Please read these instructions carefully so that the symposium can truly reflect the excellence of your work. The time and location of your presentation can be found on the Symposium Schedule page.

Please note: All presenters will be recognized at the Opening Plenary session of the Symposium, and you are expected to be there. You should also plan to attend sessions throughout the day, in addition to your own. 

Poster Presenters

1. Prepare posters that can fit approximately a 4 ft. X 4 ft. poster space. Make sure you include in your poster your presentation title, name, and department. You are also encouraged to include your abstract in the poster itself, as not everyone who comes to your poster will have read it in the program.
2. We strongly encourage you to practice your poster presentation at least once with your faculty sponsor, and preferably also in front of your friends and peers. You should expect to spend no more than 3-5 minutes discussing your poster with any given individual. 
3. Remember: to be an effective presenter, you must be able to explain your work to a student peer or faculty member outside your discipline. For this symposium, that is your target audience. 
4. Make certain you are aware of the location for the poster session to which your poster has been assigned well in advance of the Symposium.
5. We will supply each presentation with one poster board and an easel or other poster stand. We will also provide long pins with which you can mount your posters. These supplies will be provided to you by the moderator of your respective poster session who will be there 30 minutes prior to the beginning of the poster session. You should plan to be set up completely at least 15 minutes prior to the beginning of the session.
6. You must be at your poster for the entire session. For group posters, please arrange for at least one presenter to be present at all times.

Oral Presenters

1. Length of Talk: Almost all individual presentations are scheduled for 20 minutes: plan a 15-minute talk plus 5 minutes for questions. Some panel sessions are scheduled for longer: for these, please allow about 5 minutes for questions. Please be sure to keep within these times.
2. To be an effective presenter, you must be able to explain your work to a student peer and faculty member outside of your discipline. Again, recall that this audience is your target audience. We expect you to practice your talk several times, with your faculty sponsor, friends and peers, and on your own. How much practice is enough? When you are starting to bore yourself, you are almost there. Then practice a couple more times shortly before your presentation time. If you can get away from prepared text and notes, so much the better!
3. On symposium day, come at least 15 minutes prior to your session’s start time—even if another panel is taking place in that venue. Identify yourself (wait until the current panel ends) to the moderator assigned to your session. You can tell him or her how to pronounce your name and provide any special information that you’d like included in your introduction.
4. The moderator will open and close the panel and will introduce each presenter. Moderators are responsible for keeping the panel on time, and therefore keeping you on time, and they will mediate the discussion after presentations. Moderators will not allow talks to run over time.

Important advice: You should be thoroughly prepared to present your talk if technology fails. Bring your notes/critical handouts that you may need if PowerPoint fails. Technology is not foolproof, even if you took all the precautions we have indicated above.

For students presenting in other formats

For all other questions regarding the Symposium Schedule, contact the Dean's Office.