2025 UW Three Minute Thesis (3MT)

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UW Three Minute Thesis Competition (In person)
Thursday, May 22, 2025, 4 p.m. – 6 p.m. (Doors open at 3:30 p.m.)
Event starts promptly at 4 p.m.
Alder Auditorium, Seattle campus
Registration is required.

Want to see University of Washington graduate students vie for cash prizes, by presenting their capstone or research projects in 3 minutes and using only 1 slide?! Join us for the 2025 UW Three Minute Thesis Competition! The theme this year is Impact. An esteemed panel of judges will select First Place and Runner Up winners and the audience will vote for People’s Choice.

Prizes sponsored by The Graduate School:

First Place: $1,000
Runner Up: $500
People’s Choice: $500

This free event is open to the UW community. Following the presentations, there will be a reception with free light foods and refreshments.

UW 3MT® is a professional development competition that celebrates the exciting capstone and research experiences of master’s and doctoral students at the University of Washington from all three campuses. The competition supports graduate students’ capacity to effectively explain their research or capstone project in three minutes, in a language appropriate to a public audience. This event is a partnership between The Graduate School’s office of Graduate Student Affairs and the UW Libraries Research Commons.

Cash prizes will be awarded to First Place, Runner Up, and People’s Choice winners during the in-person competition!

Deadline extended: Wednesday, March 26, 2025 by Noon (PDT)
Online preliminary round: Thursday, April 24, 2025, 1 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. (PDT)
Competition day (in-person): Thursday, May 22, 2025, 4 p.m. – 6 p.m., Seattle campus

Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) is an academic research communication competition originally developed by the University of Queensland, Australia.

Past 3MT competitions: 2022 | 2023

Theme

The theme for this year’s competition is Impact. Impact can be defined as the positive outcome of a critical intervention, social policy, service provision model, legal framework, or technological innovation. How does your graduate research demonstrate impact for the public good? We’re excited to celebrate the influence our graduate students have on the world.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible to submit a proposal for UW 3MT, you must meet the following criteria:

You are a University of Washington master’s or doctoral student from any UW campus.
You have a draft of your final project (e.g. capstone, thesis, or dissertation), including findings and conclusions.
Only one member of a capstone project team may submit a proposal. If the proposal is selected, the same student who submitted the proposal must be the presenter.
Your degree will be granted during AY 2024-2025.

3MT competitions are intended for graduate students who are ready to present their capstone, thesis, or dissertation work, rather than for works-in-progress. If you are at an earlier stage with your research, we encourage you to submit a proposal to Scholars’ Studio to present your work.

Prizes

Prizes for the May 22nd event are sponsored by The Graduate School:

First Place: $1,000
Runner Up: $500
People’s Choice: $500

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Timeline

Competition Process	Date, Time & Location
Proposals are due for the online preliminary round	Deadline extended: March 26, 2025 by Noon (PDT)
Online preliminary round: Successful presenters will be selected as finalists for competition day.	April 24, 2025, 1 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. (PDT) Please note that we are unable to schedule additional preliminary round times due to staff capacity.
Competition day (In-person)	May 22, 2025 4 p.m. – 6 p.m. (Doors open at 3:30 p.m.) Alder Auditorium UW Seattle campus

Proposal Guidelines for Online Preliminary Round

The proposal must address the following components:

Capstone or Research Project Summary

In 300 words or less, please describe your capstone or research project for a general reader (without a lot of discipline-specific jargon or technical language).

Your summary:

– Must be concise and coherent
– Does not include a lot of disciplinary jargon
– Is understandable to a general, public audience

Theme: Impact

Impact is the theme for this year’s UW Three Minute Thesis. Briefly (300 words) describe how your capstone or research project demonstrates impact.

Proposal Selection Criteria

Successful proposals for preliminary rounds are based on the following two components:

1. Capstone or Research Project Summary

– Is the capstone or research project summary concise and 300 words or less?
– Does the summary include a lot of disciplinary jargon?
– Is the summary understandable to a general, public audience?

2. Theme: Impact

Does the proposal include how the capstone or research project demonstrate impact in 300 words or less?

Submit Your Proposal

Proposal form is closed.

Online Preliminary Round

If your proposal is selected, you will have an opportunity to present your capstone or research project in an online preliminary round on April 24, 2025, 1 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. (PDT). Successful presenters will be selected to present at the in-person competition, scheduled for May 22, 2025, 4 p.m. – 6 p.m., Seattle campus.

Guidance on Preparing Your 3MT Presentation

Review the following tips and resources:

Preparing for Your 3MT Presentation, University of Queensland
Tips for Effective Design and Use of the 3MT Slide, Indiana University
Time to Perfect Your Elevator Pitch, University of Pennsylvania
How to Write a PhD Elevator Pitch, Academic Positions
Communication: Two Minutes to Impress, Nature Jobs

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Successful presenters will be selected to compete as finalists on competition day, based on the following guidelines:

Content	The presentation sufficiently described the project topic, significance, and background – as well as key findings, implications, or recommendations.
Clarity	The presenter rarely used disciplinary jargon. If terminology was used, they were clearly defined for the lay audience.
Oral communication	The presenter had an engaging presence.
Visual communication	The presentation slide was clear, legible and concise. One single static PowerPoint slide is allowed. No slide transitions or animations are allowed. No props or additional electronic media (e.g. sound, music, animation, and video files) are permitted.
Theme	The presentation clearly and sufficiently described how the project demonstrates the theme of Impact.

