April 19, beginning with a reception at 9:30am and then presentations from 10am to noon. Finalists from 20 graduate schools across Ontario will compete in this event.
The 3MT exercise develops academic, presentation and research communication skills. It also supports the development of research students' capacity to effectively explain their research in language appropriate to an intelligent but non-specialist audience.
3MT Ontario is a public event and is free to attend. It is organized by York University's Faculty of Graduate Studies and it takes place at the Sandra Faire and Ivan Fecan Theatre.
York held its local 3MT competition on April 5, where PhD candidate Annalise D'Souza earned first place for her presentation called "Mathematical modelling of brain performance across the life span." D'Souza will join the finalists from other Ontario grad schools on April 19 for a chance to earn a spot at the National 3MT Competition, hosted by the Canadian Association for Graduate Studies.
Finalists in 3MT Ontario will earn prizes for first place ($1,000), second place ($500) and third place ($250), as well as a Participant's Choice Award ($25). Those who earn from first to fifth place spots will also be selected as participants in the National 3MT Competition.
Along with special guest Rob Baker, guitarist for The Tragically Hip, the Faculty of Graduate Studies has invited several graduate studies alumni of York University to serve on this year's panel. To see the full list of judges and read their bios, visit the 3MT Ontario website.
Event background
The first 3MT competition was held at the University of Queensland in Australia in 2008, with 160 research higher degree students competing. In 2009 and 2010, the 3MT competition was promoted to other Australian and New Zealand universities and enthusiasm for the concept grew. Since 2011, the popularity of the competition has increased and 3MT competitions are now held in more than 600 universities and institutions across 59 countries worldwide.
Beginning in 2013, Ontario hosted its first provincial 3MT competition featuring representatives from 20 graduate schools.