3MT Competition Day

UW 3MT Competition (In-person)
Thursday, May 22, 2025, 4 p.m. – 6 p.m. (Doors open at 3:30 p.m.)
Event starts promptly at 4 p.m.
Alder Auditorium, Seattle campus
Registration is required.

Past Winners

2024

First Place – Sarah Pollack, master’s student in Quantitative Ecology & Resource Management
Runner Up – Niveditha Kalavakonda, doctoral student in Electrical & Computer Engineering
People’s Choice – Sherry Gu, master’s student in Applied Bioengineering

2023

First Place – Mayuree Binjolkar, doctoral student in Civil & Environmental Engineering
Runner Up – Ekta Samani, doctoral student in Mechanical Engineering
People’s Choice – Megan Maerz, doctoral student in Molecular Medicine & Mechanisms of Disease

2022

First Place – Enrique Saldarriaga, doctoral student in Health Economics and Outcomes Research
Runner Up – Julia Dreifus, doctoral student in Microbiology
People’s Choice – Douglas Wagoner, master’s student in Public Administration

2021

First Place – Beth Halsne, doctoral student in Rehabilitation Science & master’s student in Mechanical Engineering
Runner Up – Jackie Otting, master’s student in Education (Learning Science & Human Development)
People’s Choice – Arianne Caudal, doctoral student in Biochemistry

2020

Event canceled due to COVID-19

2019

First Place – Barbara Rodriguez Droguett, doctoral student in Built Environment
Runner Up – Junyue Cao, doctoral student in Molecular & Cellular Biology
People’s Choice – Junyue Cao, doctoral student in Molecular & Cellular Biology

2018

First Place – Amey Khanolkar, doctoral student in Mechanical Engineering
Runner Up – Evan Schuster, master’s student in Mechanical Engineering
People’s Choice – Amey Khanolkar, doctoral student in Mechanical Engineering

2017

First Place – Molly Grear, doctoral student in Civil & Environmental Engineering
Runner Up – Gabby Barsh, doctoral student in Molecular & Cellular Biology
People’s Choice – Zheng Li, doctoral student in Bioengineering

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Frequently Asked Questions

What happens on 3MT Competition Day?

UW Three Minute Thesis Competition (In-person)
Thursday, May 22, 2025, 4 p.m. – 6 p.m. (Doors open at 3:30 p.m.)
Event starts promptly at 4 p.m.
Alder Auditorium, UW Seattle campus
Registration is required.

In front of a general audience and a panel of esteemed judges, graduate student presenters will each compete by doing three-minute presentations about their capstone or research projects.

Prizes sponsored by The Graduate School:

First Place: $1,000
Runner Up: $500
People’s Choice: $500

This free event is open to the UW community. Following the presentations, there will be a reception with free light foods and refreshments.

Who is eligible to submit a proposal for UW 3MT?

To be eligible to submit a proposal, you must meet the following criteria:

You are a University of Washington master’s or doctoral student from any UW campus.
You have a draft of your final project (e.g. capstone, thesis, or dissertation), including findings and conclusions.
Only one member of a capstone project team may submit a proposal. If the proposal is selected, the same student who submitted the proposal must be the presenter.
Your degree will be granted during AY 2024-2025.

3MT competitions are intended for graduate students who are ready to present their capstone, thesis, or dissertation work, rather than for works-in-progress. If you are at an earlier stage with your research, we encourage you to submit proposals to Scholars’ Studio to present your work.

What is allowed on my 3MT slide?

One single static PowerPoint slide is permitted.

In preparing the slide, remember that ‘less is more.’ It does not have to include text. Visual cues are very effective in assisting the presenter’s explanation of their research. (No slide transitions, video, or animations are permitted).

Can I use sound or video files?

No additional electronic media (e.g. sound, music, animation, and video files) is permitted during the competition.

Can I use notes during the final competition?

Using notes during your presentation is allowed. Be mindful to stay engaged with the audience and not appear as if you are constantly looking at your notes.

Practicing your presentation before the competition will help you look confident and sound prepared.

Can I have props (a 3D printed model, a soccer ball, a microscope, etc.)?

No.

Is there a dress code?

Business formal or casual is suggested. Costumes are not allowed.

Can I win in more than one category during the competition?

Yes, it is possible to win a place (First or Runner Up) and also win the People’s Choice Award.

Who will be in the audience during the competition?

The audience is often a mix of graduate students, faculty, staff, and University leadership. There will also be supporters of graduate education in attendance, as well as presenters’ family and community members.

Contact

uw3mt@uw.edu

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